“Be like a plant.”

I struggled to get present, lost in fear and anxiety around what could be happening. I was halfway between the fear of losing my mind completely and the fear of what I might feel if I allowed myself to let go. I needed to control myself, my thoughts, my emotions, my LIFE – and yet at that moment, I realized I had lost all control, and I was terrified.

Two friends sat with me, one holding my snot-covered hand as I shook with exhausted tears.

This was four years ago, at a time when I was deeply embedded in my anxiety and depression, and battling hard to gain some semblance of what passes for mental health in our day and age.

“Be like a plant.” My friend and teacher repeated those words to me with finality and in an infuriatingly matter-of-fact way. I just stared at him, I can’t remember what I was thinking, but my blank expression clearly showed my confusion – I was listening. He gave me more this time:

“Be like a plant. All they do is feel.”

Nature’s magic has always felt like a significant and unyielding force in my life. I grew up with a gardening mother, playing games with my sisters as we jumped from treetop to treetop in the large hedge of cedars that lined our home, usually coming down with spiders in our hair. My happiest memories were spent outside being held by a tree, in a field of daisies, nurtured by the sea, or cradled in thick forest moss. The moment I understood what he was saying to me, I felt a door open, one that welcomed the magic I’ve always recognized and felt but never fully understood.

Not that I believe I fully understand it, there’s so much to learn and appreciate. With each passing moon and season, I experience a different lesson that brings me closer to myself and nature. Those four little words have informed much of my life since that moment, from how I live day-to-day, to how I work with clients, connect with my partner and plan the future.

Even as I write this, I’m sitting on the deck of my childhood home, the bare skin of my pregnant belly soaking up the late January sun as hummingbirds flit across the sky. The sounds of birds seem brighter and louder, there’s more energy in the plants, and I can feel the hopeful feeling of new life, creativity and excitement all around me, inside and beneath me. 

Do not believe the lie that whispers the difference between you and nature. There is no difference.

The simple wisdom of these words, “be like a plant,” consistently draws me towards presence, the practice of sitting and observing and the quiet witnessing of change, growth and death.

This coming month, we’ll be exploring the shift in season through the Moon & Menstrual Magic course: Creating on Purpose. As well as exploring lunar and menstrual wisdom and the corresponding changes within our own energy, we’ll take time to sink into lessons that come directly from our natural world. The subtle warming of the earth and wakening from deep winter offers so much hope, creativity and joy.

I want to welcome you on this journey with us, with a free exercise in journaling and observation that will help you sink into nature’s magic, honour your body and the practice of healing presence.

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Want to join us in deeper connection and community? Moon Rhythms is a monthly women’s group that is taking applications now. Click here to learn more!

Moon Rhythms includes access to my on-demand course Creating on Purpose: Moon & Menstrual Magic.

I send deep gratitude to my teacher and friend, Bryant, who shared his words with me, and my friend Todd for holding my snot-covered hand.