Sharing Nature Articles and Activities

The Trail of Beauty
by Joseph Cornell
 

A. Direct Experience
B. Awakening love
C. Day/beautiful area
D. 2 or more
E. 7 years and up
F. Trail signs, clothespins

To the Navajo people, beauty also means the harmony that runs through all life. In this activity, people walk along a beautiful path while looking at inspiring quotations and feeling a sense of communion with the world around them. I tell participants, "As you walk, read and reflect on the quotations and activities, while feeling also the inspiration from the natural beauty around you. You'll find that each quotation encourages a sense of serenity and loving interaction with nature." As the walkers finish the trail, it's heart-warming to see the joy and serenity shining from their faces.

Begin by looking for a trail that has close, intimate views as well as broad, expansive ones. Place the 8 ½x11-inch quotation cards at locations where the words and surroundings complement each other. Make sure to space the signs so that the walkers have time to reflect on each quotation before they come upon the next one. The length of the trail should be about 100 to 150 yards-this will give the walkers enough space to spread out, and for you to set out a dozen or so signs.

Now gather all the participants at the beginning of the trail and tell them that they will be walking the trail one at a time, in silence, so that they can have the feeling of being alone with nature. Encourage them to go at their own pace, and tell them it's okay to pass someone who is taking more time. If there's a large group, have everyone begin at intervals of 10 seconds or so, and ask to them, as they're walking, to be conscious of the rest of the group so that no one has to wait too long. To keep the activity flowing, you can also tell the group it's okay if there's more than one person reading a sign at a time.

After introducing the activity, choose someone to stay behind with the rest of the group. This person's job will be to signal each walker when to start on the trail. This person should then follow the last walker and collect all the signs. This way, you can go ahead of the group and put up any signs you haven't yet placed, and be at the end of the trail as people finish. When you have a class of children or a large group of adults, you may want to give each walker something quiet to do or to read while he or she waits for the group to finish.

"Find the Best Place" is a variation of the Trail of Beauty that works especially well with young children. In this version, have a child draw a picture on a quotation card, then ask him or her to look for the best location for the quotation. With a group of children, make a trail connecting all the "best places." Use simple quotations, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson's statement, "This world is so beautiful that I can hardly believe it exists."

You can have your own experience of the Trail of Beauty activity and discover many quotations and activity signs at http://www.sharingnature.com/beauty.html. There you can also print quotation cards for your own use. If you laminate them, you'll be able to use them even on rainy and windy days. Bring along clothespins so you can place the cards wherever you wish. For a more personal Trail of Beauty experience, you can use Joseph Cornell's pocket-sized book, With Beauty Before Me, for your own solitary nature walks.

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