How Nature, Green, and Forest Bathing Restore the Soul
Stepping barefoot through the grass on the way to my garden, it doesn't take long before I feel the stress of the day fade away. Looking around, I'm surrounded by the greens of late spring. The cool grass under my feet and the lush trees in the forest behind our home, with their varied shades of green, help quiet my busy mind. They stand in strong contrast to the greys, whites, and browns of the winter we just came through.
Lately, I've been struck by the realization that green does so much more than hold a place on the color wheel. The very presence of green, whether on the tree just outside the door or the rolling hills in a painting that hangs on the wall, has a way of ushering in renewal and hope. There's something so restorative and peaceful about this color.
And the more I notice it, the more I begin to wonder: what is it about the color green that makes us feel this way?
Why Are We So Drawn to Green?
Are we drawn to green purely because of our associations with it, like nature, new growth, and prosperity? Or is there a more scientific reason this color evokes such peace and harmony?
As it turns out, there really is a reason green feels so naturally calming.
Green sits at the very center of the color spectrum, and because of that, it asks very little of our eyes. It's considered the most soothing color for the human eye. We don't have to strain to take it in the way we might with brighter or more intense colors. Our eyes can simply rest.
Green is also associated with balance, resting between the warmth of yellow and the coolness of blue. There's a sense of equilibrium that feels both gentle and grounding at the same time.
And it's a color deeply tied to well-being. Time spent surrounded by green, whether out in nature or in subtle ways indoors, has a way of quieting the body and settling the mind. It's often the color chosen for spaces designed for healing and rest, where the goal is not to stimulate, but to soothe.
Some believe our response to green is instinctive. Over time, we've come to associate it with environments that hold everything we need to survive: water, food, shelter. Places where things are growing. Places where life is continuing. Places where it's safe to rest.
Perhaps that's why being surrounded by green can feel so grounding and rejuvenating. It doesn't demand our attention. It holds it gently, with peace and stability.
Forest Bathing While Surrounded by Green
Living in Northern Michigan, my family and I have the unique gift of experiencing so many different natural habitats: wetlands, dense forests, sandy and rocky beaches, and coastal dunes. And as much as I truly love walking the shoreline of the lake with my feet in the sand, there is something especially enchanting about walking through the rich tapestry of a forest.
When you step into the forest, you step into a world full of life.
Lush ferns and trillium line the path. Soft moss grows over fallen logs. Umbrellas of leaves stretch overhead. You're literally surrounded by layers of greens upon greens.
Deep, dark greens, olive greens, yellow-greens, pine greens.
There's something powerful about being held inside so many shades of one color. Green is, in many ways, the color of life itself, present in the chlorophyll that lets plants turn sunlight into energy and sustain the whole living world around us. Perhaps that's why being immersed in it feels so restorative.
Each shade seems to share its own quiet gift of peace, stability, and harmony. It's no wonder so many doctors and therapists recommend stepping outside as a way to find rest and restoration for both the body and the mind.
What Is Forest Bathing?
In Japan, there's a practice devoted to this very thing, called Shinrin-yoku, more commonly known as "forest bathing." The term was introduced by Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries as a way to encourage people to reconnect with nature and care for their overall well-being.
Despite the name, forest bathing has nothing to do with swimming. In fact, it has nothing to do with water at all. Instead, it's the simple practice of immersing yourself in the atmosphere of the forest, slowing down enough to notice the sights, sounds, textures, and stillness all around you.
I smile now, thinking back to when my boys were younger and we'd head out onto the trails together. I often approached our walks wanting a good hike with plenty of movement, eager to keep a steady pace and cover ground. My boys, meanwhile, seemed far more interested in stopping every few minutes to study tiny mushrooms growing on a log, collect interesting rocks, or point out the sound of a woodpecker somewhere deep in the woods.
There were times I found myself nudging them to keep moving forward. But looking back now, I realize they understood something I was still learning: the forest was never meant to be rushed through. In using their senses to explore the world around them, they were far more present than I was.
Children seem to naturally embrace what forest bathing invites the rest of us into. Curiosity. A slower pace. Wonder. The ability to fully meet the world through our senses.
Simple Ways to Practice Forest Bathing
When I let myself slow down on the trail, I notice how much steadier I feel afterward. There's good reason for that. Intentional time in the forest has been shown to lower the body's stress hormones, settle the nervous system, and lift our mood and mental clarity. There's even research suggesting the natural compounds trees release support our immune health. Our bodies, it seems, were made to be out among the trees.
So this week, find a little time to step into the forest, and slowly begin noticing the world around you with all your senses. Here's what I try to do when I go.
I walk slowly, without an agenda, and let go of getting from here to there in any certain amount of time. I leave my phone in the car, or at least silence it. I notice the different shades of green layered all around me. I run my hand along the rough bark of a tree and press my fingers into the soft moss on a log. I pause to listen for the birds off in the distance, the branches rustling in the wind, the water moving in a nearby stream. I draw in a slow breath and take in the scent of damp soil after rain, a patch of wildflowers, the clean smell of pine. I stop for the sweetness of wild raspberries along the trail. And then I sit quietly for a few moments and simply soak it all in.
If you let yourself observe rather than rush, you just may walk away feeling clearer, calmer and more at peace. It's in the stillness of the forest that the mind begins to quiet, the body settles, and we remember what it feels like to simply be. And just like standing in a museum in front of an original painting helps us feel closer to the artist, being in creation can help us feel closer to the Creator. Especially if we allow our thoughts to become prayers and admiration of the surrounding beauty to become praise.
Bringing Green Into the Home
When I'm in the studio, I'm not just painting trees or greenery. I'm trying to recreate the feeling of stillness and life I found out in the forest. Little studies and small shifts in my color palette let me chase the experience of being there, surrounded by all those greens. In many ways, these paintings become a way of holding onto that feeling and handing it to someone else.
After all, we can't all wander beneath the trees or sit among the ferns every day. But we can shape the spaces in our homes to remind us of those feelings of calm and renewal. Spaces that invite us to slow down and reconnect with a sense of peace in the middle of ordinary life.
Small reminders of the outdoors do this gently: layered greens, organic textures, soft natural tones.
The artwork we hang on our walls. The plants we welcome into a corner. The accents we layer on the sofa or set along a shelf.
By weaving in the greens and earthy tones we find in nature, we bring a quiet warmth and comfort into the rooms where we actually live. A painting filled with soft and rich greens can help a space both come alive and feel more peaceful. Art isn't only something we look at. It shapes how a room feels. Nature-inspired work has a way of softening a space and drawing us back toward the natural world even when we're indoors.
Bringing green home doesn't have to feel like a project. Sometimes it's as simple as hanging a small landscape on the wall, draping a textured olive throw over a chair, or setting a leafy plant where the light can reach it.
Over time, these small details begin to shape the whole atmosphere of a home. They make a space feel lived-in, comforting, restorative. They invite us to pause and rest right in the middle of our everyday routines.
Perhaps that's why so many of us are drawn to earthy greens, layered textures, and landscape paintings. They remind us of something deeper: the peace we feel walking beneath the trees, the stillness of the forest, the longing to carry more of that feeling into the spaces where we live. They offer a way to bring the calm of the natural world into our daily lives.
"The trees grew close together and were so leafy that he could get no glimpse of the sky. All the light was green light that came through the leaves: but there must have been a very strong sun overhead, for this green daylight was bright and warm. It was the quietest wood you could possibly imagine. There were no birds, no insects, no animals, and no wind. You could almost feel the trees growing... You could almost feel the trees drinking the water up with their roots. This wood was very much alive. When he tried to describe it afterwards, Digory always said, 'It was a rich place: as rich as plum-cake.'"
Excerpt from "The Magician's Nephew" by C.S. Lewis, describing the Wood between the Worlds.
To beautiful things ahead,
A few of these thoughts were sparked by reading about the color psychology of green and the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing. For the curious, here's some of what I read along the way:
Cherry, K., MSEd. What Does the Color Green Mean? The Color Psychology of Green. Verywell Mind.
Van Braam, H. Green: Color Psychology, Symbolism and Meaning. Color Psychology.
Jimison, R. Why We All Need Green in Our Lives. CNN.
Eichenberger-Archer, S. Nature Walks Reduce Stress. IDEA Health & Fitness Association.
Forest Bathing. Reviewed by Psychology Today Staff. Psychology Today.
Park, B.J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Kasetani, T., et al. The physiological effects of Shinrin-yoku (taking in the forest atmosphere or forest bathing): evidence from field experiments in 24 forests across Japan. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine.
Ideno, Y., Hayashi, K., Abe, Y., et al. Blood pressure-lowering effect of Shinrin-yoku (Forest bathing): a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies.