Finding [my] Wild Peace

Since childhood, I have found great inspiration, peace and connection in nature. Growing up on a small farm in Michigan, I always wanted to be outside, and I still do. In elementary school, we did a project on a state. I had Colorado. When I discovered pictures of the Rocky Mountains, I plastered them all over my walls. My entire room was covered in a giant collage of mountains.

I couldn't explain it, but I was in love.

Our trips as a family always centered around exploring nature. Weeks spent at a remote Canadian cabin had me dreaming of living off the land, running away like Sam Gribley in My Side of the Mountain. I raised baby raccoons, squirrels, a crow, and a multitude of farm animals. My favorite place to be was mucking stalls in the horse barn. In school, science was by far my most loved subject and an Independent Study course my senior year allowed me to pursue my love of natural healing with an in depth study of the medicinal power of plants. I recently discovered that there is a name for this and I am a plant empath!

After college, the mountains were still calling, perhaps shouting, my name and I found myself with a summer job as the kids' counselor on a dude ranch in remote southwestern Colorado. My sister made the journey from Michigan to the ranch with me. Our eyes were wide as we drove into the entrance, seeing enormously beautiful mountains, rivers, aspens and cabins sprinkled on the hillsides. Here was my home for the next 4 months and never had I felt so alive! Later that day, I met my husband.

Wilderness has always had my heart. The natural tranquility I find listening to the wind blow through the leaves, seeing the rays of sun shining on mountain peaks in the morning, or discovering clear water bubbling up from pure hidden springs, sets my soul at ease. The thrill of whizzing down a dirt trail on my mountain bike, jumping in a frigid high alpine lake, or reaching the top of a 14er after climbing for hours, brings my heart peaceful elation looking out at this beautiful world. With a deep understanding of Ayurvedic Medicine, Highly Sensitive People and Empaths, looking back at the common themes in my life (as much time in nature as I could get) makes perfect sense.

I have always had an underlying awareness that our bodies are meant to be healthy. I believe that nature can provide an entire pharmacy if we know where to look and how to incorporate these elements into our lives to reestablish balance and find our wild peace. Wild Peace. This name resonates on a deep level for me. It has been my heart's desire this whole time- to find wild peace.

In 2019, I started on my own health journey after exposure to toxic mold. This experience has impacted my life in more ways than words can describe. My understanding of living with chronic illness symptoms in the form of severe respiratory issues, has broken my heart open in the most transformative of ways. I am learning firsthand the depth and impact health challenges can have on ones quality of life. Now, more than ever, I am called to serve others on their path to wellness.

Today, life has presented a new adventure, and I am delighted to be starting a small farmstead. I live in a teeny mountain town with my husband and two children in the Greater Yellowstone area of Montana. My enthusiasm for a sustainable lifestyle includes honeybees, an assortment of chickens, possibly horses for my children, and an organic garden with a few fruit frees.

This majestic place is home to grizzlies, moose, golden eagles, great grey owls, mountain lions, wolves, elk and deer. And home to my sweet family.

Never have I understood so deeply what it means to live an authentic life. To be in the present moment. My arms stretched out wide, head thrown back laughing as I soak up the beauty that surrounds me. And it isn't perfect, but I am learning to embrace the wholeness of it: the easy, the simple, the challenging, and the beauty of experiencing a human life. Drink in the pure majesty of the wild peace. It looks different for all of us, but it is in there somewhere.

Let me help you find your wild peace.