Walking Around Lincoln Park

I choose to take my nature walk around a familiar area that I walk through daily to see if my views of these areas in regards to nature have changed.  Therefore I walked around Lincoln Park’s residential streets as well as by parks such as Oscar Meyer and Oz Park. During my walk, I noticed the mass amounts of trees that line many residential streets and the amount of people that sit out on their front steps and are walking around. Then I compare this to what I saw when I observed at Schiller Elementary School in the heart of what used to be Cabrini Green. This area was desolate of any greenery and I rarely saw the residents out on the four playgrounds that were in the area. I saw this contrast as support to Kuo’s view on the relationship between greenery and use of an area. During my walk through the parks, I saw grass, flowers, trees, domestic dogs, squirrels, and people interacting everywhere. Although so much was happening in my walk, such as sports games and people moving at a fast-paced through the streets, it was quite relaxing. Seeing the amount of activity that was going on in these spaces and knowing that the neighborhood has created an inviting and safe atmosphere that people enjoy being in the nature around them. Just being outdoors gives me a sense of being part of something bigger and the smells and sights relax me. The interaction between nature and myself is that in order to appreciate the beauty of nature you have to be willing to take care of your surroundings. The parks that I encountered did not plant flowers and tress on its own. Someone has created a space that lets you enjoy nature by giving the area greenery and color.  I wouldn’t say that I experienced or saw more than I normally do on a walk through this area, I was just more aware of what was going on around me and how the environment affected the people in it.