The Obvious and (Un)Known

We all come to a point in our lives that we think  there is nothing new to learn and everything seems so boring in our close surrounding. Everything is boring and nothing is inspiring anymore. In this case often we look in the wrong direction.

Have you ever thought about and looked to the obvious things?

The tree on the side of the road and the mushroom in the local park are obvious and do not interest us. We only get excited when we fly halfway around the world to go on safari and watch exotic animals (which are only exotic to the tourists, exotic animals are obvious to the natives). And those natives are doing the same in your local area to observe the things you find obvious.

The most obvious things are boring, plants use photosynthesis to make sugar and make oxygen for us to breath. Mushrooms sprout in the fall and are poisonous or delicious to eat. 

These are the common obvious things, or are they?!

Have you ever looked any further than your thought about the only facts you know about the mushroom or the tree. If you look further it maybe is not that obvious anymore.

Our planet is a big place with many different ecosystems, nature is diverse and has many faces. And each species evolved to take their place and function in these ecosystem. But as humans we educate ourselves with the obvious.

I once thought only about the obvious and thinking back to this period. I felt confidently stupid about some subjects. You master one trade and think you can tackle the world. Everything feels simple and doable and it all is fixable in an instant.

For me, the moment came when I started beekeeping, (you might think agian the beekeeping – yes the beekeeping) the bees didn’t give a damn. And I couldn’t figure out how to figure out beekeeping during my first inspections.

I couldn’t stand it, and, it was frustrating that the obvious things didn’t work. In all my previous endeavors it was easy enough to learn the trade and progress with my interest.

Before beekeeping, only one hobby didn’t work out in the beginning and this was homebrewing. For the experienced homebrewers under us, after cooking and cooling. You have to be quick to seal everything off because of the danger of bacteria and wild yeast entering the wort. This can result in odd flavors and smells.

So the bees didn’t listen and I needed to go back to the drawing table. I needed to look better to the bees and figuring out their internal working. So I started rereading all the books I had available and kept notes on what was happening.

The biggest lesson of I learned for my first experience with beekeeping and homebrewing, is nature doesn’t give a f***. And you should get used to it and work nature’s way or you will be drinking odd tasting beer every time you do a batch of homebrewwing. 

When reading about the bees I realized it isn’t all this obvious. Often if you start a new endeavor there is this huge mountain of information to tackle and it all can all seem so daunting. At least this is always the case for me.

But fortunately I’m a stubborn person regarding hobbies and can’t stand it if I do not understand it. And I persisted on reading and observation the bees. And I am glad I did.

Observing and reading showed me a world I didn’t notice before. Nature before was obvious and simple. It is indeed true nature is simple, but as a engineer simple is the most complex thing to invent. 

The principles of nature are simple but the pure construction is vastly complex. And as I continued reading it is only a small realisation that we just scratched the surface on what knowledge is waiting for us to explore. And the most beautiful thing is the information is all provided for free. We only have to listen and observe the nature around us.

Often you hear there is nothing left to explore but this is really not the case. There is a vast world out there to be explored and you can join as a amateur in a field of your interest. 

Amateur scientist are sometimes not taken serious in the scientific community. Because maybe you think they don’t have sufficient funds to compete with the big universities. For sure the opposite is true.

Amateur scientist ignore the common and the obvious, just like scientists. They look to the obvious and are curious about it.

A small example; in the field of mycology a big part of the newly discovered mushroom species are named after amateur mycologist, whom have a passion for studying mushrooms and sometimes stumble upon a new species which they discovered by accident.

Those fungi were always ignored by the majority of the people because there is a thought everything is known already and it is not worth to look to the obvious. And because of this thought about the obvious the majority remains undiscovered.

 

I hear you think –  “How can I be such a person?”

 

Start with letting go everything you already know, observe with your own eyes and use your own brain. Look at the obvious and use your curiosity. And maybe there even is a change in the future you can name a species after yourself.

If you really do not know where to start it can be a good idea to google around for some local parks. Often excursions are organised throughout the year. Join a excursion of you choice, this can be about trees, insects, birds, fungi, fish or just the history of your local flora and fauna. Everyplace on this earth has its background and can be very interesting to investigate.

We all do not have to become amateur scientist, but by looking to the obvious we can amaze our self again. We can enjoy the beautiful sunset on a nice summer evening or the wind through the branches of the trees.

By reigniting our curiosity we can start enjoying the little things which can make us thru human. Just start by question everything and observe it with your own eyes.

We live on a beautiful planet which provides us with anything we wish for. Still the most parts are unexplored and untouched by the majority of the people.

I want to invite you to wander along a path, which we thought we already knew. I want to invite you to start your journey in observing and seeing.

The best thing is to start in your own area and begin to question the obvious. And expand from there, you will never be bored again.

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Photo credits: Pixabay