**NEW! I’m currently working on creating a podcast, also called Emily: Out Loud, to complement this blog and you’re getting a preview of what I think will end up being Episode 2. Check out Episode 1 here. Enjoy! 🙂 Coming soon to your favorite podcast app!
Emily does some stretches and yoga on a rock overlooking the Housatonic River in Connecticut. The sounds of the forest can be heard, including some gentle rain.
When's the last time you sat in the woods as it began to rain, listening to the drops gently falling on the leaves?
When's the last time you stole away to find out who you are when no one's watching?
When's the last time you looked at the open skies and took in just how much space there is in the universe?
When's the last time you got quiet in order to pay attention to the needs (and wisdom) within the space of your own mind?
How are YOU?
I'm writing this from the middle of the woods on my favorite rock overlooking the Housatonic River in Connecticut, asking myself these exact questions.
It's been a busy few weeks wrapping up July and heading into August. I don't know how it happens but even though I don't think I schedule a lot for the summer months, they're somehow just as busy and bustling as the rest of the year.
But today after dropping my son off at camp, I stole away to the woods without an agenda, despite my brain's running to-do list nagging at me.
As I pulled into the small dirt parking lot of my favorite local trail and turned off the engine, silence hit me.
Such sweet silence.
For a podcast editor who listens to a lot of talk for a living when I’m not in Mom Mode with 2 kids who also love to talk, silence can be a currency for me. I wholeheartedly and whole-earedly believe Silence is Golden.
But it's not quite silence. The woods have their own soundtrack. Starting from the trailhead, I began tuning my ears to the sounds of midsummer. Crickets, some cicadas, bees, and mosquitoes buzzing, lots of birds — both small and large. I also happened to go to the woods when there were a few sprinkles of rain here and there. Not enough to need an umbrella while walking the wooded path, but enough to be able to appreciate the varying intensity of the rain's pitter-patter on the leaves.
The ground was firm but damp, and the sticks and rocks crackled with every step. As I stretched my legs, I heard my joints and bones crack along. Something I’ve noticed a bit more as I creep closer to 40.
I got to my favorite spot, which is actually just up a short hill from the parking lot, and found a dry spot to sit on the giant rock high enough to overlook the river and a few surrounding towns.
I took in the view and snapped some photos like I always do even though I have hundreds of similar shots from that view already. Then I eased into some gentle stretching, yoga, and intentional movement. (See above video for time-lapsed version 🙂)
I've never done a deep dive on forest bathing, but from what I understand, that's pretty much what I do. I like coming to the woods with no agenda and going with the flow. It's nice to give my ADHD brain that experience of, "Here you go! Plenty of open space to be your weird-ass self."
I journaled and wrote a rough draft of this blog post/possible podcast episode to share with you.
I realized these were the moments I felt the most like myself. Last week when I met a friend and showed her my spot, I found myself being able to open up and we shared one of those conversations where we (or at least I) completely lost track of time because it went in so many different directions and all of them were fun little tangents and rabbit holes.
But being in nature with no walls or anything to remind me of the constraints of life is a reminder for me that there is space in the world for me, my thoughts, my voice, my passions, my creativity, and the things that recharge me so I can be the mom, wife, and human I want to be in the world.
And I invite you to do the same. It doesn't have to be in the woods and you don't have to wait for the right weather. Maybe you're driving at the moment and you spot a little bit of nature like a tree just standing tall and still, maybe gently swaying. Maybe you're at home and this can be your gentle reminder to water your plants — this should be my reminder to water my plants, now that I think of it. Or maybe you're out in nature now and bringing me along with you! That's awesome! If you see any cool rocks or mushrooms, let me know! I really dig seeing pictures from nature walks.
And if finding a little bit of nature isn't on today's agenda, I hope you're able to get some soon. One of the things I've learned over the years editing both a wellness podcast and a parks and recreation podcast is how beneficial a little bit of nature can be.
Some of the benefits include improving mental health and sense of well-being; and reducing blood pressure, heart rate, and muscle tension. Studies have shown nature may even reduce mortality. (SOURCE)
I don't want to be prescriptive on this podcast, so if nature, the woods, outside, any of that stuff isn't your jam — I get it. My husband's very similar, he's not a nature boy. So I won't force the trees on anyone, but I would like to, as a friend, give you a gentle nudge to find a place where you feel most like yourself and I hope you get to pause and enjoy it soon 🙂
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