Naturalist Essay

Naturalist Essay

For my nature walk I decided to go to one of my favorite spots in the city: The Eagle, located at the center of the Logan Square neighborhood. The Eagle is one massive statue that hovers above the neighborhood and is located right by the Logan Square blue line. My experience had consisted of me walking down the Logan Square Boulevard. The nature that I had encountered on my trip was still apparent despite the fact that the surrounding setting was that of an urban landscape. Down the boulevard there were trees and much of the area was covered by grass however the areas that were not were being used up by cement and/or cement-like structures and even for housing. The wild-life that had inhabited the area were basic animals that one would expect to encounter in an urban setting. It ranged from squirrels, pigeons, and several dogs, however, these canines were domesticated by the people that lived in the region. Along with the variety of animals present, there were also several people out and about. The only difference that had stuck out was that there was an organic food market taking place right by the statue itself, however this was nothing different due to the fact that it took place every weekend, but through a daily basis perspective it was a change of scenery. As for the feelings I had towards the nature around me, they were somewhat mixed. I did find it relaxing because of the fact that it was a comfortable setting that I had known for all of my life. However, I also found it aggravating because there were many people walking around and I felt like being secluded for the time being. What with the food market along with the people walking their dogs, there was not much room for my seclusion. I interact with nature in the sense that I can determine its upheaval or demise by the actions I take: the more water bottles I use, the place where I throw my trash, even the places that I walk on can determine the survival of the grass or plants that are present. The relationship that nature has with me is one that relaxes me. As stated earlier, there were too many people present for me to enjoy the experience to the level that I wanted to.

The experience was relatable to the interactions of both authors. I did enjoy what amount of nature that was present in the area however I did pick up the technicalities involved with the urban environment. The birds swooping down and the squirrels climbing up the trees I had always enjoyed and found intriguing for some reason and yet I also picked up the relationship among people and the ways they have left an impact in the area. People had left a mark, be a negative or positive one, which is almost artificial. Right at the center of the neighborhood was a massive statue and going east on the boulevard are long strips of grass and trees, although natural in essence, were placed there by humans, making it artificial in a way. The two authors, I felt, differed greatly mainly due to the amount of actual nature they had come across. Muir’s had walked all along an environment that had little if any human involvement, where as Kuo had settled in a location where everything seemed more artificial and carefully planned. In Muir’s experience it had seemed as if everything just came together on its own, while in Kuo’s it would appear as if everything had a design behind it.