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Finding the wild
Scientists tell us that _behaviourally_ modern humans existed for around 50 000 to 65 000 years. For the vast majority of that time, most humans lived in wild surroundings. Though some cities existed a few thousand years ago, by today’s standards, they were small, and most humans lived in a more rural setting.
Then along came the Industrial Revolution, bringing with it urbanisation on a previously unprecedented scale. Roll along to today, and the vast majority of people in the UK live in urban areas. And why not? After all, you have that great little coffee shop around the corner, right next to a great artisan bakery. You have schools, doctors, shops (of every imaginable variety, it seems) surprisingly close by.
But for that you had to sacrifice your connection with nature. Your connection with wild, that’s what!
## Where’s your wild?
You didn’t evolve simply to get stuck in traffic. As a human being, you’re an immensely complex creature. Inside of you there’s over 60 000 _miles_ of blood vessels – enough to go around the world twice, and have some left over. Your brain constitutes only about 2% of your weight, but uses around 20% off all the energy available to your body. Even more mind-blowing, more than half of your body isn’t even human!
Your body is made to move, and it **requires** nature around it. Don’t believe me? Studies found that you require a _minimum_ of 120 minutes per week immersed in nature. Those that meet (or exceed) that time are healthier and happier than those who don’t.
Crucially, that 120 minutes include time spent in your local park. You don’t have to trek barefoot across Patagonia to benefit from this. I previously wrote about the documented benefits of green exercise, too. If you live in London, you will find a surprising variety of wildlife to be found in the Royal Parks.
## Green doesn’t always mean wild
Sadly, the UK is one of the world’s most nature-depleted countries. Part of that is down to the crowd of deeply maladjusted people who think killing animals for sport is great fun. However, the rest of us aren’t off the hook!
You see, when we talk about “nature-depleted”, we don’t simply mean foxes, hares, or various raptors. Our stupid insistence on borderline sterile, mono-culture and perfectly manicured lawns is part of the problem. And don’t get me started on fake lawns!
Wild means exactly that – untamed! Manicured lawns are green, but not untamed!
## Go find the wild
Wildness exists all around us, but you may need to adjust your focus before you can see it. Wildness is that dandelion growing through a crack in the pavement. It’s that one tree growing on top of a Dartmoor tor, despite all the odds. Wildness is that butterfly, or even that wasp that you see. It’s the spider that moves indoors, seeking warmth, as autumn continues.
But wildness also exists inside of you. And no, I’m not referring to all the microbes that make up more than half of what you thought was your body. Wildness is mindset!
## Embrace your inner wild
I’m not referring to “going wild at a party”. Out of the past 65 000 years, we mostly became urbanised only for around the past 200 years. And 200 years, in terms of human evolution, is a blink of an eye!
If you plotted the past 65 000 years on a one-metre line, our urbanisation happened in the last 3 millimetres of that line. Put differently, if the past 65 000 years was an hour long, our urbanisation happened in the last 0.1 seconds! What this means is that you are wearing an extremely thin veneer of civilisation, and underneath is the _real_ you. Underneath all that is the person who can sleep outdoors, walk miles in the pouring rain, and still smile.
All you have to do is figure out how to reconnect with your inner wild. Believe me, your life will be so much better when you do.
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