This is a continuation of our Inspired By Nature series, where we highlight Canadians who are dedicated to sharing the health benefits of nature by getting others outside and unplugged. Know someone who we should feature? Email news@bcparksfoundation.ca.

Meet Marghanita Hughes from Educating the Heart with Nature Art

I am an artist, educator, mother of 3 grown up children and an advocate for the great outdoors. Nature is a constant source of inspiration for my work and is my greatest teacher and healer.

Growing up in the Scottish countryside, I explored and gathered from the natural world. I touched, held, and responded to things in an intimate and personal way. Gaining a sense of connection with these items, and the environment in which they were found, I gained confidence to explore further and create something new from what I found. This led me to write and illustrate several children’s picture books.

Moving from Scotland to BC in 2005 has elevated my curiosity about the natural world which led me to start up my business to highlight the need for children to spend more time outdoors. Mother Nature embodies everything I know to be true...love, beauty, purity, soul, breath, sustenance. I see ourselves, nature and art as inseparable, it is everywhere, and we are part of it.

Getting outside

Waking up with Mother Nature is my most favourite time of day, to watch the sunrise and hear the bird song is such a sacred gift, a time to meditate and give gratitude for the gift of a new day unfolding in its purity. I need this time to feel peaceful and grounded before starting my working day.

I also love walking, especially among the trees in the forests or barefoot along the ocean, mountain biking through trails or sitting around a campfire sharing songs and stories, away from technology and free from interruptions. I also love to spend time alone just observing the wildlife and soaking up the beauty of it all, time to reflect and just be, it’s incredibly soothing and peaceful - nourishing my whole being, nature is my medicine.

Time in nature makes me feel more connected, more alive, more human and content. Outdoors in nature is the most natural, awe-inspiring place to be creative and is a great source of inspiration for my work as an artist and educator. I spend a lot of my time sketching, foraging and creating from natural materials, which I can share with my students. It is these simple pleasures that gift me the most pleasure and lasting memories.

When we unplug from technology, we begin to slow down and relax. My husband and I love to camp and tour BC Parks. Immersed in the raw wilderness surrounded by the elements, we feel more alive, more receptive to what is around us. Fully present in the moment, we tune into the natural sounds, the whispering wild winds, the raging creek crashing over boulders large enough to jump from one to another, like we did as children. We notice the different smells that fill the clean crisp air, the sweet smell of pine, the perfumed scent of wild roses. We gaze in awe and wonder at the vast expanse of the glacier mountains and all their grandeur and feel invigorated by the refreshing lake water lapping across our bare feet. The wild and raw sounds, the smells, the mesmerizing flames of the crackling campfire dancing before us as the night sky descends; a feast for our senses. Nourishing our whole being; reminding us of who we are.

Of the many wild places in British Columbia, Goldstream Provincial Park - a most enchanting of all forests, a land that time forgot with ancient Cedars, large leafed Maples and Douglas fir, some as old as 700 years old - is a favourite. Spending time among these wise old souls is a spiritual experience. Amazing to think Canadian artist Emily Carr, would come to this very forest and paint the cedars back in the early 1900’s.

As an artist, I like to observe, explore and sketch and I am forever inspired to create during and after my walks and hikes in nature. It was here among the giant cedars draped in moss and lichen, their hundred shades of green had me spellbound and inspired my “Dancing Under the Cedars” workshop - where I wished to share with others how we can be strong and grounded, like the trees, we too can weather these strange and bewildering times. Nature is a powerful medicine and the greatest teacher.

The ocean too is magical and mystical and has an energy like no other. Tofino, on Vancouver Island with its expansive golden beach is breathtakingly beautiful and wildly invigorating, inviting you to run barefoot, wild and free. Treasure is abundant on the West Coast, shells, seaweed, pebbles and driftwood. Driftwood is one of my favourite items to create art with - children love it too, it’s smooth and light for little hands to work with and you can make the best dens/forts on the beach.

And the mountains offer another kind of adventure, I love their rugged form and sense of strength, they are ancient storekeepers. My husband and I love mountain biking and experienced the best bike trail near Mount Robson. There are trails to fit everyone’s abilities. And I love the Kootenays, a most sacred land - Slocan Lake, Arrowlake and Valhalla for kayaking or canoeing.

Then later, sitting round a campfire in the park, you feel warm and safe, watching the flames dance, the sounds of the wood crackling, the smoke rising into the starry night are humbling, a reminder of how simple life can be, how very little we need to feel content. In the morning we will use the charcoal to draw with - have you ever used charcoal?

Many little earth beings have morphed along the way, every park is unique and offers its own treasure to play and create with. I am always respectful of the natural materials, asking first, giving thanks and gratitude and only taking what I need.

Educating the Heart with Nature Art and the inspiration behind it

I was growing deeply concerned about the lack of time children spent outdoors and how it was affecting their mental health and wellbeing so I decided to start up an outdoor classroom where children could just be children, to play, to explore, imagine, discover and create - connecting the Child’s heart to Mother Earth’s Heart and helping to foster a deep love and connection with the natural world through soulful nature art. Encouraging children and adults to explore and celebrate their unique sense of creativity. Nature play nurtures the whole being, body, mind, heart and spirit. When you combine nature and art you are receiving a double dose of very powerful medicine.

I truly believe our disconnection from nature has played a vital role in the increase in stress and anxiety and lack of imagination, not just in children but in adults too - nature art is a way forward to bring harmony and balance back into all our lives and the parks offer an amazing playground to do this for all ages, young and old. Over the last few years, I have focused on the adults and their disconnection with the natural world, how it has had an impact on their health and wellbeing with many living in urban areas and limited access to wild nature, this led me to creating an urban nature art program which invites adults to get creative in their own backyard, local neighbourhood. Nature is everywhere and relevant.

Our activities are designed to open the mind and heart and draw on the many benefits of creative play in nature. From simple walking meditations, making mandalas and little stick people that leads to both oral and illustrative storytelling, to bark rubbing and making our own charcoal and earth paints to using natural clay we find to make pinch pots and musical instruments from fallen branches and pebbles to butterfly puppets, sun catchers, shell turtles and wild animal masks. Nature art nurtures the soul, mind and heart, it is a powerful medicine and helps engage children with nature in a way that develops a quest for knowledge, a foundation of respect and gratitude, and an appreciation for all life.

Favourite moments with Educating the Heart with Nature Art

One of the highlights last year was having a group of educators from rural Ontario attend a 5-day workshop to learn how they could bring nature art to their community. They were concerned about the growing numbers in their community with mental health issues and experiencing anxiety and depression. Within just a few months they had introduced nature art to the youth, taken nature art to care homes for the elderly and set up nature art facilities for preschoolers throughout the whole community. Helping others reawaken their deep- rooted connection to the natural world and our unique language with which the arts ignites; it's a beautiful journey to witness. As an artist and educator, I feel compelled more than ever to share the health benefits of combining nature and art as a very powerful natural medicine that we can all benefit from especially during COVID.

Hearing how nature art can transform other people's lives, (all around the world, even in urban settings), bringing harmony and balance back into their lives through their creative experiences keeps me inspired.

Advice if you want to get outside and unplugged, too

BC Parks offer an incredible variety of walks for all different levels in the most amazing, awe inspiring wild places catering for all different kinds of needs. If you want to take photos, take a camera instead of your phone, thereby limiting the potential for unnecessary distraction, or keep your phone on airplane mode. Time in nature is so therapeutic when you free yourself from the technology, a time to connect with the natural world. An invitation to SLOW DOWN.

When we walk slowly, we can focus in on the detail, make time to stop and smell the scented flowers, observe the birds and let their song fill our hearts. Take a small notebook and find a quiet spot and take notes of how you are feeling. How do the trees make you feel? Go barefoot and write down how it feels walking on the earth, in the water, across the moss? Let go and relax and let the music, poetry and love seep into your whole being. Let nature invite you to play, explore, imagine, create. What fascinates you - let the awe, wonder lead you into creating art - why not try making a mandala or find a pebble and paint it with water (you can use your finger or some foliage instead of brush) and watch it evaporate before you - simple and magical and therapeutic.

Feeling content and nourished by nature, we are able to reflect more positively on the past few months seeing the silver linings, the small but precious gifts that we can build upon to make the future brighter. As we navigate our way forward it is vital that we listen to our hearts and inner knowing. To be open to change and embrace the unknown with an open heart and mind; and a willingness to learn new ways and share our own experiences. There are always challenges, however, a strength comes from being in harmony – nature always seems to provide the perfect antidote to days frustrations.