broadcasting nature: a conversation in an unnatural setting

Shout out to

"Psychobabble," a fantastic, weekly radio show where the host delves into various mental health topics. It airs at noon each Friday on WXNA (a Nashville-based, listener-supported radio station). I had the pleasure of discussing my passion for ecotherapy and its value as a therapeutic modality with host, Ed Brinson, LCSW, a long-time colleague and friend.

Stepping into a radio station for the first time, I was both excited and nervous. The topic—nature and ecotherapy—felt humorously out of place in the confines of a studio filled with electronics, cords, and microphones. The spinning of music and the colorful concert posters were far from the green spaces we would be discussing. Additionally, my internal landscape felt unnatural and out of place due to my discomfort with speaking in public.

Despite the initial, odd juxtaposition, I shared my experiences of ecotherapy, explaining the reverence in which I was taught to approach the land as a partner and leader in healing. After all, it is a reciprocal relationship. We discussed mindful walks, grounding in the grass, being among the trees, and near healing water. My aim was to inspire listeners to find lessons in their own moments of calm in nature.

Prior to the meeting, I was asked to share three songs that would play during the show. The first song was, "Sunday Morning Coming Down," by Kris Kristofferson and Steve Earle. To me, it laments our disconnect between the earth and one another, our commitment to "grind culture," and to hard work weeks leading to mind-numbing weekends. Repeat. repeat. and repeat. (Thanks for the recommendation, dad!)

The second song, "The Highwomen," is a powerful ballad of four women in our collective ancestries. These women—connected by earth, justice, community, and independence of thought—were vilified for their power and refusal to adhere to cultural mandates. I find the study of and respect for all ancestry and history (the vile and the beautiful), inextricably connected to our relationship with the natural world. We walk on and among the bones and remnants of those who have gone before—most of whom honored the land and non-human life in ways that we never will.

As we wrapped up our conversation, I explained my connection to the final song. In ecotherapy, I rely heavily on lessons from the elements, nature's building blocks, and their properties and personalities. Nature based therapy appears to profoundly impact us when approached in silence, by slowing, and with a deep noticing of the elements. "The Waves We Give," was shared on the final night of my ecotherapy training in the majesty of the Redwoods. It is a symphonic guide to embodying water - a poignant song on which we ended the show. The song inspires us to open to the meandering of emotion and to float out of our own way—allowing us to show up authentically, courageously, and in effortlessly.

During that broadcast, I leaned into seemingly new, unnatural skills. It reminded me to show up, call upon my experiences in nature, and root in steadiness. All enabling the flow.