Right now they are louder, clearer and more needed than ever before! If you can spend some time in your local park, sitting beside a tree, or just closing your eyes and listening to the birds outside your window, this can help centre your thoughts and calm internal turmoil. In a calmer state, your natural creativity and energy can emerge. Research shows that Nature has a significant benefit to our physical and mental wellbeing.
Slowing down can also be a way to step up! Despite pressure from your social media feeds, it is perfectly okay to come out of self-isolation without having learnt a new language, mastered cookery or built your own empire. However, this time is a good opportunity to listen deeply to yourself and your loved ones. On average we only ‘listen’ to 50% of what is said to us, so using this time to learn to really listen could have a hugely beneficial impact. Learn about the benefits here.
Understand your gifts and build yourself a toolkit to bring them forward… when you listen deeply to yourself, what do you long to offer the world? What are you doing when you feel most yourself and most alive? How could you liberate that energy or activity in service to our planet and all life - and what do you need to do to support yourself in that? If you’re stuck for ideas, try journaling (see point 6). TreeSisters also has many useful free resources for tapping into your inner wisdom.
As the saying goes, “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The next best time is now.” If you have a garden, or access to outside space, why not start your legacy? If you don’t have the ability to plant trees at home, you can donate to a tree planting organisation such as TreeSisters and fund the planting of tropical trees that grow quickly and benefit the whole world!
At this time, many small businesses and charities are in need of a helping hand. Often volunteering can be done online from the comfort of your own home. Volunteering gives you an opportunity to share your skills, support your passions and give back to your community.
Strange things are happening every day and the only certainty we have is uncertainty. Writing things down can help you organise your thoughts and process the events of each day. It can increase empathy, reduce stress and unleash creativity. It is also fascinating to document your own experiences and read them through at a later date.
After all that listening, time in Nature and journaling, create a vision of how you’d love to contribute to a healthy planet and build a plan. Good plans empower, provide structure and help give us a sense of direction. Right now it may feel impossible to plan anything, but that isn't true. Build a plan for one of your days at the weekend or for a new craft project. What do you deeply care about and what would bring you joy to contribute, even in uncertain times? Planning helps us to focus on what really matters and bring that to our lives.
Take a trip into into a world of wisdom
