Just be present where you are. This sage advice is advised in many current mental and physical health modalities aimed to support relaxation and decreased stress: yoga, tai chi and meditation classes, for example.

Increasingly, school teachers teach this skill to help kids learn to settle themselves and to identify their feelings as a component of emotional intelligence. No matter our age, we could all improve that skill.

Some of these modalities use nature specifically as a focus for practicing being present. This article explores deeper levels of being present. At a most basic level, the practice refers to being present to what we see or hear.

I see the snow outside my window or I hear sleet falling on the window. It’s a great start.

Nature also offers more in-depth learnings about layers of being present. Let’s work with the example of snow, since we surely had some of that this winter. For example, do you see the diamonds in the snow when the sun shines on the snow? There are millions of diamonds in the snow. If you keep looking, you might be able to see a rainbow of colors appear in a single diamond in the snow. You might become aware of subtle patches of shadow over what appears to be a monotone field of snow or become aware of different snow textures in different snow storms.

Can you hear the unique depth of quiet after a new snowfall?

Moving to a deeper level, can you be present to identify how snow affects you? Does it make you feel irritated (because you have to shovel?). Or, might it make you feel energized as you take in the diamonds in the snow? Might deeply contemplating snow might cause you to feel awe or some other spiritual experience.

Diamonds everywhere, like the endless stars in the universe. You might feel peace or reassurance in a higher power.

Finally, turn to contemplating how your experience causes you to feel inside your body: Does your heart feel full, might your gut feel tight (as you face shoveling), or do you feel joy or gratitude? The possibilities are endless.

Every aspect of nature can be the subject for such study.

I bet a lot of you feed the birds. I love to use my binoculars to get a microscopic look at birds sitting at my feeders, just a few feet outside my window. I was watching a yellow-bellied sapsucker with just my eyes and then viewed it again through my binoculars. You might gather that this bird would have a yellow belly, but the male actually has almost a neon yellow belly. I wasn’t able to be present to this vivid color with my naked eye.

Nature is about to explode in our area as spring thinks about awakening. Take an April stroll in the Williamsport Water Authority when the wildflowers are at their peak. It’s truly magical if you are awake or present.

Nora Wain said that “threes give peace to the souls of men.” And also women.

And Albert Einstein said “look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”