wander | wander | women recently explored the concept of blue mind - the neuroscience of water associated peace that creates a sense of general happiness and satisfaction with life in the moment.
In contrast to red mind - which neuroscientist Catherine Franssen, PhD, describes as "an edgy high characterized by stress, anxiety, fear, and maybe even a little of anger and despair" - blue mind induces a mildly meditative state characterized by calm, peace, unity.
 |
| our island paradise |
The difference between red mind and blue mind is that a red mind is one that has been impacted by the velocity of today’s society as compared with a blue mind that has been calmed by the soothing effects of water.
With our weather warming up around the globe and concerns about our world climate escalating in extremes - it is no wonder the blue mind phenomenon is gaining a popular following.
 |
| our fave way to unwind |
Our ancestors, of course, knew about the potency of water long before Nichols wrote his book. Our proverbs are littered with references to the power of the element of water. As a coastal race, we island folk grew up on the river rafting and sea faring histories of our maritime heritage and sailing lineages.
We romanticize our own identity - halfway around the world in foreign land we now call home, we still have our umbilical cords connected to our ancestral homeland. The salty sea warm seas of home course through our veins.
 |
| beauty shot of nature's bounty |
When close to water we are easily sucked into the same body of water that our people live and thrive in back on our island paradise. We pay homage to all the bodies of water that carry countless other wanderers from their homes - in continuous waves of diaspora, all over the world, throughout the ages.
During covid lockdown the world went quiet, amazing us with how quickly the earth's environment healed as soon as we lightened our human footprint and eased our greedy chokehold. Then the vaccines lifted our fears and allowed us to return and we grew loud again, too eager to forget the warning.
 |
| under the blazing heat of an El Niño summer |
Imagine earth’s red mind screaming at its polluted waterways, its melting ice caps, its growing list of extinct species, its forests decimated to make room for farms, factories, money.
The human red mind focuses on the injustices of the world. On those who face poverty, who face homelessness, who face unjust life sentences.
Instead experience the forgiveness of easy waves or the deep rolling thunder of tons of water crashing on land. Imagine the secret doings of creatures that dwell in its depths or the unbelievable treasures lost and laying undisturbed at the bottom.
 |
| our ancient Filipino mariners mastered the world's oceans |
Our ancestors crossed land bridges and plied widening waters that eventually separated our land masses. The sight and smell of the ocean, as we stand separated by time and distance still bring us comfort and peace. We are not that far, not that different, not that separate. We belong in the same ocean.
Edward O. Wilson, the “father of biophilia”, defined biophilia as “the innate affiliation people seek with other organisms and especially the natural world.”
For centuries, our ancestors relied on the natural environment for food, shelter, and all other survival necessities. Scholars believe that it is this nature dependency that evolved into the connection humans seek today.
 |
| crowds around the canals of London |
Though we have evolved significantly since those early days, we still possess within us that innate nature that craves and demands connection to the natural world.
Roger S. Ulrich, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Health Systems and Design at Texas A&M University conducted a study in which he found that heart surgery patients experienced less anxiety and need for pain medication after looking at pictures of trees and water.
No matter where we spend our time, we could all use a little more exposure to nature. We all stand to benefit from bringing the natural world a little closer, be in touch more often, stay connected.
 |
| Henrik Hudson Entering New York Harbor by Edward Moran |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.