I’m going to ask you to close your eyes and think back to a moment when your heart, mind, and soul were opened through your senses. Perhaps you recall a childhood memory of climbing trees. Perhaps it’s a sunset you enjoyed that took your breath away or watching a chickadee in your child’s hand.
These moments are what life is all about! When we engage with nature through our senses we become fully embodied. We are reminded that we are a part of the wonder-filled tapestry of life; a life that is full of beauty, awe, and possibilities. When we learn to find comfort in stillness and in that quiet space, we can finally hear the whispers of our soul.
I spend a lot of time Forest Bathing and connecting with the land. I’m a different person than I was 6 years ago when my journey to becoming a Forest Therapy Guide began. Ten years ago I become a stepmom to a wonderful 8-year-old boy. I was in a loving relationship, but a soul crushing job. Two years later, our daughter was born and I knew I couldn’t go back to my job after my mat leave. I knew I needed to make changes to my life so that I could be the person, the partner, and the mother I needed to be. The journey to becoming a Forest Therapy guide begins with a week-long intensive training and is supported by a 6- to 9-month practicum and mentorship. It has transformed me and how I live my life. I’m more grounded and happier with less. I am far more aware of my mental, physical, and spiritual balance. I’m in tune with the natural elements of Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. I can sense when I’m out of balance (for example, when my emotions are high and I’m irritable, anxious, overwhelmed, stubborn, or angry, or when my emotions are low and I’m indecisive, non-intimate, impulsive, passive aggressive, or needy).
Many of my friends and family and the people I guide will often hear me say “I’m going to take it to the tree.” Sometimes it’s the Water or Sun that I feel drawn to – we can explore how the elements and the wheel of life guide and support us in another blog post 😉
Through my nature therapy practice, I can co-regulate and find that peaceful centred place again with ease. It takes practice, but the support and guidance of the natural world is accessible to everyone. We are nature; it’s within us.
When we learn to tune into the natural world we belong to, things shift. We begin to see and feel the world around us in a very different way. These shifts can bring great joy and peace. They can also take us to vulnerable places where we need to clear the cobwebs to find forgiveness and grace. No matter what, they shake things up and in a good way!
Learning to live an embodied life is not something you consciously start and finish – it is a journey of a lifetime. What do I mean by living an embodied life? To live an embodied life, you are deeply grounded. You’re in touch with the natural world and sensitive to its shifts and changes. Being grounded means that the choices you make moment to moment are from a place of deep resonance with your heart’s/soul’s desire, and ensure that you are true to you.
There is a chapter in a favourite book of mine, Mirrors in the Earth by Asia Suler, that has been a guiding light in my life for the last year, perhaps because I’m a mother. Or perhaps because I’m a gardener. Or perhaps because it simply speaks to my soul! In the chapter, the author talks about how our lives are very much like a garden: we can’t control the seeds that blow into our garden, but we can control which ones we nourish and which ones we weed. She also talks about the firm garden wall or fence being like the firm boundaries in our life, like I’ll never allow myself to be in an abusive relationship. And the soft boundaries being all the other choices we make to cultivate a happy life where we thrive.
“Soft boundaries are subtle boundaries – those that are more easily crossed, but creating them is what allows us to become true artists in the garden (of our lives). Interacting with soft boundaries gives us the opportunity to decide what exactly we want to grow in our life. Soft boundaries don’t ask: What does your forever yes or no look like? They ask: How do you feel today? What is the no for this moment, for this week or for this season? I may pull up a whole tangled root system of a hydrangea because I am feeling a ‘No’ for that particular season and then I may decide to reintroduce that same plant there next year. It doesn’t change the fact that I don’t want it now….Just like weeding, tending the soft boundaries of our lives entails making decisions on the day-today details of how we want to live. They are subtle decisions about what we want to spend our energy on – like whether to call a friend back or go for a quiet walk instead – and every time we make one, we cultivate our lives.”
– Asia Suler, Mirrors in the Earth
Asia also talks about what happens when we don’t tend to those soft boundaries: they can damage and even dismantle the hard boundaries before we’re even aware of it. This was an arrow to the heart for me!
What have I learned as I cultivate the life I’m meant to live?
- Follow those sparks of light, of happiness and fulfillment – those moments when everything feels in perfect balance and you feel whole!
- When you reach an edge of discomfort, stay there a while and learn what it is that you’re resisting. Growth always happens at the edge. Embrace the wild!
- Notice what emerges naturally. There are always seeds that come up naturally, that show up when you least expect them. Welcome them in. Sit with them a while and then…decide if they are meant to stay or go.
- Don’t hold things too tight. Allow the earth to guide you. Moment by moment, day by day you are cultivating the life you are meant to live.
I wish you well on your journey. Remember, the guidance you need is within you.
