Nostalgia is the word that comes to my mind when I think about all the artistic ways in which nature is represented around me. Many times I like to listen to music while I’m sitting by the lake, but I also feel that nature produces its own kind of music, and I don’t want to complement it with notes that don’t represent that moment.

While preparing my project, I talked to some people and even asked which song comes to their mind when they sit by the lake. One of the things that surprised me most was that many people didn’t know what to say, not because they don’t know many songs, but because there are so many options that it becomes hard to choose, or sometimes no song comes to mind because they don’t listen to any, and that’s okay.

I realized this was true for me as well. I often didn’t feel the desire to listen to music, especially when I wanted to feel that I was there alone with myself. I think the way nature is represented feels loving and nostalgic to me, a longing for a time that has passed, a time that no longer exists, a time in which I could have been better, a time that, even if it still exists, is already fading away.

Sometimes the world seems to live as if everything is almost at its end. We live our friendships and best moments already thinking that one day they will end, so we avoid getting too attached. We think about nature as something that could be better, more evolved, something that is good for us, yet even while spending time with nature we’re already thinking that in 20 minutes, an hour, or two, we’ll get up and return to the boring routine.

I was reflecting a lot on this, because it seems that the way we think and talk about nature is always tied to moments or situations in which we want it to bring more happiness. When I think about new life, I think of a blooming flower, a seed, a root. When I imagine a happy future, I imagine a day filled with singing and dreams.

But I have also noticed that nature is often represented as something unreachable, something that has already passed or an idealized future in which nature is more present in our lives than human creations. However, none of this feels true to me. I realize that I don’t listen to music about nature or about how nature makes me feel.

But when I listen to a song about life, I like being outside, observing animals and life. When I listen to a love song, I can think of my animals or the people around me. When I seek happiness, I think of a sunny day. When I listen to a sad song, I picture a rainy day. All our feelings and forms of expression through music are represented in nature in a simple and connected way. We already associate symbols with it: when we hear about love, we imagine a symbol of nature; when we hear about sadness, fear, insecurity, we can relate them to storms.

And I realized something: nature doesn’t seem to be just a reference. It feels like part of the creative process itself. It works by causing sensations in us because it is already part of who we are in the world, a part of us.