At first glance, it seems that paying attention to the less obvious changes of the seasons would involve zooming in and focusing solely on the details. Though upon reflection, it actually feels like the opposite for me. Choosing to walk to the park, or step away from my computer and walk around the trails right outside my window at work feels much more like stepping back to look at the big picture, rather than narrowing my focus. 

Like many, I tend to get caught up on the day to day of what needs to get done. Emails that I need to respond to, dishes that need to get done, and whatever task that lies in front of me tends to capture the bulk of my attention, until I’m just jumping from one task to the next without pause. Taking the time to step away from that and focus on what is happening in the outside world, rather than just in my own brain, is choosing to acknowledge the bigger picture. I’m grateful for the privilege I possess to be able to access these spaces whenever I want them, and quite honestly to forget they exist until I need them. 

Taking a nature walk in November continues to be an exercise in gratitude for the little things that come together to create the greater experience and ambience of a month full of dichotomies. 

Early November showcases the American Sweetgum leaves, a personal favorite, still holding on to their rainbow of color. Sweetgum trees often lose their leaves later than many other deciduous trees, and they demonstrate a riot of color before they do. The star-shaped leaves turn deep reds and purples, vibrant yellows, and the occasional oranges; each leaf you look at has its own unique tie-dye coloration and they are just as pretty on the ground as they are on the trees.

American Sweetgum leaves in November.

One of my most highly anticipated events of November can be seen without making your way to a trail. It is the annual reappearance of the mega-flock of crows across Jamestown and the surrounding area. I have also been fascinated by crows, and each year, hundreds of them fly across the town in the evening, picking up more individuals as they go, to join together to roost in a central location. You can stand and watch them funnel overhead for a truly impressive amount of time, landing every so often in groupings of trees before rejoining the flock. Some of those crows are here all year long, but many are migrants who come from their even more northern summer homes. 

No matter the weather, any fall stroll through forests, fields, or marshes is going to be full of seeds, especially the fluffy kinds. Most of the milkweed fluff has dispersed, but asters and wild clematis seeds are still hanging on to their branches and buds. For me, seed and plant identification comes with a collection of memories and thanks to the people who either taught me how to identify them or were with me when we puzzled it out. For me, the facts tend to stick better when I have a story or connection behind them.

There are other things that I never manage to catch, but I know are out there somewhere. The River Otters swim around the ponds of Audubon, but they remain my white whale. I firmly understand that this is partially my fault as they tend to come out earlier in the morning than I am interested in participating in, but plenty of others report seeing them throughout the fall and winter. For now, I can listen to and enjoy other stories of these playful predators out in the wild.

The end of November brings around Thanksgiving, which can span the full range of emotions depending on your individual situation. Whatever your situation, stepping out into nature can help contribute to an already joyful moment or bring some peace to those stressful situations.

Nature contains an abundance of interesting occurrences to make you wonder and pull you out of the machinations of your ever-spinning swirl of thoughts, to-do-lists, and the lures of quick dopamine on your social media of choice. And while November seems like one of the least inspiring months, there is a lot to notice and appreciate if you step back to let yourself take in the unexpected along with the expected. Especially with Thanksgiving in our sights, it feels appropriate to expend some extra effort to appreciate and find some gratitude for the things that can bring me back down to Earth and put things in perspective. So go ahead and take a stroll, hike through the woods, sit by the window, and take a moment to see the big picture.