The Contented Naturalist

There’s been a lot of chaos in the last few weeks. US politics has swung drastically to the right. And the people now in power have been whittling down our freedoms at a pace that’s frankly terrifying.

That being said, I want to go on record that this blog supports trans and nonbinary people, 100%. Trans and nonbinary people have ALWAYS existed. They may seem more prevalent in recent years, once it became safer to come out, to talk about their experiences in mainstream channels. I want that for my trans and nonbinary friends, the freedom to simply exist and pursue happiness as they see fit. I hate that many of my trans and nonbinary colleagues have gone back into the closet. I also hate that even saying this puts a target on my own back.

Many of you know that because of where I work, the last several weeks have been full of uncertainty. Every morning I go to work, not knowing whether I’ll still have a job at the end of the day. And knowing that there’s little I can do to prevent that if it happens.

But I will tell you one thing. Regardless of where I work (or whether I have a job at all), I believe everybody would be better for spending time in nature. I believe nature can be healing for all, and I want every person to have a chance to experience nature the way I do– full of fascination and wonder and beauty. And I especially want people to experience nature, while experiencing their own true, genuine selves.

I hope everybody someday can come to nature authentically, build connections between their own emotional self and the parallels they find among lichens and warblers and river-smooth stones. Did you know that in many ways, nature itself is nonbinary? It’s rare to find some aspect of nature that is absolute, no gradient or questions or changes. A river freezes solid, then thaws out again, dries to a mere trickle, floods in a rush. Eventually enough silt and debris build up to move the river completely, and it no longer exists in the place and the status it once did. It’s something new.

Similarly, ponds and meadows and forests ebb and flow– the pond dries up into a rich meadow, the seedlings of trees grow in the meadow, eventually changing it over to a forest. On and on, over and over. So who are we to say someone can’t change from who we told them they are, to who they know themselves to be? Why not become one’s true self? There are very many organisms, vertebrates even, that change sex throughout the course of their lives.

For that matter, our own perception of gender has changed drastically over the thousands of years that humans have existed. It seems perfectly natural that something similar might happen in the course of one individual’s life, in their experience of who they are.

I feel gagged and hobbled at work lately, not allowed to say certain phrases, let alone work on some of the issues that are passions for me. I had hoped to create special nature programs this June to attract folks who are in town for World Pride. It doesn’t look like I’ll be able to do that, at least currently. But it doesn’t stop me from knowing my truth anyway. Everybody, and every body, still belongs in exploration of and enjoyment of nature. I may not be able to organize or host an LGBTQIA2S+ nature hike in my professional capacity right now. But I still plan to do so someday, as soon as I am legally allowed to. And until then, please come join me in exploring nature anyway!