Walking recently with Noel, our spunky black Labrador retriever I found myself thinking about the importance of pushing beyond the comfort zones we live in. We were walking at our usual haunt on a Sunday afternoon with a few other people and canines who were braving the sprinkling raining falling around us. I don’t mind walking in the rain, and Noel being a lab loves the wet mucky weather.

We were charging along at our usual fast speed looking at the lake, trying to find the blue herons that skulk along the edges and listening for the Canada geese getting ready to fly south for the winter months. There was a big storm that hit our area a few months ago. It caused a lot of damage and some of the century (and in many cases more than one century) old trees had been ripped out of their places of regality. There were about 10 trees in all that had fallen, or more exact, torn from their sanctuaries in this beautiful two square mile lake and hiking trail smack dab in the middle of the city. The effects were devastating. Seeing these century trees tumbled over brought sadness to our walk. I kept thinking about how on other walks I thought about the strength of the trees and how they made me feel safe. One one occasion not too long ago a couple practiced their dance moves for their wedding dancing in and out of the shade of the great majestic creatures. We watched them from afar, but delighted in their excitement.

Today to overcome my sadness and to find some kind of peace I walked Noel up and around all the fallen trees. We climbed on the trunks. We came upon one particular tree that had a huge hole in the middle with a small entrance at the base of the tree where it had broken and the city came to saw all the loose branches and pieces off for safety. I asked Noel to go through the entrance way to enter the hollowed out middle. She would not go in at first. I had to coax her for many moments. Finally, I threw a treat into the center and she rushed in after it. I got her to sit and relax for a few photos.

This led me to thinking about the importance of pushing ourselves beyond our comfort zones. No matter what you do in life in order to grow you have to push yourself, get out out of complacency and get on the edge of something that makes you a little nervous. I used to do this all the time, but in recent year, maybe it’s from being a mom and getting caught in the day-to-day motions of life’s cycles, I have become complacent to a relatively easy life, not pushing myself too hard. But, feeling the sadness of seeing what a 2hr storm can do, while watching my dog push herself into the unknown made me realize that when I push myself I become stronger. I gain skills I didn’t know I had or could have, and most importantly, I feel proud. I feel proud of my ability to commit, to be there for others and myself.

Nature has a way of pushing outside our comfort zone. It is unpredictable. It can make you question your skills and mental strength. Nature helps us to recognize not only our connection to the planet, but our place in it.