About Wild Heart Nature Connection
My wild heart was put away in a drawer on my 13th birthday.
After going out to dinner with my parents, my mother spoke to me privately at home.
"Linda," she said, "You are 13 years old; a young woman now and young women don't climb trees."
It was, perhaps, the worst birthday I've ever had.
I lost sight of my wild heart after that, focusing instead on everything that was expected of me: college, a job, marriage and a family. Check, check, check and check. And still, something was missing.
Often, our wild hearts wait for the moment that what we couldn't dream of ourselves is dreamt elsewhere.
In the 1980's, the Japanese came up with the idea of Shinrin-Yoku or forest bathing, because the Japanese business class was suffering from stress, dis-ease and more; reconnecting with nature for wellness.
When a friend spoke to me about something called 'forest therapy' and suggested I might consider becoming a forest therapy guide, I was intrigued. At the same time, I thought, "More spaghetti thrown against the wall. Will it stick?"
It stuck.
I attended a training intensive in 2017, immediately asking myself what the heck was I doing there? And then, I was led on my first forest therapy walk by M. Amos Clifford of the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides & Programs.
I knew I was home again.
My wild heart re-awakened, never to go back to sleep.
There is no age limit when it comes to climbing trees.
After going out to dinner with my parents, my mother spoke to me privately at home.
"Linda," she said, "You are 13 years old; a young woman now and young women don't climb trees."
It was, perhaps, the worst birthday I've ever had.
I lost sight of my wild heart after that, focusing instead on everything that was expected of me: college, a job, marriage and a family. Check, check, check and check. And still, something was missing.
Often, our wild hearts wait for the moment that what we couldn't dream of ourselves is dreamt elsewhere.
In the 1980's, the Japanese came up with the idea of Shinrin-Yoku or forest bathing, because the Japanese business class was suffering from stress, dis-ease and more; reconnecting with nature for wellness.
When a friend spoke to me about something called 'forest therapy' and suggested I might consider becoming a forest therapy guide, I was intrigued. At the same time, I thought, "More spaghetti thrown against the wall. Will it stick?"
It stuck.
I attended a training intensive in 2017, immediately asking myself what the heck was I doing there? And then, I was led on my first forest therapy walk by M. Amos Clifford of the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides & Programs.
I knew I was home again.
My wild heart re-awakened, never to go back to sleep.
There is no age limit when it comes to climbing trees.
Linda Lombardo is a certified forest therapy guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs (ANFT), and a certified Master Naturalist through Quality Parks on Long Island, NY.
Linda was the first certified Forest Therapy guide on Long Island, NY, back in 2017 when not too many people knew what forest therapy was. She quickly built relationships with local arboretums and preserves, which recognized that what she offered was different than what they could offer to the public. Linda drew on her years of leadership expertise, becoming the official Forest Therapy Guide for organizations like TENWOMENSTRONG, and FULL SPAN LEADERSHIP, offering programs for personal and professional empowerment along the East coast.
Linda is also a certified life coach through the Coaches Training Institute (2001). Partnering with the forest to support her coaching clients is wild heart experience for them and for Linda.
Listen to Linda's interview about forest therapy with ONE, the Organization of Nature Evolutionaries:
https://www.natureevolutionaries.com/teleseminars-1/2019/9/15/forest-walk
Linda Lombardo is a certified forest therapy guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs (ANFT), and a certified Master Naturalist through Quality Parks on Long Island, NY.
Linda was the first certified Forest Therapy guide on Long Island, NY, back in 2017 when not too many people knew what forest therapy was. She quickly built relationships with local arboretums and preserves, which recognized that what she offered was different than what they could offer to the public. Linda drew on her years of leadership expertise, becoming the official Forest Therapy Guide for organizations like TENWOMENSTRONG, and FULL SPAN LEADERSHIP, offering programs for personal and professional empowerment along the East coast.
Linda is also a certified life coach through the Coaches Training Institute (2001). Partnering with the forest to support her coaching clients is wild heart experience for them and for Linda.
Listen to Linda's interview about forest therapy with ONE, the Organization of Nature Evolutionaries:
https://www.natureevolutionaries.com/teleseminars-1/2019/9/15/forest-walk
Photo courtesy of Carol Mossa, Earth's School of Love
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Orb photos by Diane McCarthy, See with My Heart Photography
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"Thank you Linda for a totally enjoyable day! I received peace, calm and yet energy from the day's walk and "therapy" from the trees. I went home and walked another 2 miles with the dog!!!
Hope to see you again."
D., Bayard Cutting Arboretum, NY
Hope to see you again."
D., Bayard Cutting Arboretum, NY
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"I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed the walk, you and our group last Sunday. It was a wonderful afternoon and I slept great that night. I am so looking forward to another walk with you."
LL., Sands Point Preserve, LI
LL., Sands Point Preserve, LI
How I go to the woods
Ordinarily, I go to the woods alone, with not a single
friend, for they are all smilers and talkers and therefore
unsuitable.
I don’t really want to be witnessed talking to the catbirds
or hugging the old black oak tree. I have my way of
praying, as you no doubt have yours.
Besides, when I am alone I can become invisible. I can sit
on the top of a dune as motionless as an uprise of weeds,
until the foxes run by unconcerned. I can hear the almost
unhearable sound of the roses singing.
If you have ever gone to the woods with me, I must love
you very much.”
― Mary Oliver, Swan: Poems and Prose Poems
Ordinarily, I go to the woods alone, with not a single
friend, for they are all smilers and talkers and therefore
unsuitable.
I don’t really want to be witnessed talking to the catbirds
or hugging the old black oak tree. I have my way of
praying, as you no doubt have yours.
Besides, when I am alone I can become invisible. I can sit
on the top of a dune as motionless as an uprise of weeds,
until the foxes run by unconcerned. I can hear the almost
unhearable sound of the roses singing.
If you have ever gone to the woods with me, I must love
you very much.”
― Mary Oliver, Swan: Poems and Prose Poems