My Formative Experience in Nature

When initially thinking about a 'formative' experience in nature, it was a little tough and I really had to try to think back. I don't think my formative experience in nature was a sudden "ah-ha" moment, because even last year I had no idea that environmental studies would be something that interests me, but I can definitely trace back a possible subtle formative experience to one specific hobby - sailing.

My father was an avid sailor all his life and even lived on a 29 foot sailboat for a few years. That same sailboat was the one that my family would take out on Summer vacations to the San Juan's when I was around 10 years old. With the four of us on the boat, things could get rather cramped. I was always playing sports as a kid and moving around quite a bit, but on that boat there was a lot of sitting. I enjoyed the sailing aspect of the vacation whenever the wind was just right to give me a slight thrill but not scare me, although my favorite part of the vacations were the island adventures. We would always try to find a good anchorage before it got too late so that whoever wanted to could go ashore and see the islands. Because of all the work and sailing (sitting) it took to get to these islands, it made me appreciate them so much more. I saw many interesting animals like deer, little birds on beaches with tiny legs that run around quickly, and even shellfish spitting water up at me on beaches like mini-geysers. I experienced the powers of tides when my dad and I became stranded at the end of a spit, not realizing that the tide had separated us from our dinghy. There are many more stories, but they all have one thing in common: they were fun.

Whenever I could get out and stretch my legs it didn't matter if something went wrong like having to tread through cold saltwater up to your chest, because at least I was on land and out in nature like never before. While I took awhile to realize it, these sailing vacations really showed me that I'm the kind of person that prefers to be outdoors. Being a restless kid stuck on a sailboat for many hours at a time gave me a new appreciation for little things like chapstick, and bigger things like the natural world around us that can really make you feel alive.