The forest works in mysterious ways.

This month, I had the honor of guiding 4 lovely guests through the forest of Magic Tree Sanctuary during a forest bathing event.

As we stood in the parking lot waiting for the last guest to arrive, I spotted a smooth-top, brown speckled mushroom with a heart shape indentation on its surface.

I’m officially an empty nester.

Over the last 20 years of being a stay at home mother, I had many moments where I fantasized about what it would be like to not have kids underfoot. Free is how I imagined I would feel. Finally, I’d have a chance to solely focus on my goals and desires.

I never imagined the quiet, or the strange sense of something missing.

That will take some getting used to.

What would the world be like if every human could sense the aliveness of nature?

Earlier this month, my friend, Regan flew in from Connecticut and we spent 4 days in the cabin at Magic Tree Sanctuary. 

On the second day, we took a day trip to meet a friend, Catherine, who invited us for tea at a park in Germantown, North Carolina. She told us about an ancient holly tree in one of the park’s meadows so we decided to hike down the trail to see it. 

This month, I had the honor of guiding two lovely women on a forest bathing walk in celebration of the summer solstice.

At the beginning of the walk, one of the women shared that while she enjoyed the forest, she really loved the beach and being by the ocean was a big stress reliever for her.

Have you ever been bothered by something so much that it sticks with you for a bit?

It’s been almost a month since I discovered the turkey and it’s taken that long for me to process what I saw.

Last weekend, I laid down on the Earth for the first time in like 20 years.

Maybe more if I’m being completely honest.

I was attending a virtual forest bathing walk led by my dear friend and fellow Forest Therapy Guide, Regan Stacey of Awaken the Forest Within, and during one of the invitations, I felt a nudge to lie down on the luscious green grass carpeting the meadow I was standing in. 

Why does my blood run wild?

I heard this question posed by Clemson University professor, Drew Lanham on the On Being podcast yesterday. The question rang bells in my ear because for the last few months I’ve been thinking about a question that was sparked during a discussion with one of my mentors.

How have I been raised by place?

Happy New Year, friends. 

New year, new beginnings as they say, however it looks some of the old year is still coming along for the ride. 

Yesterday was a crazy day. I’m feeling a bit of an anxiety hangover from last night. If you are too, I’ve created a video for you. 

Happy Winter Solstice, friends!

The winter solstice marks the exact moment when half of Earth is tilted the farthest away from the sun and because of that, in the Northern Hemisphere, it is the one day of the year with the least amount of daylight, the longest night.

As I continue to strengthen my nature connection, I’m drawn to learn more about the ways of the ancestors who lived in harmony with the land. I was reading about the winter solstice and thought I’d share this tidbit with you...

Yesterday morning, I sat in the woods in the company of a magnificent longleaf pine tree.

It’s poker straight trunk stretched at least 80 feet up towards the sky and was topped with wavy branches covered in green needles. The thick, grayish brown bark on said trunk is what caught my eye, drawing me to its base. It's different from the other trees' bark. Longleaf pine bark has a distinct pattern of platelet shapes, resembling the scaly skin on a dinosaur (or dragon) and each scale consists of numerous paper-thin layers.