When looking over “Nature’s Deficit Disorder” and the “Restorative Environment,” I learned that even during my time as an elementary school student, our physical education classes were being cut short while becoming less important, and our elective classes were becoming nonexistent. The FCAT was a very real and scary test that we had to prepare for every year. I remember going into one of my elective classes and instead of playing with pottery and sculpting clay, we were reading passages from the overhead and answering multiple questions. I knew we were preparing for the FCAT and I knew I didn’t enjoy it, but I didn’t realize how much emphasis they were putting on these standardized tests. In my case, I was never diagnosed with ADHD, but I had many friends that were. In elementary school I knew which friends of mine needed “extra help” because they couldn’t focus as well as I was during FCAT practice. I would talk to them and they would tell me that it’s just becoming harder and harder to focus during those sessions. Richard Louv said that “between 1991 and 2003, the percentage of students who attended physical education class dropped from 42% to only 28%. Field trips were cut. Even as school districts decreased students’ experiences beyond the classroom walls, they increased the number of school hours.” After hearing this, it began to make sense to me. I never realized that as kid, I needed to be outside way more than I thought I did. I spent time outside, but it was usually when I was playing sports. I also had hockey almost every weekend so the time I spent just playing outside became more minimal. I remember being stressed out as a child over school, but I was only in elementary school. That should never be the case. As I’ve matured, I’ve realized my love for the environment and my longing for spending time outside in natural environments. I was really able to relate to the boy in the section about the “Restorative Environment.” The boy’s mother said “My son is still on Ritalin, but he’s so much calmer in the outdoors that we’re seriously considering moving to the mountains.” My mother actually used to live in Rochester, New York. She was up there about two weeks prior to my birth which occurred in Spring Hill, Florida. This was such a blessing because I don’t know what I would do if I wasn’t able to go outside and enjoy my surroundings everyday. When I become stressed out, or even to avoid becoming stressed out, I go for a walk around the lake near my apartment complex. I just leisurely stroll by looking at the water and fish swimming around in it. The sun reflects off of the water so my sunglasses are well needed. I’ll even take my shoes off and walk in the water to about knee level. I watch the ripples flow away from me in a systematic flow of energy and it soothes my soul. The feeling I get is that of complete peace and serenity. It’s a feeling that I can’t attain unless I’m in nature. If these things were taken away from me, it would be like taking away a bowl of food from a hungry dog. I would be lost without that restorative environment. During a study, they found that greenery in a child’s everyday environment, even views of green through a window, specifically reduces attention-deficit symptoms (Louv 8). Even not being diagnosed with attention-deficit disorders, I feel that this was ultimately crucial to my well being as a child, and now. Being outside is more restorative than any drug a doctor could give me. Doctors are quick to diagnose and quick to write prescriptions for kids who show any signs of being distracted. These kids are distracted for a reason, they long to be in nature and the environment, they feel at home physically, mentally, and spiritually. In the story, “Touching the Sky with a Stick,” Daniel Ybarra took these troubled kids to the village of Kake in Alaska. These kids had never been out of their inner city and now they’re in an environment that feels like a completely different world. One boy said, “I’ve never been to a place so dark at night. I seen seals, bears, whales, salmon jumpin...I felt like I was in a past life.” This description reminded me of this wilderness park just east of the city of Tampa. Visiting my girlfriend in the city is fun and all, but it doesn’t come close to the feeling when went to this park on a random Saturday afternoon. This park was centered around the Hillsborough river, and it is a hidden gem for sure. We walked alongside the bank of the winding river for almost 3 miles and encountered a vast amount of hidden oasis. We saw an infinite amount of birds, numerous fish, squirrels, snakes, and even alligators. When I read about David Orr’s “Love it or Lose it: The Coming Biophilia Revolution,” I realized that many people are ignorant to the fact that they’re biophobia comes from being ignorant to the environment and nature entirely. People don’t see the importance because society has put such a strain on getting the highest paying job and do whatever it takes to obtain that job. This mentality makes it easy for many people to avoid caring or learning about nature. We are genetically made to express our biophilia, which is our innate love for the natural world and other life forms. I wholeheartedly feel this connection and love for the world and other life forms. I never want to squish bugs or kill ants. I would rather take them outside or just left them crawl around. I also feel that this world is not at our disposal like many people treat it. This world was here long before humans and I plan to live with it as peacefully as I can. I find that I fall deeper and deeper in love with the environment, and the world as a whole, each and every time I spend time outside. I’m able to take in something new every time I go outside. I have definitely found my sense of place.
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