Embracing nature for the very first time
BY ALICE SINGLETON
DO you remember reading your favourite book for the very first time and wishing you could experience that ‘first-time feeling’ all over again?
That’s where I am at the moment; experiencing nature and wildlife again, but this time, through the eyes of my one-year-old niece.
I’ve carried Olive around the farm since she was old enough to keep her head up.
Holding her up to trees and allowing her to feel the bark, the leaves and feel the breeze on her face.
Having just begun to find her - hands and - feet, we allowed Olive to crawl on the grass for the first time during the recent Bank Holiday.
The look of confusion as she felt the tickling green blades under her legs and hands, wondering what sort of strange carpet she was being exposed to, was priceless.
A recent highlight was seeing my niece’s eyes flicker as the first orange tip butterfly of spring appeared right before her face.
Can you imagine seeing a butterfly for the very first time?
This colourful, delicate, winged creature, defying gravity and landing on a leaf with all the grace of a prima ballerina.
With so many children being confined to their computer screens and mobile devices, I find it a matter of mass importance to introduce the natural world from as young an age as possible.
With more parks and nature reserves taking on events such as Nature Tots, children are being encouraged to put their hands in the mud, have sword fights with twigs and roll around in the crunchy leaves.
But it’s not just children who need to embrace nature with both hands.
At the ripe old age of 26, I too am experiencing so much for the first time this year, as though my eyes have been opened to things which have always been so close.
I discovered a bluebell woodland on my farm at home, somewhere I have lived for 16 years and explored daily, but never seen before.
I sat and watched the peacock butterflies flutter from bud to bud, while the bees bumbled around looking for flowers to land on.
For the first time I am recognising the calls of different birds: the ‘teacher-teacher’ of the great tit and the musical trill of the wren.
If I have been missing out on these things, having been ever so privileged to have lived in the beautiful Lancashire countryside all my life, then how many others are missing out on the wonderful sights and sounds that our country has to offer?
I visited Moston Fairway for the first time this month and never could I have imagined such an array of species; bird, insect, plant and otherwise, thriving in the middle of Manchester.
Nature is there for all ages, from the smallest baby to the oldest grandmother.
It is always there, a free experience for all to enjoy - a whole new world right below our feet and high above the trees.
All we have to do is open our eyes and ears, and allow ourselves to explore.
To become a member of the Trust go to the website at www. lancswt.org.uk or call 01772 324129. For more information about Cheshire Wildlife Trust call 01948 820728 or go to cheshirewildlifetrust. org.uk.