"A field of water betrays the spirit that is in the air. It is continually receiving new life and motion from above. It is intermediate between land and sky." So Henry David Thoreau immortalized Walden Pond, but he could have been describing this calming image of Ežezers Lake in Latvia. Today, the birthday of that famous American advocate for pursuing a simple life is also National Simplicity Day, an annual reminder to unplug, slow down, step back, and consider your life. Thoreau"s most famous work (that you probably haven"t read since high school), "Walden," is his account of the two years, two months, and two days he spent away from society in a cabin near the shore of Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. Through this work he encourages us to take a step back and look for ways to simplify our lives. "Our life is frittered away by detail," Thoreau observed. "Simplify, simplify."
A day to take a moment
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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Replica of a Viking home in Dublin National Botanic Gardens, Ireland
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Combating extinction with citizen science
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Meet our fuzzy Earth Day mascot
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National Rivers Month
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Noctilucent clouds
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1.1 billion opportunities for a better world
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Great wildebeest migration at Mara River, Kenya
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Porcupine
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European Day of Parks
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Great horned owl
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Australian baobab tree, Kimberley region, Western Australia
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Bryce Canyon National Park turns 100
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Holi festival
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Borovets ski resort in Bulgaria
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Sand, sun, and sk8ers
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Italy s submerged village
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High alpine color in Colorado
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Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve in Costa Rica
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New York City Marathon
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Ice and Snow Sailing World Championships
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The Grand Départ: Tour de France begins
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Keep watching the skies
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Christmas market, St. Stephens Basilica, Budapest, Hungary
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Today is World Refugee Day
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A river runs through rice fields
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Adorably evolutionary sea sheep
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20 years later
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Cumberland Island National Seashore
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World Giraffe Day
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Happy Holi!
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