Late spring is a wonderful time to grab your camera, and head out exploring. Take a hike, go hunt down a few yard sales, and stumble upon a some unexpected treasures in your own backyard. This is what I’ve been doing all weekend, and the sights and sounds that I have committed to memory will easily lend themselves to some creative endeavors in the near future. But even if I were not the creative type, being aware and appreciative of the things around me, encourages an overall creative and spiritual well-being.
It is hard to describe the things that a good walk can do for you. Being active or at least present outdoors on a nice day makes me feel like I accomplished something, even when no material product was produced. The accomplishments of a day outdoors are much less tangible than a days work indoors painting or building, but both are valuable in a way that I am struggling to put into words. I think what I am trying to say is, if your head is cluttered, if you are being unproductive, if you feel lazy or dissatisfied, spend a little time away from your normal routine to refresh yourself and find a new source of inspiration.
My friends and I took a trip to Walden Pond in Concord, Ma, to spend a little time hiking and lounging outside.
“Henry David Thoreau lived at Walden Pond from July 1845 to September 1847. His experience at Walden provided the material for the book Walden, which is credited with helping to inspire awareness and respect for the natural environment. Because of Thoreau’s legacy, Walden Pond has been designated a National Historic Landmark and is considered the birthplace of the conservation movement. Park Interpreters provide tours and ongoing educational programs. The Reservation includes the 102-foot deep glacial kettle-hole pond. Mostly undeveloped woods totaling 2680 acres, called “Walden Woods,” surround the reservation.” – Department of Conservation and Recreation
People go to Walden Pond today for many different reasons. They go to hike, to swim, to paint, to write, to fish, or to do just about any other leisurely activity. Its a quite place, beautiful in every season, but probably most relaxing in the off-season when there are not a lot of people. However, the crowds never get to be too overwhelming, because the park only allows 1,000 visitors at any time.
The part of the park that I found most interesting, visually, was the original site of Thoreau’s house, where visitors to the park stack rocks to commemorate the site and their visit there. I took a lot of pictures of these rocks because the shapes that they made were beautiful, and would be quite interesting to paint. I really like painting rocks….
The next day, while doing yard-work all day, (another thing that made me feel fairly accomplished) we found new born baby birds in one of the bushes in the back yard. Here is a picture of the two. We were careful not to touch or disturb the nest as we watched the two parents fly back and forth from the next bringing worms all day long. Those two ate a lot! The pictures that I collected from this site will be great additions to my photo reference library incase I ever need to draw a pair of baby birds in the future.
Finally, this morning, I decided the go on a yard-sale hunt for cool things that I could use to make other things or decorate with stuff! A very vague mission, I know. But I very much enjoy going through piles of miscellaneous, unloved goods, looking for items that could be useful for future crafts of cosplays. I didn’t find anything for cosplay, but I did end up buying two glass jars and a planter pot, all for under 75CENTS. Awesome. I love jars. and I love yard sales. They are great. And I can’t wait to come up with all of the ways I am going to fill those jars. Maybe sea shells or marbles or SAND!
A word of advice on yard sales from a yard-sale consumer, the bigger your selection of small trinkets and fabrics and inexpensive containers, the longer you will keep customers like me there, who want to go through everything making sure that they’ve missed nothing that can be re-used.
So! Get outside before it gets too hot out! It’s good for you.
