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This morning, I went on my Sunday coffee walk. Unlike other mornings, I left my headphones at home. No music. No podcasts. I just listened to the world around me. I walked much slower than normal, so that each step was a gentle kiss on the earth below me, and I counted my steps for each breath in and each breath out.
At one point on my walk, I heard a little sound. I thought maybe it was a squirrel. I stopped walking and looked up, and hanging upside-down above me was a woodpecker! I just stood there for a few moments and watched as they moved and tapped against the branch. It was lovely, and I wouldāve missed out on that experience had I been listening to a podcast.
Feb 23, 2025
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Just try it! try cueing into the sounds of the trees and the birds etc, and youād be surprised how much of your environment you dont see when you canāt hear it. My favourite way to get in touch with the universe
Apr 10, 2024
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Going on a walk without listening to music and better yet without my phone washes my brain clean. itās a sort of version of meditation to me. I canāt meditate for more than 3 minutes but I can do this for an hour. It makes me feel like a real person amongst other people. I also tend to remember Iām a whole body with arms and legs and not just a brain. it gives me time for my brain to go empty or to think about something I didnāt realize I was trying to ignore.
Feb 27, 2024
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No music, quiet, just listening to anything and everything you can. it can be your own footsteps ā focus on your pace if you want. If there are birds near where you live Iād highly recommend the Merlin Bird ID app for birdsong identification. Itās crazy what simply existing in the presence of another living thing can do, especially when that something isnāt human. if you live in a city, listen for peopleās laughter or childrenās voices. When I feel all consuming sadness it often helps for me to get moving (I like hiking but I live in a place that allows it) but it also helps to listen, and in doing so imagining that I am the same as everything else ā the birds, the air, the ground. It takes the pressure off existing.
Jun 28, 2025
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Iām not a parent and do not plan to be. Kids can wear me out fast with their high energy and noise level; it leaves me very over-stimulated. But itās pretty extreme when people say they āhate kidsā and I often feel itās a reflection of their childhood and beliefs around how kids āshould be.ā That they were expected to be quiet, obedient, and out of the way by their parents when they were little.
Itās fucking hard to be a kid. Youāre dealing with a rapidly-changing body and underdeveloped brain, managed by flawed adults who are enforcing boundaries that you do not understand. Itās confusing and hard to manage your feelings and honestly just a lot.
People are impatient with kids when theyāre brand new to the world and figuring it all out, and this is a time kids need a friend the most. Children can also be teachers to adults with how they are less habituated to the world. They teach us how to be free and open-hearted and silly and imaginative.
A good practice is to be kinder and gentler with kids. If that feels difficult, start with gentleness toward your inner child. Maybe thatās the child in your life that needs your attention and kindness most.
Apr 16, 2025
May 6, 2025
I meant to post this yesterday. Absolutely beautiful morning for walk.
This morning is also beautiful but in a spring rain kind of way.
Mar 23, 2025