Sense of Place

"You can't know who you are until you know where you are." - Wendell Berry from How to Raise a Wild Child: The Art and Science of Falling in Love with Nature

Take a walking trip around your neighborhood (bring family members and pets!). Observe different plant species, wildlife, and the design of your neighborhood. If you don’t know the names of plants or animals, just describe them. Include photos or video clips.

‘Sense of place’ is understanding the environment around you and the meaning associated with that place. It's the things that make a place special and unique, a place you value or where you feel most at "home". Sense of Place can be very specific (i.e. grandma's house) or broad (i.e. boating in the waters of SWFL). Is where you live now your sense of place? If not, where is your sense of place? What benefits does your sense of place provide you with? Why is it important? Provide some reflections about an area where you have a feeling of ‘sense of place’.

To describe my sense of place, I must first describe how out of place I once was. I grew up in the Miami suburbs and never quite felt attracted to places in my environment. I was always a child who loved to be outdoors and was often alone in my exploration of my neighborhood's natural areas. When I was older, I moved to a gated community with less natural areas and less people outdoors. I fell into a habit of staying inside, which led me to feeling depressed and isolated. When I moved in with my father to his home in Alva after my parents' divorce, I was so used to suburban life that I was shocked by the experience of living in a place where natural areas outweighed human development. 

The neighborhood homes are dispersed over many blocks with just a few houses on each. There are even entire blocks without a single home on the land. Any land not occupied by a house is instead filled with slash pines, saw palmettos, and oak trees. There are some invasive Brazilian pepper trees as well. These woods are home to a variety of wild animals, which are part of the neighborhood community. This includes armadillos, raccoons, tortoises, hawks, owls, rabbits, hogs, rattlesnakes, black racers, woodpeckers, cardinals, blue jays, fox squirrels, a wide range of unique insects, and once in a while a bear or a panther. The place I call home allows for the most unique experiences to connect with the natural community that I have ever experienced. It took me a few times of moving into town and returning in order to truly appreciate the peace I am able to experience here.

I didn't realize how sensitive I was to the subtle energies of my environment until I moved into town after living in the woods. Everything was closer to my new home in town, but people were almost too close. I felt overwhelmed by seeing human waste and destruction everywhere I went. No matter what I did, I was unable to experience a peaceful silence due to the sounds of machines, blasting music, or negative chatter. Only upon returning to my father's home in Alva did I realize that nothing spoke to my soul so clearly and truly as the sound of wind rushing through the trees and clear crisp calls of the birds. At night, the sky is allowed to come alive with subtle stars shining brighter than the far off light pollution of town. The more time I spent with nature, the more I became a part of it. I used to fear parts of it, but now I have come to fear the self destructive tendencies of humanity any more. This place taught me the beauty of the cycles of life. Nothing is wasted since it all has a place in the web of life.

My home in Alva has given me my sense of place not only because it provides me a sense of safety and well-being, but also because in its space I am able to experience a deep inner growth from its never ending wisdom. There are no distractions and my perspective is able to shift to the fundamental simplicity of life. I am made of the sun, trees, animals, and earth. In this space there is no stress and I can truly feel peace.

 
Sunset over the canal and woods                                Fox Squirrel and Saw Palmettos