When you are tired of daily life, head into the great outdoors

I went on a trip to Echigo-Yuzawa in Niigata over the weekend.
While there were many moving moments—the hot springs, the food, the scenery—what left the strongest impression on me was the realization that the great outdoors has the power to heal people.

I would like to write about the three ways the great outdoors heals us, while also sharing my travel experiences.

First, you are healed by its sheer scale.
Echigo-Yuzawa is surrounded by many snow-covered mountains, and you are overwhelmed by their size. At the same time that I realized how truly tiny we humans are, I felt a sense of security, as if I were being protected by that grandeur. The things I usually worry about seem insignificant. It is abstract, but I felt a sense of relief, thinking, "The world won't change that much even if I don't struggle so desperately on my own."

I stayed at a ryokan and went into the open-air bath, and the view from there was breathtakingly beautiful. The contrast between the white of the snow-covered mountains, the light blue of the sky, and the brown of the withered trees... I felt from the bottom of my heart that I was glad to see such scenery and glad to have come here.

Next, you are healed by its silence.
When you step away from the hustle and bustle of the city and place yourself in the great outdoors, you feel a sense of being cleansed. Snow, in particular, absorbs sound, so even when walking through town, it is quiet. I lived in Sapporo when I was in high school, so it brought back memories of life in snow country and felt very nostalgic.
The voices of people, station announcements, car horns—we live surrounded by so many sounds, and they are also a major source of stress.
A quiet world brings peace to the heart.

Finally, you are healed by having "nothing to do."
In the great outdoors, there is nothing to do other than experience the great outdoors. But that is enough. The experience of being freed from daily tasks is something you rarely get.

I visited Doai Station, a secluded station on the JR Joetsu Line.
After getting off at the platform and descending over 400 steps, you reach the opposite platform. This station even has the adorable nickname of "Mole Station." Since trains only come once an hour, there was nothing to do once we reached the platform. I eventually got tired of playing on my smartphone, so I chatted with my partner who was with me and felt the freezing air of the underground.
You could call it boring, but I thought it was a luxury. In modern society where there is so much to do, having nothing to do is a very precious time. It was also an opportunity to reflect on myself. I thought a lot about my current job, my life, the people I am involved with, and my future.

That concludes my travelogue and my thoughts on why being in the great outdoors is so healing.
One last thing I want to write: when you go on trips or experience nature, you deeply appreciate the value of your daily life.
The convenience, the comfort, and the peace of mind that comes from spending time in familiar places.
The daily life we complain about as being "boring" is actually overflowing with so much wonder.

I want to bring the power I received from nature back into my daily life and do my best again.