Rewild your life

If you want to bring nature into your home, you don't necessarily have to leave your flat to feel its effects. Studies have shown, for example, that patients in hospitals recovered more quickly if they could see trees outside their window from their bed. And it certainly works on a small scale with a few green houseplants, a bee-friendly flower box or a bird house on the balcony.

In this way, you not only create green islands and exciting observation objects for yourself, but also do something for wildlife. And once the blue tit family has moved in and the wild bees are busy collecting pollen, you will be at least as happy as the animals themselves.

But beware: not everything sold in this category is suitable. For example, not every wildflower seed mixture is truly wild bee-friendly and not every bird feeder is suitable for feeding birds. It is best to follow the official recommendations of nature conservation associations and similar organisations.

The so-called "sit spot" is a wonderful way to become even more aware of nature. This technique of experiencing nature involves choosing a place in nature that you visit regularly and where you can simply take in your surroundings. Observe, listen, feel and simply see what happens. Without any expectations, without any distractions.

What birds or insects can you see and what are they doing? What sounds can you hear, what smells are in the air, which colours of nature are particularly vibrant? And what might have changed since the last visit?

Sitting still and doing nothing may not be so easy the first few times, but the relaxation effect will soon set in. And before you know it, you start to notice things that you never noticed before.

Of course, the best place for a sit spot experience like this is somewhere where you are really only surrounded by nature and where you can only hear cars and other people in the distance. However, a city park or simply a green backyard can work almost as well.

It doesn't always have to be a long walk: even twenty minutes of walking has an enormous effect on our well-being and health. And as long as you don't live next to an aeroplane runway, it almost doesn't matter where you do it.

In fact, you shouldn't let a day go by without lacing up your shoes and getting out into the fresh air for at least a short run. However, in everyday life, somewhere between the supermarket and work, this really important time out gets lost far too often. Even though we actually know better. Something is always more important and before you know it, the day is already over. Planning a fixed time slot in your daily diary can be a great help. If in doubt, the morning works best for this: there is the least risk of something getting in the way again. And if you simply take your morning coffee with you in a thermo mug, you haven't even "lost" any time.

Nature journaling is the perfect complement to the Sit Spot, but can ultimately be combined with any excursion into nature. All you need is a piece of paper, a notebook or drawing pad, a pen and ideally a few bright colours. This allows you to record your experiences and observations in words and pictures. And don't worry: it's not about creating perfect works of art. Anyone can draw or paint something! And because the Nature Journal is not intended for anyone other than ourselves, it doesn't matter what it looks like anyway.

Our tip: The most important tip for journaling is to switch off your head. Let your thoughts and creativity run free and record whatever comes to mind. A special observation, the silhouette of a tree, the onomatopoeic description of a bird call... A great way to preserve all the small and large wonders of nature in a special way and to be able to recall them at any time.

Just go for a walk before sunrise. Walk barefoot across a meadow. Climb a tree and see the world from above. Or not lace up your hiking boots despite the pouring rain, but because of it! It doesn't sound particularly spectacular or innovative at first, and yet these are all things that are rarely done. But if you consciously take on new perspectives and seek out unusual experiences, you get to know the world out there in all its facets and create new memories.

By spending time in nature, you can learn a lot about plants and animals just by observing and experiencing them. But of course it's even more fun if you also know who or what you're looking at. Then you no longer just see a bird, but an anemone or a treecreeper. You might even know that the latter can only climb up the trunk, while the nuthatch flits up and down. And you don't necessarily have to read a "dry" nature guide for this: There are now many great podcasts and social media channels that deal with various nature topics. With apps, you can identify plants or bird songs directly and often quite accurately while on the move. If you do this at least once in a while - for example, by choosing one bird or flower per walk - you can learn about nature bit by bit and in passing, without turning it into a complicated science.