Simon Barnes
We talk to Simon about his latest book and how we can all reconnect with nature.
What does the concept of ‘rewilding yourself’ involve?
We are not only losing the wild world, we’re no longer noticing it. We are all naturally drawn to non-human life, but 21st-century life gets in the way. We’re losing the knack of being wild but it’s easy to get it back. So, in Rewild Yourself, I put together 23 ways of getting closer to wildlife; of noticing a bit more; of being a little bit wilder.
What’s the easiest way for us to feel closer to nature?
Here’s two for the price of one. The first is to learn the names of half a dozen butterflies that come to the garden. Once you’ve done that, you’ll look at every butterfly more closely. Nature is not for experts – it’s for me and you. But, of all the tricks for making your life a little wilder, none beats the bottomless sit. You need no expertise, and no equipment, but taking two minutes from our time-poor lives to sit still and listen to a robin really is a lifechanger. And we can all do it. Put a plastic bag in your pocket and, that way, you will always have somewhere dry to sit.
When putting your tips into practice, did anything surprise you?
I began to learn birdsong in my late 30s and it revolutionised my life. It was like moving to a different world. The power of that experience is something I have wanted to share ever since. More recently, I was given a moth trap. I am a hopeless beginner but shan’t forget the first moth I found. It looked like a bird of paradise. It was an elephant hawk moth, huge, all green and pink. I had never seen one before, and to my amazement, the book said it was common. Common perhaps – but not commonly seen. They’re out there, but a little bit beyond our scope. Like so much of the wild world.
What would you say are the most overlooked UK species?
All of them. That’s kind of what the book is about. We’ve got tremendously good at overlooking. But as soon as you tune in, you realise that it’s been out there all along, waiting for you.
Can the tips in the book apply to urban areas as well as rural one?
Towns can be richer in life than some rural areas. This book is more about parks and gardens and urban commons and walks to the station than about trips to nature reserves. It’s about bringing wildness back into our nature-deprived lives. Why should I be the only person on the train to notice the egret?