Nature does not steal time, it amplifies it. Richard Louv More Quotes by Richard Louv More Quotes From Richard Louv We have such a brief opportunity to pass on to our children our love for this Earth, and to tell our stories. These are the moments when the world is made whole. In my children's memories, the adventures we've had together in nature will always exist. Richard Louv nature memories children Another British study discovered that average eight-year-olds were better able to identify characters from the Japanese card trading game Pokemon than native species in the community where they lived: Pikachu, Metapod, and Wigglytuff were names more familiar to them than otter, beetle, and oak tree. Richard Louv eight average character By bringing nature into our lives, we invite humility. Richard Louv our-lives invites humility If a child never sees the stars, never has meaningful encounters with other species, never experiences the richness of nature, what happens to that child? Richard Louv stars nature meaningful Nature is about smelling, hearing, tasting, seeing. Richard Louv tasting hearing nature What happens when all the parts of childhood are soldered down, when the young no longer have the time or space to play in their family's garden, cycle home in the dark with the stars and moon illuminating their route, walk down through the woods to the river, lie on their backs on hot July days in the long grass, or watch cockleburs, lit by morning sun, like bumblees quivering on harp wires? What then? Richard Louv stars nature morning By letting our children lead us to their own special places we can rediscover the joy and wonder of nature. Richard Louv nature joy children When we raise our children, we relive our childhood. Forgotten memories, painful and pleasurable, rise to the surface.... So each of us thinks, almost daily, of how our own childhood compares with our children's, and of what our children's future will hold. Richard Louv future memories children Some kids don't want to be organized all the time. They want to let their imaginations run; they want to see where a stream of water takes them. Richard Louv running water kids If getting our kids out into nature is a search for perfection, or is one more chore, then the belief in perfection and the chore defeats the joy. It's a good thing to learn more about nature in order to share this knowledge with children; it's even better if the adult and child learn about nature together. And it's a lot more fun. Richard Louv nature fun children Leave part of the yard rough. Don't manicure everything. Small children in particular love to turn over rocks and find bugs, and give them some space to do that. Take your child fishing. Take your child on hikes. Richard Louv rocks fishing children Reconnection to the natural world is fundamental to human health, well-being, spirit, and survival. Richard Louv survival fundamentals world What if a tree fell in the forest and no one knew it's biological name? Did it exist? Richard Louv what-if names tree The future will belong to the nature-smart. Richard Louv deeper-understanding smart Nature-the sublime, the harsh, and the beautiful-offers something that the street or gated community or computer game cannot. Nature presents the young with something so much greater than they are; it offers an environment where they can easily contemplate infinity and eternity. Richard Louv nature games beautiful There is a real world, beyond the glass, for children who look, for those whose parents encourage them to truly see. Richard Louv nature real children Unlike television, reading does not swallow the senses or dictate thought. Reading stimulates the ecology of the imagination. Can you remember the wonder you felt when first reading The Jungle Book or Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn? Kipling’s world within a world; Twain’s slow river, the feel of freedom and sand on the secret island, and in the depths of the cave? Richard Louv reading rivers book The dugout in the weeds or leaves beneath a backyard willow, the rivulet of a seasonal creek, even the ditch between the front yard and the road-all of these places are entire universes to a young child. Richard Louv weed nature children As a species, we are most animated when our days and nights on Earth are touched by the natural world. We can find immeasurable joy in the birth of a child, a great work of art, or falling in love. Richard Louv falling-in-love children art The future will belong to the nature-smart...Th e more high-tech we become, the more nature we need. Richard Louv deeper-understanding smart needs
