Accidental Influence
Discovering Your Soul's Purpose Through Nature and the Whispers of Your Heart
I didn’t set out wanting any particular influence. At least, I thought I didn’t—although my higher self might have had other ideas. During a guided hypnotherapy session after my first daughter was born, 38 years ago, I was seeking my soul career. In my mind’s eye, I witnessed an emerald jewel placed in my throat. A voice said, “Your soul career is to speak for the trees.”
For decades, I tried to figure out what that meant. I couldn’t imagine myself traveling around giving environmental talks, even though my love for nature and a healthy environment has been lifelong. When I wrote my children’s book, The Miracle Forest, telling the true story of how a sustainable community in Colombia miraculously restored rainforests not seen in the area for thousands of years, I hoped that maybe I was finally speaking for the trees. Yet, I didn’t feel that “mission accomplished” moment.
It wasn’t until this year, after Sacred Forest Bathing was published with Inner Traditions, and I found myself on 22 radio, podcast, and TV interviews, that the moment finally arrived. Sitting across from Regina Meredith of Open Minds on Gaia TV, I suddenly knew that I was doing what had been asked of me. I could share that when humans do their best to restore the environment, nature can respond with regeneration beyond our wildest imagination.
When we follow our hearts and listen to the quiet guidance within, our own nature—and the wild nature of our ecosystems—helps place us where we can best offer our gifts. It’s easier to hear the soft and gentle voice of our soul’s longing when we spend time in nature. Japanese scientists have proven that forest bathing, or Shinrin-yoku, has numerous health benefits, including lowered blood pressure, cortisol, stress hormones, anxiety, depression, and ADHD symptoms, as well as increased wound healing, immunity, and quality of sleep. Anecdotally, I’ve noticed that time in nature also opens me up to creativity, inspiration, intuition, and even mystical or altered states of consciousness.
These experiences take me further down the wild, magical path of a heart-centered life, where true happiness and fulfillment blossom. As each of us explores the entangled foliage of our own wild ways, the answers will be unique and individual. I never thought I’d be called out to the ancient redwood forests 2–3 days a week over the past 18 years, but somehow, I was lured down the dappled trail—dancing in the sunshine and singing with the birds.
I had no productive goal or desire for achievement. And yet, increasingly, that is what has happened. Now, I am an accidental influential woman.
I wish the same joy of becoming to all of you. Honor that this path may look entirely different for each of us. Give yourself the time to hush, listen to the whispers of your heart, and follow your own unique and magical journey.
