Every other day, I go over the
Little Mac Bridge on my way to class, cutting across the ravines to get from
Niemeyer to Mackinac as fast as I can. It’s a shortcut, a minimal chunk of my
daily schedule. But, some days, I take the blinders of routine from the sides
of my head and look out over the grand ditch that I’m suspended over. In the
spring and summer, it’s absolutely bursting with greenery. Walking across the
bridge, you find yourself hung amongst the tallest reaches of the trees, the
leaves fluttering in a gentle wind. It’s a bird’s-eye view we usually miss out
on. You look down and you can see the ground falling away from you, strewn with
rocks and water and other natural things, undisturbed by the heavy traffic
going on so far above it. It only takes a moment to appreciate years of
flourishing nature.
At
Grand Valley, we’re blessed to have a campus brimming with thriving greenery
and wildlife. However, sometimes the constant presence of the natural world
parallel to the busy college experience desensitizes us to just how stunning
the trees, the flowers, the grass really is. Moving from class to class, I’ve
noticed that the breath-taking view from the middle of the bridge too easily
becomes a part of the transit in a schedule that only has time for the
destinations. To combat this, I try to notice the trees as I walk by them,
taking note of the leaves and the way they rustle and flutter, thinking on the
climbing vines and well-kept bushes. It keeps me in the moment, preventing me from
becoming too wrapped up in what can be a stressful workload looming just over
my head. That’s the thing about being surrounded by the natural world; letting
yourself remember where you are is immensely calming. Taking even a moment to
consciously remove oneself from the hustle of the day and just look around is
soothing beyond belief. Crossing the bridge, being literally suspended in the
uppermost branches, is particularly perfect, and I strive to take in that
moment every chance I get.
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