Scientists have been researching the relationship between better health, both physical and mental, and the close proximity to a body of water. Studies show that being near water reduces diabetes and obesity-related illnesses. They’ve also found it reduces stress hormones, slows down heart rate, and boosts mental health.
I don’t worry too much about what the scientists do or say, but I’ve long considered myself an aquaphile. And I’ve known since I was a child that I feel better around water- lakes, swimming pools, the ocean.
My favorite memories often involve time spent at the beach, the lake, the creek, or the pool.
I’m typing this while looking out over a lake. The screened patio of this third-floor condo offers me a sensory banquet I can only get near water.
I hear the water slapping at the rocks along the shoreline, and the cries of water birds I don’t know the names of as they swoop and skim the surface. I smell cedar that grows along the shore, the hint of woodsmoke, and a faint smell I can only identify as lake.
I see white caps breaking on the silver surface and sunlight reflecting gold and blinding. I feel the breeze, cool and slightly damp on my skin, and the warmth of the jacket I wore just in case.
A moment of inventory gives me a list of things that are missing. The tight, tense muscles in my neck and back that accompany a typical workday. The headache that usually arrives daily like clockwork. The feeling of dread and anxiety associated with workplace drama. The sense of panic that I have an approaching deadline I’m in danger of missing.
Now, I realize that just being on vacation can accomplish some of that. But I know the water is the magic ingredient. Maybe I should retire and move to the lake.