Reflections in the Natural World
Light in the Desert Arielle Schwartz
The season of Spring represents many opportunities for new growth snd self-discovery. This process requires that we release outgrown parts of ourselves. Such a cycle of death and rebirth is powerful. I am learning to lean into this cycle in a conscious matter.
One of the reasons that I love the wilderness is to see the ways that water and wind have shaped the canyons, rocks, and trees. I come here to discover that these wild places shape me as well. I return again and again because I know that I will come out transformed. All of life changes us, we inevitably are shaped by our events and circumstances. And we become who we are as we adapt and respond.
Stepping into nature provides ample metaphors for the terrain of our inner wilderness. Walking upon a trail through an old forest burn area, the blackened trunks of the trees stood bare while a fresh carpet of green beamed beneath; a stark reminder of the cycles of death and rebirth. Looking upon the scene I was reminded of the ways in which we all must allow parts of us to die and that as we release that which no longer serves us, we too can rise out of the ashes reborn again.
“This process of self-discovery invites us to remember who we really are and were always meant to be. For most of us, this involves the integration of the wounds that may have once been a source of shame or confusion. Healing asks us to integrate these parts into a cohesive sense of self so that we can reclaim a sense of dignity and the knowledge that we are so much more than our trauma or our pain. Healing allows us to walk in the world with a deep sense of belonging.”
-Dr. Arielle Schwartz
