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Walking along paths that traverse diverse environments is nourishing, if we are able to read the information offered by the landscape. In a time when a growing disenchantment among citizens ends up feeding extremely dangerous governments, it may be fitting to explore ways to recharge our vital batteries.

It’s a time for large gatherings that celebrate, as humans always have, the lengthening of the days. Reunions with familiar faces. Gatherings of beloved people, where friendship is exalted and those who are no longer present are remembered. The exuberant atmosphere and heartfelt songs open the well of emotions. It’s the catharsis of the festival that retains its ancestral essence and stirs things deep within.

While in open fields, grasses turn yellow, in the narrow streets of the city, where shadows remain, one can observe small plants climbing between the brief cracks of buildings. They are the miracle of life in extreme conditions. Without soil or other vegetal company, they first show their flowers towards the light, and once pollinated, they retreat, seeking the darkness of the crack where they will drop their seeds.

Some people consider these organic sparks, reminiscent of more rural times, as dirt. They fail to realize that these are precisely the poetic and nourishing counterpoints to an environment of cement, asphalt, and non-biodegradable dirt. Dogs bark at what they do not understand.

On the outskirts of the town, there are more remnants of wild vegetation, currently hosting juicy caterpillars that will, through a complete bodily transformation, become future and light butterflies that will sprinkle the landscape with colors. Then, they will unfurl their proboscis to sip sweet liquids and indulge in the love of fleeting days.

The young bird that has taken its first failed flight jumps from the nest, finding refuge among the low vegetation while emitting a call, so its parents do not entirely abandon it to adventure. It has only a few days left until its wings and new skills allow it to break the law of gravity and see the world from another perspective.

In the enclosures, livestock puff from the heat and release their excrement, which is a testament to environmental health. If everything goes as it should, it will be a feast for decomposers. But if subjected to more intensive management, the remains will come out full of antibiotics, and no one will eat them. The gaze of these latter animals is often significantly sadder.

Sunsets and dawns are like honey. Silhouettes of seagulls and herons. Songs of thrushes and partridges. Horizontal lines are adorned by the outline of fig trees. Melodies that return from journeys across the sea. In any place that isn’t Instagram fodder, one can reconnect with processes that, though daily, are no less magical. It is well worth the effort to defend all this.

With eyes full of words, as the song suggests, everyone looks at the life stretched out before them, unable to know the length of the path ahead. The ancient poets said that what matters is the journey, not the destination. Enjoying many of the steps taken is key, and nature can greatly help fill the hold with dreams.

This text is an adaptation from an automated translation of the original article published by Miquel Camps, as coordinator of territorial policy for the GOB, in the Menorca newspaper on 08/07/2024.