Get In Your Barefoot Time

Wrote this for Pack Out Gear's blog--they're thoughts that I enjoyed, so I figured I'd share!

Recently, I've been spending a good deal of time in Boston, as I've been doing various temporary office assignments around the city. As someone who has lived in a suburb her whole life -- and who now attends college on a lawn-covered campus -- frequenting urban locales has made me step back and reflect on what makes city living and all other styles of living so different. More importantly, it's made me realize what they have in common. There are certain things that human beings just can't do without--essentials of living that are present in some form everywhere in the world. Unsurprisingly, one of them--in my opinion, the most important one--is green space.

Sitting on a bench in Copley Square yesterday, it made me smile to observe the crowded lawn in front of Trinity Church. Men were playing soccer, kids were running around, visitors and professionals alike were lounging--it was a perfect idyllic scene, a joyful island in the middle of the hot and bustling 9-5 grind.

It was a sight akin to that of Washington Square Park, which I visited when I was in New York over the weekend. The weather was hot and rather muggy that day, but the park was still absolutely packed with people. One man was lying right on top of the fountain jets, directly beneath the "Do not sit in fountain" sign. (Obviously, I loved that.)

To me, these are more than parks. They're safe havens, centers for both activities and meditation, and most importantly, sources of something utterly essential to our well-being and sanity: green grass. There's something about stepping onto grass (especially barefoot!) that instantly soothes and invigorates better than any beauty product can. And as city-savvy and technological as people have become, we all still need that feeling now and again. That's why parks are always crowded. And that's why maybe, you should take a chance and elevate your experience (pun possibly intended)--that is, take a break in the woods! Go swim in a lake, go climb a mountain, just go to a campground and pitch a tent for a night.

I promise you, you'll be glad you did.

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