I remember laying against the selfless roots of a green mango tree, with its shed-off leaves cushioning me against the bark and the noble ink-lit grass caressing my feet lovingly. They provided me a humble palanquin and asked neither a dime nor a service charge for it! I watched the starry night sky dreamily with my silver-haired grandmother lying next to me in my princely palanquin of nature.

Till date I cherish the memory of those days I had spent with my grandmother because of whom I understood the value of nature and our environment.  I always want to relive those moments but unfortunately my paternal grandparents are no more with me.

Nature plays a therapeutic role in stimulating the sensory organs of the older people. It reminisces them of places and people in their past. They get substantial pleasure amongst green plants, blooming flowers, flowing river and cascading waterfall which, in turn has a positive impact on their wellbeing and quality of life.

Last week I grabbed the opportunity to visit an old age home to spend some Iftar time with elderly people there and I along with my group members gifted plants and nature paintings to them in order to evoke their past memories of the natural beauty they had experienced in their youth. The elderly people staying there are away from their families and some of them do not even know whether their families are there or not. Since it was iftar time for them, we also took fruits, dry fruits, home-made food and juices for them so that they have a sense of belongingness to the community around them.

As children and youth we were all amazed at their physical conditions but at the same time we really enjoyed talking to them. They looked very happy to see us and some of them even told us stories about their native town. They took the plants from us with great warmth and smile. Later we got to know that they love flowers and plants around them. One of them told us that he loved gardening in his youth and he still remembered the names of plants and flowers he had in his garden. At the end I gave an acrylic based painting made by my mother to an old person suffering with Alzheimer. The painting was based on scenic nature with mountain, lakes, grass and trees. The moment he saw the painting he was looking very happy and he grabbed it and said two words- ?My home.?

This visit taught me a different perspective to life. Nature is truly God's gift to all human beings irrespective of any age. Whether the person is young or old, elements of nature- mountain, grass, plants, rivers, lakes and flowers, all have positive impact on them. It is not easy for older people especially who live in a nursing or retirement home, to go out to enjoy the natural environment and they often feel isolated. We should try to bring them closer to nature by gifting plants and flowers to them or any gift that makes them feel connected to nature.