With Pat Tuholske;
Naturalist
Healing With Nature
We have a basic cellular need to be in Nature. This has become obvious with people seeking sanctuary outside in Nature during this pandemic. Nature is welcoming us back into a relationship.
With many of us staying put, traveling less and walking more, the waters are healing and the air is clearing. What the elements have to teach us is of immense value. Air, fire, water and earth are teachers and healers of our mind, spirit, emotions and physical self.
The element of AIR is our thoughts expressed as energy. Just as the windstorm brings change, concepts and ideas can blow through our mind, transforming creative inspirations into action. FIRE is the element of will and courage symbolizing our inner creative spark. WATER is the element of purification and cleansing. EARTH gives us support. We are born of Earth and our cells need to feel its touch.
There are hundreds of ways to be with elemental Nature. Here are a few healing therapeutic activities:
Dig a Hole – Go to a place where you can dig a hole and talk to the Earth of all your concerns. Leave a gift… tears, gemstone, acorn, coins. The Earth will transform your afflictions. You will feel lighter and less troubled.
Cloud Watching – Lie back like a child and see the living pictures in the clouds. Let your imagination run wild. Savor the mosaic of the sky for beauty’s sake. Nature’s grace brings inspiration.
Feel the Wind – The wind direction has meaning for the Celtic soul. North brings challenge, East brings prosperity, South brings creativity, West brings mystery. Welcome the winds of each day.
Plant Hunting – Walk the parks, gardens and wild places to reconnect with wild plants. Discover and enjoy these edibles of early summer: Plantain, Violet Leaves, Beefsteak Plant, Day Lilies, Mulberries, Wild Rose, Daisies, Smooth Sumac, Nettle.
Forest Walking – Walk the woods as quite as a deer. Place each foot with silent purpose as your senses sharpen to observe all that is around you. I’ve come within a few feet of deer, coyote, heron, rabbit, fox, hawk, skunk. Stop and sit with your back against a tree. Become one with the forest.
There is a great intelligence within Nature – an intelligence that knows the innate order of the living Earth. All animals, insects, plants, and minerals know this order. This pandemic will pass. It encourages me that healing the Earth IS possible if we make changes.
I hope we can remember what we learned… compassion, kindness, serenity, and how to be with Nature. May we all come out the other side of this a littler wiser.
See Pat’s Wild Wreaths, Wheels, and Twig Art crafted from Ozark native plants at willowrainherbalgoods.com and at Green Door Art Gallery. Check out her Field Journal for her musings on the Human-Nature relationship.