Nature Journal 12


Nature Appreciation
            Lopez critiques the average American by claiming that they have no knowledge of geography and by doing this he raises an interesting question: Can one appreciate nature without knowing it? After all, a person can enjoy a delicious meal without knowing each ingredient and amount. A person does not need to where the vegetables were sourced not the exact seasonings employed to fully enjoy and appreciate a meal. Nor does a person need to know all there is in order to enjoy a painting. One can see the beauty in a painting without knowing the history of art of the style of painting. A person does not need to know about the brushes employed or the techniques mastered over a lifetime to know if the painting that they are viewing is one they like and appreciate. Is this the same of nature appreciation? What is it to appreciate nature if not just the recognition of its striking beauty and glorious power? One can certainly accomplish this without knowing the name of the particular mountain that they are hiking or the longitude of the majestic desert arch that they observe. Or is nature different than a delicious meal or a painting because it was not created by anyone to be viewed, it simply just exists? Meals are created to be eaten and painting are made to be seen but nature was not made for anyone. Its presence is its own. Art is made with a message, it is created to express something, but nature is not. It is something else, something beyond our humanity. There is no easy answer to the question of nature appreciate and that only serves to make us question both it and ourselves more.

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