Connecting with Nature

Spending a lot of time trying looking inwards for soul searching, I am at times reminded that we also need to look outside to learn about ourselves, about our world and the universe. National Geographic is a magazine that I started to read in my high school years. To improve my English and my vocabulary I used to buy Time and Newsweek magazines, The Economist and National Geographics with my allowances. At the time they were expensive for my student budget, but I preferred buying them to some other activities. I was especially impressed by the photographs and articles in National Geographics. About twenty years later, we have both the magazine printed in Turkish as well as the National Geographics channels on cable TV. Nat Geo and Nat Geo Wild are two channels I watch more than any other program in total. They are life savers when there is nothing to watch and are always interesting.

Did you know that there are wild dogs in India that leopards run away from? Did you know that if Manhattan had the population concentration of Alaska, only 25 people would be living there? Did you know that there are shepherd dog competitions in the US? I did not know that chimpanzees offer their hands to each other as a form of showing trust. Did you know not to feed monkeys in nature since monkeys are susceptible to microbes that can be transmitted through the human hand and also that bananas are not that great for monkeys? You may say that you do not have the time or what difference does it make if we know about them or not? I think they are to remind us that we are a part of a world bigger than us, part of a creation that we belong to and yet have forgotten that we do. Maybe we need to raise our kids with the conscious that we are a part of nature that needs to respect the rest and not consumers and controllers of this earth of ours.

Growing up in a big city, in Istanbul, I had little contact with nature. When we were kids, only when visiting our Dad at his construction sites or when we were on vacation me and my brother would have some contact with nature. There were only a few parks that we could really go to since we lived right in the middle of Istanbul. I was in the US for college, I lived in the beautiful town of Ithaca, NY where Cornell University is, yet the nature there was well controlled. There were a lot of dogs and squirrels on campus. Of course there were a lot of forests in Upstate New York, yet since I was not that nature friendly at the time, I did not try many outdoors activities. Living in Fethiye for the last two years I am able to see that kids in this city are so much closer to and are aware of nature than kids in big cities such as Istanbul and Ankara. I will admit that now I am less bothered by bugs and wild animals than two years ago.

I wish that there were courses teaching about the trees, other plants and animals at school. If you are not from a rural area, it is not easy to learn. The other day on I was on the airport shuttle bus going to Dalaman to catch a flight to Istanbul, and could not help but overhear some Turkish tourists who were curious to know about and at the same time clueless about the trees that we were on the sides of the main road. I admit that I was in the same situation a few years ago. Now I know my orange trees, lemon trees, pomegranate trees, carob, cherry and apricot trees and many more. It is very nice to see that kids from villages are very knowledgeable about their natural habitat. In big cities it is easy to forget that we are a part of nature. In Istanbul a bug means a nuisance, yet in Fethiye it is a part of the natural surroundings.

Since I go back and forth from Istanbul to Fethiye almost once a week, seeing two different places at such a frequency allow me to see the differences in the two cities. In Fethiye people seem to be aware that they belong to a greater whole. Only if we are aware of that more, I believe life could be less of a struggle. Being aware that there is life out there may help us put our issues and problems in perspective. And may be respecting our mother earth will help us be more patient and loving with our human brothers and sisters as well. May love always be with you.

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Natural Remedy of the Week

For Urinary Tract Infections:

Drink Cranberry Juice.
It helps to prevent and treat bladder infections. It is known to make the walls of the bladder slippery and prevents bacteria from holding on.

Suggested mixture to prepare in a glass:
60 ml (2fl oz) water
125 ml (about 4 fl oz) unsweetened cranberry juice
60 ml (2 fl oz) unsweetened apple juice

Drink six glasses of this cranberry preparation when you realize you may have such an infection for one day. You may continue to drink two glasses of it daily for 10 days as a preventive measure.

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Enjoy the lovely nature and weather in this beautiful part of Turkey.
I wish you a wonderful week.
With love,
Z.
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Affirmation of the Week:
“I am peaceful with the details of life.”
By Louise L. Hay
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Quote of the Week:
“Let us remember, so far as we can, that every unpleasant thought is a bad thing literally put in the body”
Prentice Mulford
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Book of the Week:
“The Laws of Spirit” By Dan Millman
The Turkish translation of this book is available under the name “Ruhun Yasaları”.