this wild thing.

Hey there BJS,

When Krissy made that post about upcoming events, one of them that may come to fruition based on interest is a rewilding retreat in the Poconos with yours truly. Krissy and Skyler have been epically supportive of me and this, and I can't thank them enough. But I wanted to take a little time to let you know what it’s all about.

“this wild thing” is a personal pursuit of mine that I’m giving wings to as I journey through this new chapter of my life. A big part of its mission is to reconnect folks with nature - physically, mentally, and spiritually. A mission to help each other embrace our own inner wild by reclaiming what we might have lost while letting go of what no longer serves us, or really ever did.

It’s about engaging life with intention, harnessing your own wild magic and power, and working to discover or rediscover all the glorious and not-so-glorious parts of yourself so that you can live authentically and unapologetically in your truth.

In the stories of old, we were warriors, healers, and stewards of the land and its creatures. We lived in tune with the seasons. We lived in reciprocity with nature. We respected it and held fast to its lessons. We gave thanks to the abundant nourishment it provided.

And like the wild, there was a time when we valued and embraced our duality. We were nurturing and tender, but also unpredictable and brutal. Instead of fast-paced linear journeys consumed by excess and driven by convenience, we walked a spiral path - born and reborn time and time again. We lived and learned by the turn of the wheel.

Modern society is hell bent on taming nature - ours and it. If nature is too much, it’s cut down. If nature gets in the way, it’s removed. If nature is too noisy, it gets silenced. If nature can be used for the benefit of man, it is forced to become whatever man wants it to be. Managed and manicured. Kept and contained. Used, often abused, and almost always taken for granted.

Just as the wild can be destroyed and developed over time, so too, can you. We also find ourselves managed and manicured into something we had no business becoming. What once was wild and free, now feels trapped and tamed. Subdued. Predictable. A different kind of wheel.

Over the years, I have come to learn that when we lose our wildness, we lose a big part of ourselves. We’re not meant to live without it. We need it and it needs us. Literally. If the wild is wiped from this world, so is humanity. The interconnectedness is necessary for our sanity and our survival.

THE MISSION:

•Build reciprocity with nature through interconnectedness.

•Adopt an intentional approach to our lived experiences and lifestyle.

•Learn to be present in the moment, no matter how small.

•Slow down and simplify our lives in the ways that work for us.

•If you’re over being over - overworked, overscheduled, overdone, overstimulated, and overwhelmed, then it’s time to give yourself permission to become more selective. To prioritze self-care - and here, it's healing through nature.

•Finding your inner wild. Whether it’s discovering, rediscovering, uncovering, integrating, removing, deconstructing, becoming, unbecoming, unearthing, transforming, or a mixed bag of the above.

•Decluttering and deprogramming all that does not serve you. It’s time to shed those dead skins baby and show off the brilliance beneath.

Simply put, we’re coming together to find our wild and then embrace it - whoever you are, wherever you are, and whatever wild means to you. One thing we all have in common: the wild is all around us and lives within us. And it's time to rewild ourselves.nie