How To Be Alone (But Not Lonely) In Nature
On Instagram Stories I asked you to give me a piece of content that you’d love for me to make that would bring value to you. Someone close to me replied, “How to be content being by yourself in nature. I struggle with feeling lonely when I go out by myself”.
Firstly, thank you for sharing that this has been your experience. It’s a tough thing to feel lonely in the outdoors and I believe that many people, especially women, can relate to this. Loneliness is certainly a barrier to spending time alone in nature - one that I hope to help remove for you.
In a recent short essay I wrote, “In the darkness of the night on the Muskoka River, I was taught that although I may be a solo paddler, I’m never really traveling alone. The Spirit of the river kept me company as the shadowed reflections of trees lined the riverbank as beacons guiding me to safe passage”. This snippet serves to show that you aren’t truly alone out there - nature is alive and with you.
When you head out into nature by yourself there is an incredible opportunity to deepen your relationship with nature. Being lonely implies separation and isolation, but the truth is that there is so much connection available to be experienced in nature. What do you say we look at how we can shift the feeling of loneliness towards a feeling of connection…
Building a connection with nature is just like you how you might meet and connect with a friend over the years, nurturing the relationship throughout its many seasons. What might it be like to explore a connection with nature with the intent of becoming a close friend? What might it be like to get to know a particular element, to engage your senses in the environment, and to understand the character of the landscapes around you? What kind of person might you be when you are building a relationship in the outdoors? I bet adventurous, curious, playful, compassionate, and filled with awe.
When you visit a place often and repeatedly you strengthen your bond with that place. By returning often you will pay more attention to the little things and notice subtle differences day to day, and big differences as the seasons change. You will appreciate the many ways to experience beauty. You will come to know the personality of the place (and maybe it will even know yours) and you will also start to feel a strong pull towards caring for it. Where is a place in the outdoors that holds meaning to you or that you might like to strengthen your bond with and return to time and time again? What might you like to do in nature with the intention of building connection to place?
I want to give you a loving reminder that venturing into the outdoors does not need to be a grand adventure far away from home into the wilderness, although sometimes that is certainly nice. We often think we are meant to have epic experiences of beauty and awe but there is so much to be experienced on the micro level. How can you be in appreciation and be present and inspired by the smallest expressions of nature around you?
Sometimes it can feel lonely when we venture into nature as we might actually feel a bit separate from it. Consider a Venn diagram, where you and nature are separate. What we are seeking is to create mindful experiences in the outdoors that help close the gap so that you begin to find moments where connection happens and you overlap with nature. Overtime this place of intersection will grow stronger and bigger until you come to remember that you are nature, and nature is you.
I invite you to journal as you reflect on these thoughts. What insights come forward about your current relationship and connection with nature?
Some ideas to leave you with:
- Try a creative activity in nature. Bring a journal, paints, or craft and see what nature inspires you to create.
- Take your current yoga or movement practice into a new location outside. Rise with the sun or chase it as it sets.
- Bring a podcast along if it helps you to feel like you have company while you explore the place that you’d like to start to build a deep relationship with.
Check out the infographic below on some ideas for how to ground, connect, discover, and grow in nature. I wish you beautiful experiences in nature - alone, but not lonely.
Thanks to the many folks who contributed ‘tips for being alone in nature’ through Instagram. Your contributions are woven into the above graphic - Shania, Michelle, Kat, Lacey, Lisa, Chanel, Diana, Tara, Maddi, Amanda, Heather, Monique, Angelique, Devin, Katie, and Sylvie.
Do you have any advice that you would share with someone who struggles with feeling lonely when they are alone in nature? Leave a comment below.
