Hiking is a part of my therapy. It’s a part of my family’s therapy. But when we started hitting the trails, we had NO idea how impactful time in nature would be for our mental health. I was actually looking for a distraction for my husband… and me.
We have enjoyed watching our children learn to love hiking and exploring too. Our oldest was hiking over a mile by age 2.
See, in April 2013, I lost a dear friend, Jonny. And while I was swimming in my own grief, less than three weeks later my husband, Sam, lost his two youngest sisters in a semi involved car crash. We were left reeling. A loss like that changes everything. We stopped living for a while and were just barely surviving. At times it even felt like we we lived separate lives, each lost in our own grief.
When we started hiking this meadow at Wildwood ACRES nature preserve, these trees were only waist high.
After a couple months of this, I decided things needed to change. So I pitched an idea to Sam- hiking. A LOT of hiking. Getting lost (sometimes literally) in the woods. Setting aside our burdens of grief, and putting on literal burdens in the shape of backpacks, and walking through the healing process.
I can’t exactly take credit for the idea- I was inspired by the time my friend Jonny hit the Appalachian Trail, simply because it was down the road from where he lived. I don’t recall how far he hiked, but his goal was to go back one day and hike it all. And he wasn’t able to do that. But I realized we could.
And that’s still the goal!
Nothing like a sunny day, four little people and the open trail ahead of us!
We started very small. In fact I still recall that first hike… half a mile, and I was exhausted! Plus my knees hated me. But we kept going. We added more miles. We found new, interesting places to hike. We started to talk, we made some plans, and before we realized it, we had started living again!
And while we’ve had to set the idea of hiking the AT to the side for now, as we foster and also watch our own little people grow…we continue to find new, exciting places to hike & also the deep quiet of the woods helps heal our hurts.
We recently found a really cool nature preserve, LC Nature Preserve, in Roanoke Indiana. They have herds of bison and elk.
And while I get that not everyone desires to hike into the deep woods for silence & soothing the soul, everyone can find a special place that gives them peace… and I challenge you to find yours!
If you already have a special place, I’d love to hear about it!
Stay healthy & vibrant! ~Naomi
PS- If you are a part of our Young Living team, be SURE you check out the awesome diffuser we are giving away this month!! Contest details here!
0 Comments