By Moyegun Joseph
I often wonder how the sun rises every morning and sets every evening without delay, a well-regulated activity. Who is behind this well-regulated activity that never fails?
I also wonder about the fishes in the ocean, the animals on land, where do they come from?
I never stopped wondering about the beautiful earth made for us, a temporary abode, yet so rich and bounteous in all it offered.
Neither have I stopped wondering how the germination, growth, maturity, and regeneration processes occur. Who does the work?
I still wonder about the activities on our farms: we plant rice and reap rice, when we plant beans, we reap only beans, everywhere on the face of the earth, and it is the same result. What should this teach us?
I kept wondering until I came to the realization of a phenomenon of the physical and natural world that exists without alteration which is called “nature”. Albert Einstein said, “Look deep into nature and you will understand everything better”. This draws an insight into nature, describing it as “a territory of knowledge where every human can learn for a better tomorrow”.
A key knowledge it instills is the ability to work as a team, nature teaches us how individuals can benefit from each other. For example, for a plant to grow there must be the presence of soil, seed, sunlight, water and so on. Without all these, the plant could never survive.
However, once all these factors are in place, the plant then survives. This teaches us that for a better tomorrow, we need to work as a team, and like my grandmother would always say, “If you want to go far in life, learn to work as a team”.
Gary Snyder asserts, “Nature is not a place to visit, it is a home”. There is this feeling of assurance we develop when at home, and since it is a home, we are never scared to go home. Rather, we are bold to go home. Never be afraid to try, remember amateurs built the ark, professionals built the titanic.
Secondly, nature also teaches the ability to live for others. Albert Einstein articulates, “Only a life lived for others, is a life worthwhile”. This statement expresses that nothing in nature is for itself.
A good illustration is apparent in that: rivers produce water, but they do not drink it; trees produce fruits, but they do not eat it; the sun produces heat, but it does not use it. The point is that it is time we learn and allow the gift of knowledge nature has taught us to be known to people.
Conclusively, we need to understand the secret behind nature, because it is full of imaginations and knowledge, but we have been too busy trying to create another world. However, there is the need for us to re-think our priorities and learn from nature because it is an abode of knowledge.
Moyegun Joseph is a registered nutritionist, a farmer and also an Environmentalist who is passionate about green economy and it’s sustainability
