This idea is popular today, perhaps in slicker form, in books where people spend a year following the bible or traveling by bicycle to see what happens. Nature, open to all and free of excess, is the model for his life and the epitome of simplicity and independence. It was an inquiry, a thought experiment, and arguably an American pioneer in self-discovery and taking responsibility for learning how to live. In so doing emphasizes that nature and all its rewards are nearby, not only in the faraway lands that people like to fantasize about, and that travel is unnecessary as most people have yet to enjoy and get to know their own backyards. He notes that Walden Pond is only on the edge of town, only a few miles from where he grew up. Furthermore, it is a home that is much bigger than his house or any town he is always at home because he is always in nature.
For one, he lives off it, as it provides him with shelter, food, fuel, and it fulfills all his other physical needs. Nature is the constant backdrop that Thoreau never fails to see, and it becomes a central figure in his life. Many chapters in the book are dedicated to his fond, painstaking observations of the natural world, from the way the ice breaks up on the pond in springtime, to the habits of the rabbits and fish and geese, which he sees as cohabitating with him, to the war between two races of ants that takes place on the ground right outside his cabin. He regards it with great respect and awe while also having with it an intimate familiarity and comfort. When Thoreau perceives nature, he sees an inexhaustible source of wisdom, beauty, and spiritual nourishment.
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