Text: Vincent Oostvogels
Never mind the stress of too many things to choose from and the pressure to perform. At this time of the year there’s a far greater danger lurking, and it’s claiming quite a few victims around me. It’s a form of FOMO, Fear of Missing Out, but the kind that affects nature lovers.
In fact it’s the same story every year. Spring starts off being manageable – the first buds burst open and the first birds start to sing, one species at a time. But then it all explodes and you can’t keep up. Insects buzzing in your ears, trees coming into leaf all at once and suddenly you don’t know where to look.
It can get pretty stressful – there’s good chance you’ll miss something and then you’ll have to wait a whole year for before you can see it again. Imagine, the cranes fly over without you noticing because you’re on your belly watching a couple of toads mating.
Soon the cranes will fly overhead without you noticing because you’re on your belly watching a couple of toads mating.
Of course, nature’s irrepressible outbursts can’t last forever. In two months the days will start to get shorter and the pressure will gradually decline. Until then though it’s a question of feverishly keeping a lookout to miss as little as possible. If only I had studied medicine or law…
