Nature is all around, but to truly define it would mean to acknowledge nature as a singular entity. Nature encompasses all elements of the world, whether entirely natural or wholly manmade. It is the place in which we live and thrive, and so the ideal definition would describe nature as a place to offer belonging, which could be some place uniquely magical for everyone. Such a sentiment to belong in the world in which one lives is incredibly significant.

Whitman would likely agree with nature existing as a place of belonging, as evidenced by his poem There was a Child went Forth. The piece explores a child’s formative encounters with the world, including those with plants and animals, city and country folk, his own parents, and everyday clouds. As Whitman concludes, “these became part of that child who went forth every day, and who now goes, and will always go forth every day.” The child of this poem has gone through life always a part of something, continuously being shaped by his experiences. The interactions with boys both friendly and quarrelsome, with the fresh innocence of the mare’s foal and the cow’s calf, with “the sense of what is real” in affection from his family, and with the horizon’s edge and “the fragrance of salt marsh and shore mud” all left a note-worthy impact. Through these daily, lifelong connections, the child may develop as a member of the world in which he lives. All people have observations and experiences of their own, from which they develop to truly become themselves.

Becoming is a continual process as shown through a child’s consciousness throughout his life. This idea of becoming oneself or one with nature comes from a place unique and magical to each individual being.