I had so much fun in Åre. It’s not just because I went snow shoeing or dog sledding in the first winter I’ve had with snow. It’s more than Guitar Hero, meeting the reindeer, and the hike. The highlight of my trip to Åre would actually be me getting to appreciate nature.

Just looking outside the window in the train – that was beautiful. I’ve never seen snow until this trip to Sweden, and I wasn’t that impressed in Stockholm. But now that I’m outside the city, I get to see soft white snow everywhere. Everything is covered in snow. That was something I’ve never seen and I was awed.

Gratitude for Nature

I enjoyed the views everywhere – especially when we were dog sledding. It was awesome! Seeing the big mountains and the wide white plains, I’ve learned to appreciate the world more. I got that feeling that the world is a big place, and you’re not stuck or trapped in one place. If you’re trapped, you’re just trapping yourself. I think it’s a great way to start the day. When you see this view, you also love your life more – at least that’s how I feel. I just feel so grateful of every single thing and it gives me this peace.

So what? It’s important to realize how precious your life is, and how beautiful the world is. I had a thought about those people who commit suicide. Wouldn’t it be great if they could look at this? I wonder if they would still be able to appreciate it. I hope so. Is it possible that they would be able to get out of that darkness once they’ve seen the view I saw? I imagine that if I was thinking about killing myself and I saw those mountains, I would probably realize my life is too precious to let go. The world is amazing. I would realize that I can move on.

Why do I need to realize that? It’s because people die because of these things. I’ve seen people go through big disappointments and they couldn’t stand it. They kill themselves. One of the many things I’ve found I’ll think more about from Åre is the thought about helping depressed people. Me going to Åre and seeing “awesomeness” – I want others to see it too! I want them to feel that feeling – the hope – and love their lives. It’ll help so much people. Depressed people might be able to be happy once again.

What happens when depressed people become happy? What happens if people love our world and each other? Our world is going to be a happy place. Imagine if Hitler realized that nobody is supposed to control the world. Imagine if people are inspired by the purity of nature. If they could get to know themselves, that would be beautiful. I really hope that when people get to fully appreciate nature, they would love our world and realize things, such as helping to stop pollution.

Stopping pollution would help us all. God gave us this world and this life. I know that not everyone believes in God but I’m sure we don’t want to kill this planet we’ve lived in. Shouldn’t we take care of Earth? Why are we cutting off trees? There’s a really bad case of deforestation in Thailand. I am glad, though, that Sweden has rules against this. I would be really sad if I come back to Åre one day and all I see is sky scrapers and cars.

How can I share that feeling I had when I was lying down in the snow, looking at the mountains? I still remember the picture. There was this tree at the right – its branches were covered with white flakes. It was sparkly. There was a frozen lake dividing us and the mountains. It was a big, majestic mountain. There was this line of fog across the mountain. The sky was beautiful, wide, and endless. Every now and then, I would see this black bird soaring over the white trees.

I could take pictures of it with the best camera ever. I could describe it to a person with every word I could come up to describe it. I could even take a VDO of it. That person would never get that feeling, though, if he/she weren’t there. I still remember the feeling I had today. But I’m not sure if I’ll forever keep it. I hope I do. It’s a hopeful and peaceful feeling.

This also makes me realize how technology doesn’t replace nature. 3D photos of nature doesn’t replace actually being there. I hope people don’t forget nature.

I’m so grateful I went to Åre. It was an amazing experience. One day, I hope to go back there again and still see that tree covered with the white flakes.