The title comes from a poem written by a 13 year old hiker.

One of the most important investments I can in biodiversity being around in the future make is to share the fun, the memories, the games I played outdoors in the Salt Lake City foothills with kids growing up in a world dominated by video games and urban surroundings. So I volunteer with Sierra Club’s Tucson Inner City Outings, a nonprofit that takes kids hiking who might not otherwise have the chance.

One of our favorite things to do on any hike is five minutes (or even ten, or more!) of silence, spread out and listening and looking around like a wild animal. During a recent hike’s quiet time with ICO leader Deborah Vath, participants had the opportunity to record their experiences as poetry, which was published in the local Sierra Club chapter’s winter newsletter:

We’ll have a far more diverse and beautiful world if every thirteen year old can let their mind enter the whispers of trees, like Julia.