It’s going to be a tough Christmas season for most of us, depending on where you live.  Even if you are used to being alone, like I am, the option to go to a Christmas Eve service, a carolling event or any other get-together may be denied by the powers that be. So how can we find small moments of joy in these tough times?

Breathe

One of the things we can do is dig deep inside, into our true core, our authentic, inner self.  Sit in silence and listen. I often say Breathe (inhale), Open (exhale), Receive (inhale).  And see what comes to you.  (more…)

I miss everybody.  Do you?  I miss deep connection with loved ones.  Most of my relatives are dead.  I do not look forward to when my friends will follow that path, if I don’t go first.

With my restlessness, the other day, I went for a walk in the woods, to talk to a few of my favorite trees and see what messages I might receive.  It would bring a sense of connection, with nature, (more…)

I came across an interesting concept recently. What if trees are really singing to the world and all we have to do is listen. What if it is not just about the biology and the science, but also relationship and community.  We can tune in using our sense of hearing and open up a new world of exploration and connection.

Maybe trees even talk to us. (more…)

I was standing with my favorite tree one day and suddenly wondered:

Would I feel more connected if I actually used my body to connect with nature.  I know that trees give off oxygen for us to breathe and we give carbon dioxide to them.  I know this reciprocal relationship on an intellectual level.

But what if I opened my senses and consciously breathed with the trees?  So, leaning against the tree, I asked (more…)

Do emotions like sadness ever erupt unexpectedly for you, with no seeming trigger?

For me, the tears and sadness seemed to come out of nowhere.  This disconnection from my brother, my last close relative, hit me in the heart, instead of just my mind. I miss him so much, but there is little I can do about it.

So what do I do with this feeling? I decide to go for a walk to the forest and the waterfall.

Letting Go

The falls are just roaring these days. I feel their power. I am mesmerized by it. The water is a swirl of snow and caramel, or that is what it reminds me of – taffy on snow.  I feel like throwing myself in.  Not because I want to die but because I wonder what it would feel like to just be a drop of water in such an immense (more…)

Imagine that it is evening, dark outside, and you are a little restless. What to do to ease the loneliness?  You live where there is winter and cold, but it is calm outside, with gently falling snow. Why not go for a walk?

So I did.  And afterwards I wrote this poem, my first ever. I had been trying to write a poem for days, and it did not come to me until I entered a walk in the dark. And found peace as well. Even snow can talk to you and keep you company, if you imagine.

Peaceful Light

I lie here gently, sparkling, peaceful

no wind, just stillness.

I illuminate the night in white, in silence (more…)

I wonder how a stream feels when it is going with the flow.  I imagine it depends on what type of stream it is, what type of landscape it is flowing through.  I suppose we feel the same.

If I was stream, what kind of route would I prefer to take? I think it would be a mountain stream, tumbling over rocks that sing to me, swirling in pools of lively, dancing water, greeting all the little creatures there as I pass by. When I slow into quiet pools to rest, I speak with fish and insects and other dwellers or visitors. I languish with the (more…)

I was sad and lonely on my last birthday in September.  I have just moved to a place where I know no one.  Why? That is another story.

So I got online and felt a little better in some connection with my virtual friends.  But it is a beautiful warm day and my business is about connecting with nature so I decide to go for a walk.  I am a 10 minute walk from a beautiful falls and forest.

I decide to take a forest path.  It leads me to a fence to keep me from falling off a cliff. The sun is warming me and the breeze is caressing me. I am very quiet and contemplative. When I get to the fence, I look to my left and see a (more…)

The following is a message I received while in the Rocky Mountains of western Canada.

Mountain Message:

I have been here for millions and millions of years.   Eons. Before that I was flat. If you look at my striations, my layers, you can see as they reach up into the sky that they used to be flat on the earth.

And since this meeting of plates that caused us to be born, you cannot even imagine what we’ve seen.  Humans are really recent and they are becoming too many. Your time of  vast numbers is almost over in our timeline.  That may
or may not be in your lifetime.

We are rock, we are solid, we are immovable.

Look at our strength.  There is no judgement here.  Just being.  We are here.  We have snow on our peaks at times, (more…)

Where do you find nature’s beauty?  In what landscape, season, time of day? In what weather?

Last winter  I was driving through the mountains trying to outrun a snowstorm that was predicted to arrive. I tend to be quite chicken about driving through weather.  Why is that?  I drove through snow and ice storms all the time when I was in my 20’s. Do we just think we are invincible at that age? Or do we acquire layers of fear over our lives, through different experiences and relationships.  That is really another story, though. (more…)