New Perspective on Tanning

Hello Blog!

Lately, one of my favorite things to do outside has been tanning, either alone in my backyard or at the Lot 12 pool with my roommate or a friend. It started as something casual, just wanting to get some sun, but I have started to notice that these moments have become some of the most genuinely nature-connected experiences I have had this semester.

Something is interesting about a backyard or a pool. On the surface, it is completely man-made with concrete, chlorine, and lawn chairs. But the longer I stay still and am quiet, the more life I notice around me. Roly polies (Armadillidium vulgare, which I learned are actually crustaceans, not insects) lie around near the edges of the concrete. Snails from the class Gastropoda move slowly along the base of the fence and on my gutters. Ants travel in coordinated lines across the ground. And in the trees — which belong to the class Magnoliopsida, or dicots — birds call back and forth to one another in what sounds like a conversation. I could not identify the species, but the exchange was constant and layered, with different calls overlapping from different directions. I have really enjoyed using the iNaturalist app recently to put a name to the things I am seeing, and my roommate, who is an environmental science major, does it with me! 

What makes tanning different from my usual time outside is that I am completely still and phoneless. On my walks, I usually have a podcast going or am texting someone. But when I am tanning, there is nowhere to go and nothing to do, so I truly pay attention. The day I am thinking of (Thursday, April 16) right now was sunny and genuinely warm. It was the kind of warmth where you feel it deep in your skin, but you are not dripping in sweat. The UV index was high enough that I was being mindful about sunscreen, but I did not burn. I watched the clouds move across the sky and felt the temperature shift almost immediately each time one passed in front of the sun. I noticed the direction the wind was coming from. I noticed the way the light changed from sharp to soft and back again throughout the afternoon. These are things I walk past every single day without registering them much, unless I am intentionally doing a mindful walk. 

When I am with a friend or my roommate, our conversations feel different, too. Without phones in our hands, we talk about the most random things, or we are comfortable not talking. Either way, it feels intentional in a way that does not happen as often as I would like. And when I am alone, I find myself thinking through things I usually push aside. It is one of the rare times I am not moving, not consuming something, and not multitasking.

What surprises me most is that I did not seek this out as a nature experience. I was just trying to tan, but staying still long enough, in any outdoor space, seems to be enough to make nature visible. 







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