Embracing the nature within
Lilacs beginning to bloom. Photo by Sarah Lundquist.
In the dead of winter, when the days are short and gray and I haven’t felt warm in what seems like months, I ask myself, “Why do I live in Montana, again?” And then the spring and summer arrive, and I remember.
It’s no secret that Montana is a beautiful place - mountains, forests, lakes, and many so-called “wild” spaces surround us. It is an amazing place to hike, camp, fish, and explore the great outdoors. But getting outside and experiencing nature doesn’t have to mean making a designated trip to a far off trailhead, state park, or wilderness area - nature is all around us! Nature is the trees on the side of the road; nature is the birds chirping outside our front door; nature is the dandelions invading our lawn. Nature is both extraordinary and mundane. Nature is us.
Magazine editor Sydney’s back porch. Photo by Sydney Bollinger.
Seeing nature in our everyday lives and surroundings is, to me, an act of resistance to modern culture, which typically portrays humans as separate from (and, often, “above”) nature. When we recognize the nature within, and embrace it in our interactions with the world, nature becomes intimate. It changes from being a far-off abstraction to being an essential component of each of our personal stories.
This is why, for the second year in a row, we at The Changing Times are dedicating our Summer Issue to YOU and your voices. We are inviting everyone to share their stories and experiences of the world in our second annual art issue. We gave our columnists the summer off so we can devote our pages exclusively to creative endeavors - so that YOUR voices, stories, sculptures, paintings, and pictures could have every inch of the issue. We are so excited to see nature through - and within - your eyes!
HOW DO YOU ENGAGE WITH THIS BEAUTIFUL, HARSH, BROKEN, WILD, SOFT, RUGGED WORLD?
The Changing Times asks (and tries to answer) this question every issue. Climate change is so big it’s hard to conceive but we know that storytelling (in every form) and community around those stories are acts of resistance.
If you’re ready to tell your story and share your experiences, there’s still time left to get involved with two of our current projects:
1 - GET INVOLVED WITH OUR CAMPAIGN: #TCTGETOUTSIDE.
We're asking for your photos about how you engage with our earth. How do you get out in the world? Where do you go? It could be a hike in a wilderness area or just a walk around your neighborhood. We want to see your experiences and hear your stories.
Submit with the hashtag #TCTGetOutside on Instagram or use our online submission form.
We’ve already begun sharing photos on our Instagram account, if you need some inspiration. We’re excited to share more places and stories. Some of the submitted photos will be featured in the summer 2022 print issue or online extras and we will continue sharing your #TCTGetOutside photos and stories on Instagram.
2 - SUBMIT YOUR WORK FOR THE SUMMER 2022 ISSUE!
We accept submissions of any and all creative outpourings. We want your grief, your joy, your anger, your exuberance, your pain, your tiredness, your exhaustion - your experience of this deeply interconnected world. How do you engage with the world? How do you experience/process climate change? What is your lived, bodily experience of the more-than-human world? We want YOUR experience/voice/story.
Submit using our online submission form.
Submissions for the print issue due by July 4!
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The Changing Times is a quarterly publication from Families for a Livable Climate. The magazine features original art and writing from Montanans of all ages and backgrounds who are responding to the climate crisis. We welcome submissions from across Montana. Anyone can subscribe.