Wearing my Abby Pack!
If you have a short attention span, or you have a social distancing New Years Eve party to get to on this very last day of 2020, I will break it down for you: This post is simply recognizing it is important to find the blessings in what is, no matter what the circumstance. It is also a reminder that nature will always restore us to balance when we are feeling less than 100 percent. If you want to skip to the very bottom, there is an restorative meditation that will leave you feeling like you just took a walk in the woods! Happy New Years my friend - We made it through 2020!
When I am not well, or I feel depleted, my immediate go to is to find the nearest source of nature and immerse myself. This can be a bike ride on the trails, a hike through the woods along the river, or laying down in my garden and watching the bees and butterflies land on the flowers that surround me. It can be sitting on my porch with a cup of tea and watching the birds at the bird feeder, taking in the fresh air, and the sounds of them calling amongst the trees and foliage. Most days now, it is a walk with my dogs through the woods, or around the ponds near my home where we are graced with a variety of water fowl including great blue herons and beautiful white egrets.
Earlier this year, after I finally conquered a virus that knocked me flat on my back for most of March and part of April, I was left with a body that couldn't do most of the things it could before I got sick. It felt like I woke up in someone else's body, and it was disconcerting to say the very least. The daily yoga practice, the breathwork I used during my meditation practice, the bike rides on the many trails in our area with my husband and son, the hikes and walks down by the river, the kayaking trips, walking my dogs, cleaning my home - all of these were suddenly beyond my reach.
It has been a long recovery; ten months later and I'm still working my way back to the me I knew before I got sick. One of the things that saved me besides a family that had my back and helped me every step of the way, was listening to guided meditations. I found myself listening to many of them repeatedly, day after day. One in particular that captured my heart, and truly led to healing, was filled with the many sounds in nature that I missed laying in my bed.
I had created this meditation in 2019 to capture some of the sights, sounds, and smells I regularly enjoyed on my walks along the river and in the woods where I live. A symphony I find quite healing includes the birds singing, the frogs croaking from the bogs that shoot off from the river and streams, the chatter of the squirrels, the buzzing of insects, and the constant background of a rushing, sometimes babbling river as it washes over the rocks and logs along the river bank. I was so captivated by the sounds and smells found deep in the woods along the river bank, and I wanted to record them and share them with others. Little did I know that a year later I would be confined to a bed listening to them myself, ever grateful I had made this particular recording, "Allowing Nature to Heal Us." No matter what life throws our way, we will always find healing in nature. When we immerse ourselves in the beauty of nature, we are reminded we have so much to be grateful for.
I invite you to go on a virtual walk into the forest with me. Find a comfortable place to lie down for a few minutes with a set of headphones. You'll hear the forest's song calling you to surrender your burdens and connect to both the serenity and wildness of life. This guided meditation explores the idea of nature and healing: By simply immersing ourselves within nature, we are nourished, filled with peace and returned to balance.
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