The Healing Art of ReWilding Your Words

In 2020, the human world went quiet. Sheltered in place due to a pandemic, humans stopped traversing the globe, dining out, meeting in community, gathering in public, attending events, or going to work. Everyone hunkered down in their respective shelters to await word of when it was safe again to leave, meet, and physically connect. Remarkably, as humans stilled, the nature beings around us became more active than ever.

As if our calm created enough space for the natural world to take a deep breath, the exhale resembled something akin to-- sea turtles on vacant beaches once populated by suntanning masses, lions napping on deserted roads without fear of speeding jeeps, coyotes wandering San Francisco streets, peacocks strutting their stuff across Mumbai, jellyfish in the canals of Venice usually trafficked with boats, dolphins swimming through city ports and more.

When word spread that the risk of spreading the infection outside was minimal, but indoor destinations remained closed, more people than ever ventured to the surrounding trails and parks. Families jumped into their cars and drove to faraway National Park destinations, crowding trails that were once rarely used. This was a double-edged sword. Public green spaces were suddenly bombarded with tourists, and they weren’t necessarily up for the task. Trailhead parking lots overfilled, pit toilets overflowed, trash and other human waste lined pathways. On the other hand, people were going outside more, exploring places they never would have and taking in the beauty of the natural world around them.

This was around the time that I got the idea to start teaching Nature Writing. I had been a writing instructor for decades, as well as a nature nerd. I combined two loves and offered nature writing classes to locals and tourists in the nearby parks. But teaching nature writing outside wasn’t like the writing instruction I had been doing before. In fact, it was entirely different.

In a classroom or academic setting, I relied on syllabi, curriculum, rules, tools, craft, readings excerpts and professional advice. None of that felt authentic in the forest. It all fell flat. The natural world offered inspiration, intuition, mystery, fluidity, and flow. Nothing static, linear, or overly planned jived with the mercurial weather, shifting seasons, spiraling winds or swaying elms. I had to rethink my whole approach.

This is how Intuitive EcoWriting was formed.

Writing became less about building skills and learning the tricks of the trade and more about channeling the ever-present creativity of creation present in the natural world. We did this through embodiment practices, meditation, and free writing. Surprisingly, or maybe not, tapping into the creative voice was what most writers needed. The people I met through my course felt stunted, blocked, and often filled with self-doubt. They wanted more from their writing experience and Intuitive EcoWriting offered that.

Eventually this path would lead me to become a Nature Therapy Guide where I learned to open doors for people in the liminal realms of the natural world that would allow them to see themselves mirrored there and find peace. I began taking people Forest Bathing. Forest Bathing is a guided nature walk where participants are given invitations to engage with their full senses awakened in green spaces. I also created Rewild Your Words, which combines Forest Bathing with Intuitive EcoWriting.

I’ve written numerous times about the healing effects of nature. But did you know that writing is also therapeutic? For one it can help you to process ideas that may have been hidden before. "Bridget Jones effect" is a psychological term for how journaling helps to regulate your emotions and in turn makes you happier. Tapping into your subconscious through journaling can reveal to you patterns that you may not have seen before and shine a light on what needs healing. In addition to creating more awareness and making you happier, writing has been found to decrease stress, improve immunity, improve physical health including lung and liver functions, decrease depression and anxiety, decrease PTSD, improve memory, improve school grades and more.

Writing and nature combined elicit an infinite network of therapeutic and creative opportunities. The magic is in the way creativity intuitively streams through you as if it is coming from your most authentic and wise self.

Have you tried writing in nature? Are you interested?

If your interest is peeked, I recommend you take a journal and pen with you on your next outdoor adventure or next time you have a cup of tea in your backyard and spend a few minutes writing. See what happens. Write to me and let me know how it goes.

I am offering this free pdf of 99 Nature Writing Journal Prompts that you can use to get your creative flow started. Choose one prompt and see where it takes you. Don’t restrict yourself to the topic, use it as a jumping off point instead.