Nourish, Nurture, and Nature

Nourish, nurture, nature, repeat. These three words have such a profound impact on healing the body, mind, and spirit. Utilizing them can help bring the body back into balance by taking the body out of the flight/fight response of the sympathetic nervous system to a more relaxed state of rest and digest of the parasympathetic nervous system. There is a lot of literature out there to support this concept. I have read and studied so many studies, books, journals, articles over the years and the literature to support these concepts is vast. But I no longer really regard the studies and literature as the holy grail to healing. 2020 turned everything upside down. I unlearned a lot of beliefs I held as truth. I now trust what I can see, hear, feel, touch, sense, and experience for myself. I went back to studying ancient healing systems. I can trust the ancient wisdom found in these healing systems, they make sense, they don’t change over time, they work. What I find most amazing is these ancient practices are backed by science as well; we now have the ability to see the physiology of why these practices work and how. But I don’t care about the science so much as I care about the results these days. I now conduct my own experiments using my own body and my own world as the laboratory. I am not following the current trends the “experts” tell me are beneficial to healing. My laboratory is my life. I know who funds me, I know where my research comes from, and I know what works from the experiences I have lived, and what I have witnessed with healing in others. I’ve seen the effects of what happens when nourishment, nurturing and nature is neglected and also when they are incorporated into life. And because I have felt the healing effects of these three N’s, I want to share it with others. The goal here is to keep it really simple. No need to get bogged down in the details or lost in the why of how something works. If it works, do it.

Nourish. I love the word ‘nourish’. When I think of this word, I think of warm hearty soup on a cold day, oatmeal with warm milk and raisins. Avocados, coconut, fresh vegetables from a farmers’ market. Carrots picked fresh out of the garden. Tomatoes plump and juicy ripe off the vine. Freshly caught salmon grilled to perfection with a squeeze of lemon. Butternut squash soup on a cold day, or chili on a cold day. A refreshing smoothie on a hot day. Chia seeds, flax seeds, hemp seeds. I think of the foods that feed and nourish every cell of my body. I also think of foods that bring vitality to the life force energy flowing within (prana). Mostly when I think of nourishment I think of delicious and healthy foods. I now leave behind most the supplements and the vitamins I used to value as necessary because I don’t want anything artificial anymore. I want my vitamins to come from the food itself. Sadly much our our food is stripped of vital nutrients due to the growing process and soil quality. So I try to buy as much from local organic regenerative farmers, or grow myself. I want to grow the herbs and consume them in tea so I can incorporate the senses as part of the healing. I used to hate cooking with a capital H, because it felt so stressful and like a chore. But then I slowed down. I started using wooden bowls to make my salads. I made them beautifully, and the flavors, the umami made me marvel that something so delicious could also be so healthy.

Our bodies serve us well, and how do we repay it for its hard work? Do we give it thanks and fuel it with foods that bring it vitality? We need to slow down and be mindful of what goes in my body and ask ourselves, “does this nourish me?” The love that is in our food feeds not only our body, but also our soul.

First step when incorporating nourishment into the healing journey is to start with whole foods. Eat an apple. Notice how it tastes. Also, experiment with colorful foods, variety is the spice of life. Eat for the season. We aren’t meant to eat some foods all year round. We need heavier, denser foods in the winter such as root vegetables, and lighter foods that are hydrating in the summer such as cucumber, tomatoes and fruits. Keep it simple. We don’t have to follow these fad diets that restrict us from the delight of eating. I know which foods my body needs by how I feel after I consume them. Once we pay attention to how certain foods make us feel, we realize our body will let us know what nourishes us and what does not. We become in tune with our bodies. There is no desire to overeat as I feel more in tune with how overeating makes me feel.

Nurture. This is another word that conjures up lovely visual images such as warm baths, soft candles, magazines with beautiful pictures, books, poetry, articles that support my deepest passions. A nice hug from a loved one. Nurturing are the things that make our soul sing. For me, it’s writing, practicing yoga, sitting in contemplation, reading good books, going to a bookstore, slow walks in nature, spending time creating art for the sake of creating art. Slowing down to the speed of life. Having deep spiritual conversations with loved ones. Being in a coffee shop with a laptop and book while feeling the buzz and energy of like-minded people. Writing gratitude lists. Journaling, always journaling. Cuddling cats, petting dogs. Watching birds, especially ducks with ducklings. Listening to good music on a road trip and letting the mind wander wherever it wants. Diving into a pool. Sitting on a rock basing in the sun. Watching the quiet snow fall while being warm and cozy inside drinking a cup of tea. Walking on a beach collecting cool shells. Hiking slowly and collecting cool rocks. Homemade lotions with my favorite essential oils infused in them. Writing with gel pens. Reading poetry by Mary Oliver, or Rumi. These are the things that nurture my soul. Here’s one I’m learning about nurture, how to really nurture myself. I couldn’t be loved until I learned how to love myself unconditionally. I had to learn how to forgive myself and how to nurture myself. It wasn’t my mom who could do this, or my spouse, or my children, or a therapist, or my best friend, it had to be me. I had to learn how to love every aspect of my being, but mostly those deep insecurities I held. I use that in the past tense, but truthfully, the insecurities are still there, but I know what to do now when they arise. I acknowledge the feelings, ask questions, and then I nurture that part of me until it goes away….again and again I do this perhaps for the rest of my life. I talk to myself as part of my nurturing routine, maybe not out loud, but I tap into my wise woman and ask her questions, and she gives me answers. She is 86 and has a lifetime of experience and she loves me fiercely and nurtures me with the most loving words and most unconditional love. Yes, I know that sounds absolutely crazy, but it works for me. It is the deepest form of nurture I know.

Nature. Being immersed in nature reminds me that all is okay no matter what. It quiets the chatter of my mind and lets me just be for a bit. Time doesn’t mean anything when I’m in nature. When I think of nature, I think of going out in my backyard and practicing yoga under a tree. Going for a walk in the fields by my house that are backed up to a wooded area. Sitting on a mountain and listening to the wisdom the mountain whispers. Spending time plucking weeds from a garden. Noticing a tree in the middle of a field. Noticing a flock of birds displaying a lovely flight show right in the middle of rush hour traffic near an intersection. The colors of a sunset or sunrise. The stars in the sky. Alaska was the best place for me to really experience the spiritual lessons nature provides. There was this mountain area that was only 15 minutes from my house. No matter how chaotic, stressed, depressed, or anxious I felt, it all melted during the drive there. Then we would hike, find a rock to sit on, or river to watch, and just listen. I experienced such profound healing, there simply aren’t words to explain it. It doesn’t get more raw or real than that. I struggled immensely moving to a city. But I found a park, I found trees, I found a pond with ducks. Nature is found everywhere. Even in the city. Nature brings us outside of our minds and helps us to be aware of our connection to our outer world. Nature is a great teacher of being in the present moment to learn.

My goal for healing is to incorporate more of these 3 words into my everyday life. I want this to be a priority, and I start right where it hits home the most, with my daughter. I bring her with me to the woods, we find acorns together and paint little faces on them. We sit, we journal, we delight in the magic, we eat an apple together and marvel in its simplicity and perfection. I hope you are incorporating the 3 N’s into your own healing journey and if you aren’t, perhaps it’s time to start. If you have any practices that you currently do that fall into these 3 categories, I’d love to hear about them.

These 3 N’s remind me that all is well and all will be well. We don’t have to make healing so hard.