When I was running on the dirt trails lining the cliffsides of Lake Michigan a few days ago, I realized that running could be fulfilling for another demographic – gamers! As I detoured from the concrete bike path to the winding, root-covered footpaths, I immediately felt a change in my mind and my body. My mind became more fully engaged with my surroundings and my ability to perceive my body relative to my environment also increased – and thankfully too, since trail running requires much more awareness, quick thinking, and predetermining your next moves based on the obstacles ahead of you.
I jumped over roots, carefully identifying the most ideal foot placement for when I landed so that I would be able to maintain my balance on a slippery bit of open ground and get enough momentum and traction for the stride that was to follow. I dodged under a rough arch of branches and vines that looked to be human made, but I’m still not sure. Then, I raced into a cluster of tall, Jurassic-looking plants, apparently laced with long, sharp thorns. Yet another challenge. I learned from the itchy scratches that were still bleeding on my leg that I should avoid those plants instead of barreling straight through them. Some things you just have to learn the hard way, and then you can move on with that knowledge in your mind.
The beauty of the insane diversity of vegetation that I was sprinting through, combined with the fulfillment of having to think quicker than ever about how to deal with all the unknown obstacles that nature was throwing at me gave me a complete sense of happiness and belonging. I was able to use only my body and mind to absorb all of the natural beauty in my surroundings and to move through it in a way that taught me about myself. It is very rare to be able to find an experience where your only feelings, pain, and motions are pushed to their very limits of intensity, yet they’re 100% genuinely the product of your own brain and body. I have enjoyed a few video games in the past, but there is absolutely nothing like being alone on a trail, with the most unpredictable and complex threats, challenges, and rewards thrown at you by mother nature.
It is freeing to understand the value of nature as a universal generator of mystery and beauty, uncontrolled by the choice of other humans or video game designers (some of whom are definitely geniuses). There’s just no genius more intelligent than the natural forces that have designed us as humans and the environments in which we have lived, even though we have made our own changes for better and for worse (*cue interest in protecting the environment*). Virtual reality and the technology we have to simulate realistic situations is astounding, don’t get me wrong. But nothing replaces reality. Nothing replaces humans interacting with other humans in person, or humans interacting with their environments. We were gifted with so many sensory abilities that all work together to provide us with unified, multi-dimensional experiences, and most of us underutilize this power of sensory integration. We expect all of these intense and meaningful experiences to come to us; we want them to come from TV, devices, and other man-made inventions (which do have their place!), but the most real and fulfilling experiences you will only find if you get out of your comfort zone and take yourself into the real world, into places where you will find unexpected discomforts, thrills, and rewards.
Get out there and take to the trails. Your rewards will outweigh the scratches on your legs!
Josh