Going outside more and our in-sitting culture
Sprouting
Last updated: 12 october 2025tags: nature, anxiety, community
Ever since i quit everything scroll:able (And of course before that), I’ve been trying to go outside more. I’ve never been that good at being outdoors. As a kid all I did was draw and watch TV. I couldn’t do that outside, so what was the point? Luckily my parents did get me outside at least every other day. And of course, it was really fun to go outside sometimes and play. But as you grow up, it’s only natural for that innocence to pass you by, and suddenly you have other things to focus on. School, work, friends, family, hobbies, chores… I spend most of my time indoors. And that’s alright! That’s what most people do. Although I do think we have made for ourselves a sit-on-your-ass culture, and I don’t know how healthy that is in the long term.
My point is, I think we focus too much on being productive, working hard, being someone that contributes to society or whatever it is you’re working for. Just think for yourself, when do you feel productive? For me, it’s when I’ve finished a project, or I’ve studied hard for a test, when I’ve cleaned up, and so on. Most people wouldn’t call just standing around productive. Even when I make art, I catch myself thinking “Would this count as a study? Does this contribute to me climbing the artist ladder and getting a job I can enjoy, a future I would be proud of?”. Sometimes productivity is good! Cause how much you ever would want to be a little forest nymph and run away never to be seen again, you can’t deny that there’s still a world of people out there, and you really wouldn’t survive that long on just eating berries in some old shed. But with the climate burning, democracies falling apart worldwide, wars and genocides never seeming to come to an end… And so on and so forth, it is of course important to speak up about the issues, and do what you can to make the world and the community around you a better place. And of course there are important people out in the world making the big decisions, but it’s not like they live in echo chambers either. All while the average person has to study and/or work, spend time with friends and family, engage in hobbies and so on. Sometimes it all feels a little useless. So isolating. Will anything I ever do have a positive impact in the world? We are so focused on getting things done, and making the world a better place more now than ever. To me, I would maybe label it as activist’s guilt. When you’re not contributing to the good of society, you’re useless. If I don’t tie everything I do into something that helps the world, what’s the point?
All this, combined with personal battles, results in a whole lot of anxiety and doomerism. And as I’ve grown as a person I’ve realized (surprisingly, I know), that this is not a healthy way to keep going. It will not result in anything good. I need to make my relationship to how I want to impact better, and I also need something that helps me calm down, something that distances me from the problems in the world for a little while. You’re probably seeing where I’m going with this. I need to learn to enjoy the outdoors.
So what, an ex-chronically online teenager is trying to touch grass? That’s exactly what it is. Yes I am being cringe on the internet, that’s what I’m made for. Combined with learning to manage my anxiety, and focusing the things I want to change and help to a smaller, more local area. Changing my thought paths from stressing about garbage patches and pollution in every sea in the world, to maybe just how eutrophication in the Baltic sea is impacting how much algae we’ve got at the local beach, and how much people will be able to swim in the summer because of it. I would still be aware of the other issues, but I need to teach myself to be aware of that there will always be someone else to take care of it, someone who it impacts more directly. It’s both positive and negative to live in a globalized society.
So what do I want to do? I want to go outside more. I want to learn the local flora and fauna. I want to learn how different plants can be used. I want to pull up invasive species and plant native ones in its place. I want to know of the current struggles and achievements in my community. I want to plant a seed. A seed that will grow into a healthy relationship between me and the rest of the natural world. I want to learn more about exactly why I love nature, what it is I want to save. How people and nature can coexist, and work together. Without one part destroying the other. I want to stop feeling the pull of our fast paced world, and be able to take a walk in the forest for no other reason than that I wanted to. I think our relationship has turned toxic. We no longer see, how important we are to one another. Our wounds need to heal for us to be able to support one another. I want to grow such a seed inside me. A seed of love. A seed of hope. A seed that slows my galloping brain to a trot. Maybe I just need a bit more fresh air.