EcoLit ESem

I didn't really feel any difference in my walking style while I was trying to walk like Thoreau. I think that Thoreau wants us to be thoughtful and mindful when we walk and to be curious and adventurous about what new things we might encounter, and I already do that a lot of times when I walk by myself and walk places that I am not hurrying to get to. In my essay I mostly just described some of the things that I thought about while I was walking. During part of my walk I went down senior row and I remember feeling really peaceful and wondering about Oak trees (because a lot of the trees in senior row are oaks) and how they used to be sacred to the druids that used to live in Ireland. I also visited some Beech trees and thought about them and about how people have carved their names into them. I thought about what causes people to carve their initials into trees and what this act can tell us about people and nature and the world in general. 

Now as I think of my “Thoreauvian walk”, it was nothing like the real walk that Thoreau refers to in his essay. Actually I find it impossible for me to walk like Thoreau, to leave behind all social affairs, to say goodbye to my family and just go on for an aimless walk. Perhaps it is because we are born into a life of busyness. Since we were young we have been learning by imitating other people: we learn how to walk, how to talk or to sing all by simulating adults. It is not surprising that we also learn from them the way people keep themselves busy. We hardly ever slow the pace of life to the level of sauntering. Even when I walk just to relax, I cannot keep my mind from thinking (about the past or the future or just anything in my life). No, perhaps it is just me who has not been able to truly immerse my soul in nature, to forget everything else but the surrounding scenery. As I read about the art of sauntering, I read this quotes from John Burroughs: “To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter... to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life. ” I admire the way John admires and treasures elements of nature. It feels as if John and Thoreau can really feel and live the way nature lives and exists. When we are able to “find the universal enough” or “find the air and the water exhilarating” – we become true saunterers.

Hey everyone! I just finished reading the one and half chapters of Solnit’s “A Field Guide to Getting Lost”, and I had some exciting and funny experience that I am eager to share with you all. I am very attracted by a sentence which says to lose oneself is to be “utterly immersed in what is present so that its surroundings fade away.” While reading it, I was thinking “that is the right words I was looking for in yesterday’s essay!” In the essay I wrote for this week, I talked about my experience sitting on the grass slope and relaxing. Just now, I referred to the Friday essay and see what exactly Iwrote to express it. Surprisingly I found out that I actually said “I didn’t feel I was at lost.” This is really interesting! How we define a word definitely influence how we express. In Solnit’s book, I totally loved her idea about losing oneself and the way of her expression. However, before I read her way of saying it, I used a completely opposite way to describe the same thing. In my Friday essay, by using "lost", I was trying to express the situation where people feel idle, bored, and worthless. But Solnit’s “lost” is to be “fully present, and to be fully present is to be capable of being in uncertainty and mystery.” I want to share this reflection with you in order to make a point that, sometimes even when people are trying to say the same thing, they use different words to express themselves. To avoid misunderstanding, we need to patiently communicate and develop our skills on expressing.

Hi, I am Wanhong Zou. I grew up in Beijing, China, but in official records my hometown is Xi'an. Although I like to stay indoor, I'm feeling excited about exploring the outside world with you! I'm really happy to get to know all of you!

The five places in campus are so different from each other! As for me, I feel happiest around the English House. In fact, before doing this assignment, I had never been to the English House, and I discovered it with amazement. It was surrounded by trees and bushes, and it looked like a small magic house in fairy tales. I went inside, and the light was dim--but it makes me feel so warm. The English House definitely has beautiful scenaries and peaceful atmosphere.

Glass stair case in the Dalton Hall was elegant, but not as attractive as the English House as a place to stay, especially when there were no one around. When I stood beside the stair case today, I felt lonely and a little scared because when I see through the glass windows, I felt like the outside world was far away from me. It was like just me and the stairs staying in a modern, transparent prison. I think it would be better if there were many people around me. I rank the Parking lot as the third comfortable one--although it has the slight gasoline smell and could not receive much sun shine, it has lots of cars that made me feel safe. The Morris woods and Biology Lab (Park Science Room 020) both made me feel bad but in different ways. The Morris Woods were crowded with plants and the trees are so tall that made me feel I was too small.

Hey! My name is Sara Lazarovska and I'm a freshwoman. I'm from Skopje, Macedonia (a tiny 2-million country in southeast Europe), and I plan on majoring in Growth and Structure of Cities with a minor in Environmental Studies. I also work at UnCommon Grounds, so if you ever see me there, say 'hi'. A fun fact about me is that my original accent is British - I took British English for 11 years - but I generally take in the accent of those around me, so here I have an American accent.

I will do my best to rank the places that I visited according to where I felt happiest, so here it goes:

1. The Dalton glass staircase

2. Campus Center parking lot

3. Park Science lab

4. English House

5. Morris Woods

Hello, I am Shengjia (Ashley) Zhu from Shanghai, China.

Everything in the Park Science Lab was still and lifeless. Even the sunlight seemed weaker though the glass window. I was very uncomfortable in the void lab. And I don’t think any plant would be happy to live in a lab either.

The pavement was cracked and the sun was hot at the parking lot. My view was filled with rolls of cars. Plants were pushed to the very edge of the space. Alone in this empty spot, I felt so stressful that I wanted to flee.

The English house was a lovely and quiet place away from the main campus. Stood in great harmony with the surrounding trees, the English building seemed to be its own world of peace and serendipity. I felt calm and relaxed at the house.

The plants are certainly happy in Morris Woods since they grow without restrictions. However, it was a bit hard for me to freely move around and orientate in this little kingdom of thriving plants, chirping birds and flying insects.

It was showering when I got to Dalton staircase. The rain splashed onto the glass and made lousy noises. Though I stayed dry with the protection of the glass, I felt colder and more helpless.

I believe plants and human both like to stay at peaceful yet vital places. The difference is that rain make plants happy and human unhappy.

Here is my ranking, from happiest place to unhappiest place:
1. Morris Woods
2. Dalton Staircase
3. Park Science Lab
4. English House
5. Parking Lot

I absolutely loved the Morris Woods.  Once I found my way into the woods, I felt like it was a great, peaceful place.  I felt that the plants surrounding me provided this calm, protective bubble from rain and the sometimes pervasive noises of humanity.  I felt like I had to keep going down the path to discover what was at the end of it, which I am glad that I did because I thought the graveyard and the bench were really cool spots to explore.  Plants would be happiest here because their growth is unrestricted by humans and because their basic survival needs are most available there.

I felt good in the Dalton Staircase.  There was a lot of sunlight streaming into it and there was a feeling of clarity and openness that I liked.  Plants would be maybe second happiest here because of the sunlight pouring through the glass, even if they would be confined to a pot.

Hi, my name is Minh and I am from Vietnam.

My ranking of the places where I felt happy seems to reflect very well of my personality. I feel happy to be immersed in nature and to enjoy my own space. I have been looking for myself a personal space to spend a bit of everyday reflecting on myself or just relaxing. That is why the Morris Woods appears as a wonderful place for me. As I seat there, surrounded by tall green trees and the sounds of birds chirping, I feel as peaceful and happy as if it was home. The Woods is also quite distanced from the campus center, therefore, apart from the sounds of nature, it is quiet. As such, it is also an ideal place of concentration for me.

It was hard for me decide the positions of the remaining places as the glass staircase in Dalton, the English House and the lab in Park Science are the same to me. They all are separated from nature but have a nice view to the greens. I also feel happy at the parking lot but somehow do not really like to be distracted by the cars and people moving in and out of the lot.

So here is my ranking: