Us people like to think we’re in control of things. Yet the mysterious origins of the entire universe, the earth, life on it, and even us people somehow all came about without our say-so. While we may think we’re some higher intelligence, we have little clue why anything even exists in the first place. Where we come from before birth or go after death escapes us quite thoroughly, no matter what anyone believes they know. Even self-discovery is a lifelong process. All of this is completely natural, and wild.
Our lives are immersed in wild nature, whether we know it or not. We’ve just created layers of separation between us and it, to the point where people think they are separate from it. Then there’s your inner wild nature, or your soul. It’s the part of you that makes you who you are, no matter who you actually want to be. And that’s not a bad thing! It’s the deeper, more authentic, and more interconnected part of yourself.
Your relationship with the wild world, or nature, outside of you directly affects that relationship within. Aligning with that has the power to change your life.
If you have ever skimmed a self-help or spirituality book, or been to a therapist, It’s probably not news that aligning with your true self is key. Most will tell you that change starts within. But contrary to popular opinion, I believe pervasive change starts with changes outside of one’s self.
The world around us plays a huge part in determining what part of consciousness comes forward at any moment. Our external environment is the base of our subconscious experience. It determines what we feel, hear, see, breathe, and touch, how we move through it, and what we interact with. That’s the constant baseline of our subconscious experience. Just try meditating while you’re stuck in standstill traffic with a jackhammer going. How zen will you be if someone tries to cut you off?
People today constantly have things that break their peace. Family, friends and partners can be both good and difficult. Work, politics, social and larger societal and environmental issues can weigh on all of us daily.
If you want to change how you think and feel about everything, start by changing your environment. Get into a place that you love and that radiates love back to you, and stay there for a while. The change starts to happen quick, but spending several days allows you to really step outside of your life and habits and view things while you’re removed from it all.
Nearly everything in our human-made world is set up to have people as the center of the experience, often with little regard for the value of that wild connection. We work hard to try and control things more and more, with the idea that we make things safer and more controllable.
When you’re at home, or almost any commercial environment, nature is, by and large, banished. Any spider or bug will probably be removed on sight, if they should find their way in. Your food gets bought from a store or restaurant while your water is piped into the house. You are physically separated from the ecosystem by the walls around you and floor under you. It is relatively safe and free from unexpected intrusions, outside of other people of course. Psychologically and socially, most people are subjected to a constant stream of human created stimuli. And by and large, you stay relatively comfortable and secure, as the mysteries of life play out somewhere else.
Living this way does have real benefits, but holding this human-centered view of life as the highest priority is creating as many problems as it solves on a larger scale.
Living this way does have real benefits, but holding this human-centered view of life as the highest priority is creating as many problems as it solves on a larger scale.
In the absence of contact with wild nature, you crave deeper meaning in your life. Getting more stuff won’t fill in what is missing, but if that’s all you know, you’ll keep trying. So we fill our lives with more things we don’t need or even use for very long, while society encroaches further on the natural world to give them to us. Meanwhile, the natural world is letting us know we can’t keep this up much longer.
Looking for answers in our self-created version of reality will only send us further down the same path we are on. It is as unsustainable as it is unfulfilling. But you may just find the answers you didn’t even know you are searching for when you just get yourself outdoors.
If you want to bring beauty, peace, awareness, and deeper connection into your life, get into an environment that does that. It’s my firm belief that just about everyone alive today could use more time on wild lands.
By doing this, we immerse our physical bodies in a far more expansive reality. We more easily recognize how we are part of something bigger. And our souls recognize it as home. If you open yourself up to it, you see that you, too, are part of it. And a very important one at that.
When you are out there, you see universal intelligence instilled in everything, and it is as beautiful as it is vital. So isn’t it silly that you don’t see the same in yourself? But when you’re there, it can often feel like you’re exactly where you need to be, doing exactly what you should. You know you’re aligned with something deeper. But understanding, and then living into that, can be quite challenging.
When I speak of our inner wild nature, several things stem from it. As it is interconnected, we are become more loving and appreciative of all life, and we find peace. That’s when we see how living through anger or fear simply doesn’t serve us well. So part of it is living from a place of compassion more.
We can also recognize our shadow aspects better, and the ways in which we limit ourselves by fearing them. This relates to the concept of the “sacred wound,” that which blocks us until we accept it, and not only grow from it, but we have the power to welp others who struggle with similar traumas.
Of course this relates to your gift. You were put here with certain sensitivities, skills, awarenesses and interests, tempermants, and more. This all guides you to your true self, and sacrificing that connection for the sake of the world as it stands is our biggest social issue. And when you find that, and live into it, you create a ripple effect that goes far beyond your direct impact or awareness. It truly is what will change the world.
That said, it does take some time and intention (and mushrooms don’t hurt) to get out of your normal state of mind, and deeply align with our unique wild nature. It’s pretty far from where most people are today. But every person who does has the potential to become a force for a better world. And that’s the reason we do the work that we do here at Evolve Wild.
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Our impact on the planet will ultimately be made in our human-made worlds. They are affecting everything at this point. Altering our environments is part of our human nature. It always will be.
But when we are aligned with wild nature and value it as though our own peace and happiness (as well as our continued existence) depend on deeping that relationship, that can change everything. And you’ll change too. The more each of us does this, the more we support and inspire others to do so well. This is how we all do it, as a culture and as a species.
Us humans could live deeply sustainable, joyful, peaceful, wise, and loving lives. We just have to deepen our relationship with wild nature, both within ourselves and outside of us. They are, after all, one in the same.
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If you want someone to talk with about this kind of stuff, or you want to feel out if this all is a good fit for you before signing up for a trip, or anything else really, feel free to reach out!
