I remember when I first met nature. A mad, sudden decision by a group of friends to explore the Brecon Beacons mountain range found me huddled round a tiny camping stove, our tents hulked like sleeping bears behind us. A cool October breeze casually wound its way round our little campsite, sniffing at the stove and peering up our coat sleeves.
That night, unable to sleep, I walked along the top of the embankment where the wide lake transformed into a rushing stream. The night sky flew purple, here and there picked out by broad blue-black brush strokes. The sounds of the wild echoed back and forth across the valley; crickets, owls, and nervous things that flittered through the undergrowth. This was nature’s place, but something hidden deep at the back of my mind was whispering to me - this was once our home, forgotten.
The thumb-size blisters from the morning’s hike had me vowing never to step foot outside my front door again, but it wouldn’t stick. I’d seen nature – there was no going back.
Nature at night - an unforgettable wonder
Now we’re losing these experiences. The figures are alarming: 75% fewer children now regularly play outdoors compared with numbers three or four decades ago. These children will, in most cases, grow up without the sense of wonder and awe-inspired joy that knowing your place in the natural world will bring, their minds lost in the concrete jungles that threaten to swallow our world whole. It’s the natural experiences that fuelled centuries of our most famous poets, writers and artists – and we’ve turned our back on them. It seems we just don’t care anymore.
It’s an awful truth to face up to – but it’s not an irreversible one. We can find nature again, and our children and grandchildren can, too. We can give them, and ourselves, that gift.
Over the coming weeks, the RSPB is starting its momentous new event, the Big Wild Sleepout. The beauty of the idea is its simplicity – pitch your tent at one of the RSPB reserves, with experts on hand to explain the lives of bats, moths and more, or set up camp in your own back garden. Spend a night sleeping closer to nature. It’s easy, it’s fun, and it’s important. Now is the time to start reminding ourselves why we need nature, why it speaks to us. Experiencing a side of the natural world that we rarely see; well, I can’t think of a better way.
So let’s get out there, under cover of night. Let’s explore, enjoy and marvel. Let’s remember what we love about our world.
Let’s learn from the stars.
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To find out more about Big Wild Sleepout events near you, visit
rspb.org.uk/sleepout