Cleaning the chicken coop turned into an unexpected experience of awe! The Garden Girls hadn't laid eggs in months, so I thought henopause had arrived. But when I opened the nesting boxes, there they were—five nutrient-rich eggs! This moment of pure delight and awe is a powerful reminder to savor these moments of sharing care and connection to the comfort found in reciprocity.
Every time a gift is given, it is enlivened and regenerated through the new spiritual life it engenders both in the giver and in the recipient.
–Margaret Atwood
Indeed, I delight in caring with the Garden Girls, I love them, and I know they love me, too. We share an interdependent nurturing relationship, giving and receiving, growing
Reciprocal-Shared Care.
Rewilding Care: A Return to Nature
re·wild:
to return to a more natural or wild state – to make or become natural or wild again
Thirteen years ago, I moved to California—a place I had dreamed of since I was a teenager. At 19, my best friend and I went On The Road, embarking on a 10-month pilgrimage across the U.S., guided by the "green-shaded areas" on the map: the national forests.
We had no plans, no cell phones, no internet.
We met incredible people. Those with the least were often the most generous and deeply connected to the land, forests, rivers, lakes, and oceans they called home.
I, too, felt a deep connection with the land and the ecosystems supporting all life on Earth.
Years later, while earning my Master of Science in Gerontology, I realized something vital was missing from the curriculum: The Natural Environment.
We learned how the design of human-built environments and
how social connections are critical for maintaining health, wellbeing, and quality of life as we age, with concepts like 'social capital' and 'developmental intelligence' serving as proven ways to eradicate ageism and help us thrive in our later years.
We studied aging-in-place and applied frameworks like the AARP's Domains of Livability and the WHO's Age-Friendly Cities, which are used by cities and communities worldwide.
Yet, course after course, I couldn't ignore what was fundamentally missing—the recognition that we live on a shared home with millions of other species and ecosystems, all of which we depend on for our very survival.
The Natural Environment was missing—not even a mention in the Domains of Livability or the Age-Friendly Cities framework, despite ongoing research that shows how our health and wellbeing are inextricably linked to the health of the natural environmente that sustain us.
In 2022, The UN Decade of Healthy Aging 2021-2030 in a Climate Changing World report solidified my mission, and I began to call myself an Eco Gerontologist.
We do not have to wait for the AARP or other institutions to catch up.
We can generate an Eco Gerontology Lens Now.
📣 Time is of the essence! 🌎
We are not aging in a human-only world.
We share Home with millions and millions of other living beings.
We are all wholly interdependent, yes and, independence is a Myth.
For far too long, the field of Aging has focused on a narrow,
human-centered lens.
It is advantageous for us here and now to expand our lens.
To rediscover how to Age in Harmony with Nature.
Photo: a fawn fleeing the fires in LA
As fires continue to burn in Southern California this January,
we are at a critical moment.
In case you missed it, 2024 was Earth's hottest year on record, surpassing a dangerous warming threshold.
Our children are experiencing climate anxiety—a normal response to the environmental crisis unfolding—and the need for action has never been more urgent.
Fortunately, solutions are within reach.
From rethinking how we build our homes and communities to restoring our relationship with Nature,
adopting an Eco Gerontology lens has become increasingly vital.
Most importantly, we need to heal our relationship with Nature.
We find our commonality when we immerse ourselves outdoors and in Nature. Diversity in an ecosystem leads to a thriving, healthy environment; Nature does not segregate; there are no 'isms' in the natural world. Interconnectedness and mutual benefit are encoded in the ways of Nature.
As Professor Miles Richardson writes in his essay,
"The Transformative Change Report shows that the root cause—our unsustainable focus on the domination and consumption of nature—requires a fundamental shift in how people view and connect with the natural world. It is an essential story of our time. To deal with the biodiversity crisis, it calls for fundamental shifts in how people view and interact with the natural world. Challenging the pervasive, unsustainable relationship of domination and consumption of nature ingrained in society and institutions. This aligns with the views often held by Indigenous Peoples, advocating for practices that respect and are in harmony with nature. Relational worldviews that lie submerged beneath centuries of modernity. A situation that will persist if it goes unreported.
However, rather than interconnectedness, our collective focus, both in policy and public discourse, has been predominantly on managing symptoms—restoring habitats, mitigating pollution, and, overwhelmingly, reducing carbon emissions. The latter often a negative story of a life without things we are accustomed to. Yet, such actions are merely bandages on the deeper wound of our relationship with nature.
This relationship, rooted in viewing nature as a resource for human use rather than a partner in our existence, perpetuates the very problems we seek to solve. Even when there are calls to reconnect with nature, they often frame nature as a resource for human wellbeing, perpetuating a human-first mindset. True relational thinking doesn't focus on a dose of nature being a 'pill to pop' for our wellbeing. It sees nature as interconnected with human life and fostering this interconnectedness unites the wellbeing of people and planet—and can even improve relationships between people.
Understandably, the news focuses on reporting the (increasing) symptoms also. The lack of coverage of the Transformative Change Report is a stark reminder of the widely neglected crises of our disconnection from the rest of nature. A sustainable future is not just about saving habitats or reducing carbon footprints; it's about rethinking our relationship with the natural world at a fundamental level." – Miles Richardson, read full essay
Healing Our Relationship with Nature:
Are You Ready to Rewild Care?
One of my intentions for 2025 is to learn one bird call per moon.
I decided to focus on one bird per moon as a fun way to connect with birds and the moon's cycles simultaneously.
Oh, and I was 100% inspired by 10-year old Samuel Henderson, if you have not heard his story, I encourage you to give this NPR segment a listen!
For the full moon of January through the full moon of February, I am focusing on the California Quail.
We have a covey living in the backyard and many others nearby.
I'm having a blast thus far! As I began practicing the call
"chi-ca-go"
smiles and laughter quickly followed.
I thought:
YES! Learning bird calls and songs is pure joy, good self-care, and the perfect example of a simple yet profound way to Rewild Care. Are You ready to join me? Learning a new bird call per moon?
This morning's Awe Walk did not disappoint. The ongoing assignment in the Care Outdoors Program is at least two 15-minute weekly Awe Walks.
It is easy for our thoughts to catastrophize in these times of extraordinary change, making our daily practices not something we do when we have time, but we do as a source of necessity for our survival, like food, fresh air, water, and shelter.
Practices are just that: A Practice.
Today, during my walk, my thoughts began to cloud the present moment, and then a few quail ran across the road, and I enjoyed a few moments listening to their calls as they scurried into the chaparral.
I chimed in “chi-ca-go” “chi-ca-go”.
Silence and then a few tree sparrows perched nearby with curiosity.
And then I heard a reply,
"chi-ca-go," "chi-ca-go," and I felt immediate delight and
present-moment bliss.
Yes, Awe Walking is a practice, and the more you are intentional, the more you can slow down, become aware of your breath, and connect with the wider world around you, the more Awe you will experience.
When our human world feels out of control, connecting with Nature, like learning how to communicate with birds, is powerful—healing, nurturing, connecting, grounding, free,
and fun!
I also started my first sketch, as in addition to their calls and songs, I want to learn everything I can about their life while getting to know them through observation when I am outdoors!
When we begin to rewild care, we advocate for a return to Nature:
—reconnecting to the healing, balance, growth, and nurture found in the day-to-day reciprocity and gifts of the natural world.
Rewilding Care means shifting away from rigid, conventional approaches of care and living, and, instead, nurturing a holistic,
nature-connected philosophy.
Rewilding Care is about reconnecting with our Shared Home, with the life force that sustains all living beings, and enabling our connection to guide how we care for ourselves, others, and the world around us.
We Are All Carers.
The decline in human-nature interactions significantly threatens human and environmental health.
As urbanization continues to rise, we are increasingly disconnected from the natural world, from the reciprocity and gifts found in the natural world, leading to a catastrophic loss of biodiversity and adverse effects on physical, mental, social, and spiritual health.
Eco Gerontology emphasizes the importance of the natural environment in supporting all domains of livability and advocates for nature-connected and community-based solutions to our most pressing social and environmental challenges.
By rewilding care, we rekindle our connection with nature, caring for each other and the ecosystems that sustain us; we can co-create a healthier and more sustainable future for current and future generations.
If you're inspired to support and contribute to the
emerging field of Eco Gerontology,
join our Care Outdoors Movement.
Our next Care Outdoors Cohort starts on February 21st!
or start today on-demand.
Together, we can repair and restore our relationship with Nature,
ensuring sustainable livability for all our relations,
current and future.
"There is a revolution that needs to happen,
and it starts from inside each one of us.
When we change the way we see the world,
when we realize that we and the Earth are one
and we begin to live with mindfulness,
our own suffering will start to ease.
When we're no longer overwhelmed by our own suffering,
we will have the compassion and understanding
to treat the Earth with love and respect.
Restoring balance to ourselves,
we can begin the work of restoring balance of the Earth.
There is no difference between concern for the planet and concern for ourselves and our own wellbeing.
There is no difference between healing the planet
and healing ourselves"
–Thich Nhat Hanh
Comments