I have been attracted to the idea of nature journaling all of my life. I see myself sitting in the wilderness, journal on my knee, binoculars in hand, sketching birds and painting little landscapes for hours on end.

I look at where I am now and think “I am not a nature journaler” because my nature journaling rarely looks like that. Frequently, I journal indoors, looking out a window. When I sit outside, it’s usually in my backyard. My journal pages are black-and-white, often messy, especially if I’m fortunate enough to be recording bird or animal behaviors. Many of my sessions are only a few minutes long.