The Benefits of Wandering
During my recent getaway to the Rockies, I visited a mountain town bookstore and purchased a compelling title called Rooted: Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit by Lyanda Lynn Haupt. The book is a series of brief reflections on the author's own wanderings and wonderings concerning wild places, and it seemed like an appropriate companion for my trip, as I planned to spend as much time outdoors as possible. I was ready to detox from the rigamarole of modern life.
I purposely chose a simple place to stay that was close to various mountain trails and took advantage of this immediately as I arrived. I would hike from morning until about noon. Then, I'd rest, eat lunch, relax, and read, and then head out again from afternoon until evening. Some hikes were very strenuous (at least for a flatlander like me), such as Mount Royal, which rewards your hard work with a lovely overlook of the entire Frisco and Lake Dillon area. Other hikes were pleasant and meandering, revealing various landscapes like open meadows, rushing snowmelt streams, lodgepole forests, new aspen growth, and small alpine ponds.
After the first few hours of walking the local trails, I noticed that I wasn’t even excited to be there per se, which was interesting, and I wasn’t anxious either. I was just kind of there. The sensation was surprisingly pleasant. I suppose some part of me did intend to come to the mountains to get away and spend time thinking and wrestling with deep existential ideas, but I wasn’t compelled to think of much of anything at all. It struck me that my rational brain had told me that I needed to get away so that I could really think! And then, once away, my brain seemed content to just be along for the ride. Of course, I’d have thoughts of home or work or what I might eat for dinner, but they were fleeting thoughts, and soon I’d return to noticing my surroundings. A bird here. A rock there. A crooked tree here. An adventurous ground squirrel there.
Occasionally, I’d stop for a spell and find a stump to rest on while I cracked open my new book. In an beginning chapter, Haupt, the author, reflects on the benefits of wandering. Here are a few excerpts:
“Wandering brings mind and movement into a healing congruity.”
“The root of the word wander lies in the Old English wandrain – to wend, to wind. Wandering is goalless, aimless, directionless – the motion of our steps guided not by a set path or route, but by the inclination of our spirit.”
“Wandering tilts us out of the everyday measure of chronological time and into the eternal spiral of kairos – sacred time.”
This seemed to be a appropriate explanation of my experience. “Sacred time” felt like a true description as the driving, pushing anxiety of chronological time faded into the background. It wasn’t exactly that my inner world was actively resisting doing deep inner reflection, it’s that in the midst of wandering I didn’t feel like I needed to. My intuition told me that I just needed to wander and let things be what they were. This naturally turned down the volume of my inner chatter. I also found myself wanting less, desiring less, and just happy to be where I was.
Now, obviously, I’m a professional therapist so I’m in favor of focused inner work and wrestling with hard things. It is essential to growth and healing. But it isn’t everything. We have a tool at our disposal that I think is underutilized - simple wandering without an agenda. And you don’t need to get away to the mountains to do this, though go for it if you can. You can wander in your backyard, neighborhood, or local parks - pretty much anywhere you can find nature.
If you are feeling hurried, worn out, or unfocused, try some wandering and see what happens. You might be surprised to find that your perspective shifts in a helpful way.
Happy to be in your corner,
Tom Page, LCPC
Want to receive Transformation Tips directly to your email?
Subscribe below!
