Medicine for the Heartsick
Back in 2014 after my dad died, I would walk and walk and walk every day. It was winter, and my memory is of gray skies matching my outlook, walking down the beach evening after evening. Being outside felt like the only thing I could do, to be alone with myself, just letting myself grieve.
Ever since I was very young I’ve loved being outside. But I don't think I ever understood the power and necessity of the medicine of the outdoors until I was heartsick. And even then, I don't think I quite grasped all of what was happening. I thought I was just walking outside because that’s where you walk!
What I now understand is how I was being supported by the vastness and the power of the ocean and the wide open sky. They were holding me, hosting me in my grief and offering me the welcoming open space that I needed.
I have been heartsick this year, too, as all of us have been. Heartsick with personal struggles and losses, heartsick at scary, troubling, uncertain things happening in the world. And again, I found myself going outdoors… more than ever.
What I did so naturally and without thinking when I was grieving, I now do more and more on purpose. I have come to see being outside as a medicine, as a therapy for heartsickness. It isn’t that being outside fixes grief, fear, and uncertainty. These feelings don’t need fixing – they need space and presence.
Outdoors in the wind, it is easier to find my way to being present with myself. Outdoors I am likely to be suddenly lifted out of my rumination by the amazing sight of an osprey with a fish in his talons or the way sunlight shines through leaves. Outdoors I may experience something that speaks to me – the way tree roots spread out into the earth stable and grounded, the way Heron stands solitary and watchful while Canada geese gather and call to each other constantly.
Looking at nature this way, I now take this time more seriously. When I step out my door, I see myself entering a sacred space. I don’t see my walks and sits outside as optional, but as very, very important for my health and wellbeing – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.
I invite you, friend, to take yourself out into the natural world today, heartsick or not.
Sending a hug,
Katie
🌼 Learn from the Natural World:
Self-Access Resources: Access meditations, recommended reading, and more to connect with the Nature World
One-to-One: Contact me to arrange a Mindful Outdoor Experience — either in person in the Monterey, CA area, or via a phone call as you connect more deeply with the outdoors wherever you are.