Grudgingly, I slipped by phone back into my pocket, to fully appreciate the beauty of autumn surrounding me. I was sitting on a rock, in a forest, overlooking a small river, which, if followed, would lead to a sewer system. In fact, right outside this park, would be a parking lot, about to be expanded. There are tractors and mountains of gravel just beyond the edges of the trees. But that’s beside the point.

Looking around me, I started to realize why people would appreciate this type of thing- the leaves falling around me, and a slight chill in the air, with the only noises being small animals and the occasional police siren. I would have to admit, it was nice. Putting off responsibility seemed to be a perk of natural world; it’s not like plants had a personal agenda for the day. Yet, I think that’s also besides the point.

I didn’t bother to bring a notebook out with me, so for that half hour, I just sat on that rock overlooking that small river. I was playing with words in my head, trying to figure out what would sound most poetic. Perhaps describing the dappled sunlight splayed across the dirt? Or maybe describing how the leaves rustled before falling to the ground, softly and quietly. I also wondered what the point of this assignment was- to connect with nature and the great outdoors? After being cooped up in front of a computer screen, the only time you see trees are when there’s an iPhone picture online, captioned with #nature.

Was I supposed to think about the cosmic meaning of the universe? About something bigger than me? Assuming, of course, that what was bigger than me didn’t mean the trees. Unless… were said trees supposed to represent an all consuming purpose in life? A purpose that douses you in shade, and sprinkles you in color? But since those trees get cut down to make room for unnecessary parking lots, are the bulldozers and tractors supposed to represent how technology is eating away at the “marrow of life”? Is that river supposed to represent how live has its twists and turns, and times where it speeds up and slows down?

Maybe I was looking too deeply into this. I suppose Emerson would be proud. But it’s been over half an hour, and I had other things to do, back in the comforts of civilization. By then, I think Emerson and I would want to go back inside of a nicely heated room, and maybe buy a thicker jacket.