proof that henry david thoreau was right: how sweden inspires the imagination

“this world is but a canvas to our imagination.” ~ henry david thoreau

this morning i felt a little worried + stressed as i got on my bike to ride home after an appointment. however, i didn’t make the turn i needed to  in order to head home. instead, my bike, seemingly on its own, took me on a path by the river. before i knew it, i was headed out of town and into the countryside. ahhhh… the beautiful swedish countryside.

simple. authentic. glorious.

in sweden, when you leave the city, you are immediately in the country, surrounded by nothing but nature. it’s not like in the states, where you pass little neighborhoods or run down little areas and have to keep driving to finally get to a place where there is a state or nationally owned park where you can wander.

here, you can pretty much walk and wander anywhere. no one technically owns any land. so, after only a few minutes, i was out in the middle of nowhere, just soaking up the sun and the beauty.

i rode and rode and rode. i even talked with some people about some animals and flowers. ok, they talked, i listened. i stopped and took pictures. i just stood there and let the silence wash over me. it was so, so good for my soul. and i fell even more in love with uppsala.

there is nothing that nature cannot cure.

get outside, lovelies, whenever you can! i promise that you will remember what is really important.

onwards + upwards!