I like to shoot alone. It’s not that I am anti-social, it’s just that being out in the middle of nowhere, alone, allows me to see, listen and visualize the world in a way that cleanses my soul from all of the day to day distractions that we all experience. It calms me and I truly believe that it has had a positive impact on my overall health and well-being.

I recently did some research on the effects of viewing nature and came across a couple of interesting articles.

“If it weren’t for Central Park, all us New Yorkers would kill each other,” says Ruta Fox, a 50-something jewelry entrepreneur from Manhattan. “It’s the saving grace of this city.” This is a current quote from an article by Diane Mapes, an MSNBC contributor, on how nature makes you nicer.

In a set of recent experiments, researchers at the University of Rochester in New York monitored the effects of natural versus artificial environments — and found that nature actually makes us nicer.

“Previous studies have shown the health benefits of nature range from more rapid healing to stress reduction to improved mental performance and vitality.”

For as long as man has pondered his role in the natural world, it has been assumed that having a connection with nature resulted in a happier, healthier, more stress-free life. Only in the last few decades has scientific research proven this assumption to be true. More recently, these findings have been used to create conditions where we can more easily interact with nature in ways that support health and happiness.

A considerable body of evidence proves that if you can't be in nature, you can still benefit greatly from just viewing nature.  Activities as simple as viewing a photograph, painting or any kind of artwork that represents nature can have a positive effect on your well- being.

That being said, I will continue my never ending quest to improve your health……..and possibly make you a nicer person : )