Nature Essay

Transcendentalism is the idea that everything in the world, including human beings, is a reflection of the Divine Soul. Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry Dave Thoreau believed and lived out Transcendentalism. They also believed that people could use their intuition to behold God's spirit revealed in nature or in their own souls. Four major examples of transcendentalism are nonconformity, self-reliance, free thought, confidence, and importance of nature.
In Henry David Thoreau's autobiographical story, Life in the Woods, he states that some of his most pleasantest hours were during the long rainstorms in the spring or fall, that confined him to the his house for the afternoon. When walking on the beach the only thing surrounding me is the waves crashing, my feet crunching in the sand, and the wind in my hair. "Soothed by their ceaseless roar and pelting; when an early twilight ushered in a long evening in which many thoughts had time to take root and unfold themselves" (Thoreau, 238). It's something about the waves crashing into the shore that soothes me; it takes away my worries and fears. In these times I can think my best because i let myself go and the technology of this world isn't distracting me anymore. Each time I take a walk on the beach I feel a different way. "Nature is a setting that fits equally well a comic or a mourning piece" (Emerson, 220). Sometimes the sun is bright and the birds are playing and i just can't help but laugh. And other times the sun is hidden beneath the dark clouds and the rain starts to fall to the ground and i get a rather lonely feeling. When walking on the beach I am self-reliant. I feel as if all the problems are washed away and I become confident. I might start skipping down the beach or spinning in circles, not caring what people walking by think.
The beach has so many examples of transcendentalism for me, but you can find them anywhere. Emerson and Thoreau wanted to show the world that people could use their intuition to behold God's spirit; revealed in nature or in their own souls. You can find examples looking out at your backyard or driving to school. We let the bigger, non-important things in life distract us from the small, important things.