Cooperative Living Northern Virginia Electric • June 2020 • Garden Muse

As a teacher, I have a favorite perennial activity for my English students when we begin our study of poetry in the spring. I hand out William Wordsworth’s poem “The Tables Turned” which begins “Up! Up! my Friend, and quit your books.” Kids readily agree with the poet that books are quite dull compared to the “wisdom” in the music of birds. His mandate, “Come forth into the light of things / Let Nature be your teacher,” is one we follow, abandoning our classroom, going outside for better lessons. I could never have imagined that this year we would actually end up abandoning our classroom prematurely and for the rest of the term because of COVID-19. As students, parents and teachers try to get used to new patterns of learning, surely now is the time to heed the directive toward nature.

Nature turns out to be the saving grace in the new normal of social distancing. No amount of computer activity or online orders arriving at our doorstep can take the place of the constant wonders that await us in the great outdoors. Wind rustling leaves, perfume of magnolia in the air and vivid floral colors sharpen the overwrought senses. Having time to walk daily is one of the unexpected advantages of confinement, and walking in the warming sunshine replenishes the soul as vitamin D strengthens our bodies. It’s not just a walk in the sunshine that is restorative. Open the umbrella, put rubber boots on the kids and keep walking, noticing the fresh smell as Earth gets a bath. As I did when I would take my class on a walk around campus, I now stop to observe seeds and petals. Children can start a nature journal of collected treasures, press flowers, make leaf rubbings on paper and adorn them with etchings using natural inks from blossoms and leaves. My daughter tells me her age group of young moms is getting bombarded electronically by all the ideas from teachers, Instagram and Pinterest of projects to be doing with kids.

I suggest keeping it simple by using materials you have on hand. One of my favorites is the nature bracelet. Use a length of duct tape enough to encircle your wrist — just stick on the adhesive side whatever pretty flowers or berries, seeds or bark that tickle your fancy. This a great exercise for both children and adults to look closely at design in nature, appreciating the shapes and colors of individual plant parts. Observing botanical objects in this almost microscopic way is a great lesson in both science and art.

If you have any little math lovers, introduce them to the Fibonacci number sequence. Show them the spiraling pattern in seed heads of a sunflower wherein the number is the sum of the two preceding numbers. Get interactive by crafting garlands or green chains from flower stems. I learned to braid by holding three stems together, lapping the right stem over the middle one and the left one over the newly formed middle. Nature is always on the move, always unfolding, even when it may not be apparent.

One fast movement, fun to observe, is the dropping of “helicopters” — maple seeds with their papery ends — from a height and watching them whirl like helicopter blades. Break off the “blade” and insert the seeds in a clear glass lined with cardboard. Watch the root start growing downward and the stem start upward with the first two seed leaves (making it a dicotyledon). Transfer the tiny plants to pots. Trees I grew this way in the first grade now provide towers of welcoming shade.

Nature’s greatest lesson is the peace and tranquility it brings, healing the troubled spirit. The cycle of life gives us hope of regeneration and rebirth. When we reconnect to the natural rhythms of life, we draw energy from light, wind, water and plants that is highly therapeutic. Much is required today concerning “remote learning,” but we can take solace in the fact that nature is never remote.