Growing up in Cleveland Heights, many of the homes had a front stoop with two side walls, typically brick, which started at the bottom step and ended at the top. Many had concrete caps to finish the look. On larger homes, these walls were longer and wider and might hold planters or cement lions.

We, of course, did not have lions. But my short runway did not prevent me from using a wall on windy days. Yes, I would grab a paper towel and wait for a big gust of wind. Then, I would run the length of the abutment and leap off as high as possible, releasing the paper towel into the wind. Many times, it fell to the driveway, but once in a while, the wind would catch it and it would soar up into the neighbor’s yard, bouncing around, as if the wind was enjoying the game too. At age seven or eight, that achievement was total elation.

I was envious that the wind could move quickly in any direction, scream across the road and hightail it to the park. It could make our flag out front move horizontally; the colors snapping.

That invisible force could turn a rooster weathervane around like a blindfolded person playing pinata. I thought it was extremely clever that the wind could show you it was blowing from the east or west with a simple turn of that metal rooster.

Haven’t many of us felt that sharp temperature change when wind gusts appear right before a thunderstorm, bending trees and blowing lawn furniture? And we have felt the small joys when the wind softly rustles tree leaves or a refreshing summer breeze sweeps by, and we turn our necks left and right to cool our faces a little.

I mean, as a literal force of nature, wind and people’s interaction with it has existed well, forever. Just look at the Greek god Aeolus (the keeper of the winds) who gave Odysseus both a favorable wind along with a sealed bag full of unfavorable wind. There are prehistoric caves with circular and horizontal line illustrations drawn inside them that many feel depict wind.

Wind is just part of our ancient stories. We respect its power. It is akin to fire and water. Maybe we all tap into some type of ancient psyche when we step into it.

Or maybe I’m enchanted with wind because one of the first “real” songs I learned to play on the piano was “Windy” by The Association. Or maybe it’s because I could ride my bike and feel the wind ride with me; there was a feeling of adrenaline. Power. Or maybe it’s all of it.

Years later, during COVID, I had learned something new about wind. Uitwaaien. It is a Dutch word and a philosophy for using wind to ease stress. I found one translation which means “outblowing.”

“Uitwaaien” (aut-vwl-en) means to go out in windy weather and take a walk, particularly into nature or a park, to refresh oneself and clearing one’s mind. It’s an “out with the old air, in with the good” philosophy.

Although taking walks to feel emotionally and/or physically better is not a new concept, the Dutch seemed to take it to the next level by recommending those walks be taken in specifically windy conditions.

COVID came during my cancer treatment. After reading about Uitwaaien, I took those walks in the wind, deeply breathing in fresh, healthy air. It was scary out there in the world. I liked to think my old friend was helping me.

After all these years, I still feel the pull of the wind. If I see trees moving, I’ll step outside to feel it; to listen. It rustles leaves and even whistles sometimes, trying to squeeze through tight outdoor spaces. I love the busy music of my wind chimes.

But don’t let me be the one to speak on wind and how it gets inside our souls. There are countless others who are far more poetic. And maybe that’s the last reason behind “why wind.” I know that there are so many of us.

“Only those in tune with nature seem to pick up on the energy in wind. All sorts of things get swept off in the breeze — ghosts, pieces of soul, voices unsung, thoughts repressed, love uncherished, and a thousands galore of spiritual ether.”

-Terri Guillemets

“The very winds whispered in soothing accents, and maternal Nature bade me weep no more.”

-Mary Shelley

Oh racing wind, thou wizard of the west,
From half across the world ye come to me…
Oh wind, wild wind, blow through my heart today!
Today I am in love with life and thee!

-Jean Wright, “The Wizard Wind”

Photo by Dominika Roseclay on Pexels.com