Northeast Ohio’s Most Serene Place
- 5 days ago
- 5 min read
A look at why a surprising time and place may be a meditative experience for Northeast Ohio college students during the snowy months.
Written by Andrew Paduano
Many people are aware of the natural beauty Ohio has to offer. With a mix of lakes, rolling hills, forests and valleys, it is a culmination of landscapes found across the country. Some also know about a gem in Northeast Ohio that wonderfully combines these elements: The Holden Arboretum.
But would most think to venture out there during the heart of winter, when everything is painted in a fresh, cold coat of white? Probably not.
Wintery Ohio months, especially from January through April, are notoriously dreary. After the hype of the holidays fades, many people experience the infamous chill of seasonal depression, with little sunlight or greenery to enjoy. For college students in Northeast Ohio that are cooped up in their living spaces and dealing with a brand-new semester, this can be especially challenging.
That’s why venturing out to The Holden Arboretum during the snowy months, or any time, can be a surprisingly meditative and beneficial adventure! Growing up in Northeast Ohio, I often visited Holden for walks with my family. Something about the arboretum always captured my attention. I enjoyed my walks there more than any other outdoor place. This was of course due to the curated nature of an arboretum, particularly The Holden Arboretum.
You see, an arboretum is not a park, it's a museum. But Holden is still more than that… It's a beautiful, well-maintained collection of trails and walkways that lead through many facets of nature, all in one carefully crafted area. It’s a living museum. In other words, it’s not just a place to identify plants, but a place to meditate in nature like no other.
In the snowy months, the arboretum may seem frozen in time – but it’s not. Beneath the blanket of white, everything is changing. Visiting the same places at different times of year reveals small changes in nature. Because there are a wide variety of areas all in one walkable spot, it’s easier to stop and really think about what you see and feel each time.
The scene encourages you to take everything in, to stop and think. In the heart of winter, when you’re feeling less than ideal, it may just be the type of meditation you need. For those who enjoy photography, the arboretum offers nearly every winter scene imaginable, all within reasonable walking distance. In fact, I did all this myself this December!
I ventured out to do some meditative walking and photography, and let me tell you, it is true! I cannot fully explain the extremely calming feeling of truly being with yourself in a place that is simultaneously covered in a chilling layer of icing, while also being beautiful and extremely easy to navigate.
I had the privilege of speaking with Holden’s Guest Services Manager, Marcus Lehmann, about Holden Arboretum and how it can benefit college students.
The Holden interview has been transcribed and edited for length and clarity.
Andrew: What's your story? What got you here, and why did you decide to work at The Holden Arboretum?
Marcus: During college, I was an educational interpretive park ranger with The National Park Service. I did that off and on for seven years. I always wanted to get back into the field. And sure enough, I saw the guest services manager position open up, and I thought, “What do I have to lose?” This place has always been fantastic. My experiences here have always been stellar.
Andrew: Why Holden? What do you think Holden offers in terms of experiences that would differentiate itself from other local places, especially for college students?
Marcus: We're trying to help people connect to the wonder, beauty and value of the trees and plants, and to inspire action for healthy communities. As a college student, you are in the best position to help develop those habits and those connections with places because you're still experiencing things for the first time on your own.
Andrew: How has Holden's mission shaped the place as it is today?
Marcus: Whether it is a smaller event, our daily operations, or if we're planning something larger on the horizon, we always have the mission in mind. We always consider, “How does this, how is this going to help people in making that connection? How is this going to inspire?”
Andrew: How do you think Holden could serve as a sort of getaway from the bleak, busy college months of a college student? Being that it's a little bit more private and curated than other locations.
Marcus: I am going to challenge the perception of bleak or barren. It may seem that way to the untrained eye. But if you knew where to look or once you experience it more and more, you always see action underfoot. It takes multiple experiences to see that trend happening. So that's kind of the reward for coming out here more and more. If you're into photography, the snow-kissed trees can make some incredible photo opportunities. I have some of my best photos on my iPhone of what could have looked like a really drab photo. If you're a hiker, some of the best hiking I have done has been in the winter because everything seems a little bit more dialed up.
Andrew: What I'm hearing is that, especially during the cold months, it makes people focus a little bit more?
Marcus: That's really the heart and soul of any type of meditation – just trying to be a little bit more intentional, trying to take that little bit of extra time and that little bit of extra space. That can work wonders for your mental health as well. There's always something to do.When you were a kid and you had to choose your own adventure, what were you gonna do today? You wanted to get out and find wonder in the simplest of things.
Andrew: What do you think are some great areas and or trails here during the cold months?
Marcus: Corning Lake is a classic, The Layer Rhododendron Garden is a little bit more covered and the Conifer Collection is fantastic in the snowy weather. You can hit a waterscape, you can hit a forest scape. There's a little jaunt in Pierson Valley for a more rockier trail, and then there's paved trails as well in the core. You can kind of get a little bit of everything in that little bite. If you wanted to go kind of off the beaten path, Pierson Valley Trails – particularly Woodland Trail and Tree Hugger Trail – have some great opportunities.”
As a side note, Holden also offers Flora Finder on their website, which lets you see the database of all the trees they’ve planted:
To end this off with an introspective thought, here is a quote from one of Frank Herbert’s Dune novels…
“Things move. It is an ultimate pragmatism in the midst of infinity, a demanding consciousness where you come at last into the unbroken awareness that the universe moves of itself, that it changes, that its rules change, that nothing remains permanent or absolute throughout all such movement…”
