Ask and Listen and Trust – Walk With Me

Walk With Me themes from a May 2016 walk ….

Walk with Lillian Nature Photo 5.26.17

1) Ask.

When approaching the lake’s edge the ducks come right on over “asking” if you’ve got food for them.

How will the person or people that want your creations or services know about them, if you don’t put them out there and ask.

There may be those that don’t like your creations or services, don’t understand, or judge. Yet, think back to the ducks. They don’t stop and think, “What if they don’t have food? What if they say, “No, Go Away”? … They ask anyway. You have those creation ideas and ideas for service in your heart for a reason. For the benefit of others and for yourself.

2) Listen to and trust yourself.

This one sounds so easy and simple. Yet, fear can be a strong deterrent for listening to the message of our heart. Personally, it has taken me a long time to connect with and physically feel this fear to move beyond it.

And I mean, I really felt it … in my gall bladder area. I was taking what life handed to me and it was not what was in my heart. I didn’t want to let go for fear of not being able to provide for my family (for me it wasn’t just fear, it was the other “f” word too – forgiveness).

It took a long time, much pain in my right side, oceans of tears, yet I was finally able to let it go and allow what was in my heart. The way was provided when I did this.

Not how I expected. It has been completely unexpected. What a wonderful feeling to let go of something, trust oneself, and allow the unfolding of what’s in one’s heart. It’s not just wonderful. It’s magical and miraculous. xoxo

I invite you to allow nature to guide you and if you feel moved … Come, Walk With Me ….. xoxo (Sessions as low as $10)

Blessings,
Camilla
See It. Share It. BE IT … Spread Love Everywhere You Go!

Wonderfully exciting news! We’ve completed the first book trailer for my 10 year old son’s, Thomas Darnell, upcoming book, Biggest Little Photographer. You can learn more and pre-order here. Arriving mid-October 2016!

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13 Ways to Keep Alive Your Childs Nature Connection

Thomas and Camilla Date Day July 2016 Thomas Walking

I began taking Thomas and Lillian for walks when they were both infants. Having not tried to introduce going for walks and relighting the spark of wonder at a later age, I’m not sure how this would work with older children.

Thomas is 10 years old now and Lillian is 14 years old. Each of them treasure our walks together and if we skip more than 2 days, they notice and bring it up.

The meaning and reason for these walks has shifted over the years. When I first began walking it was to get exercise. The walks I take now are for experiencing my connection with nature, listening and learning from nature, and staying connected with my true self. This is the meaning I impart to Lillian and Thomas as well.

These “13 Ways to Keep Alive Your Child’s Nature Connection” have walks as their root. The root must be solid and secure if this growth period is to be successful.

  1. Make going for a walk together a priority. For this to work, there must be a strong commitment. Take each child on a walk alone, go for a family walk, take a walk with your significant other, and take yourself on a walk alone.
  2. Walk slowly. This is not about seeing how quickly you can get finished or how many calories you can burn.
  3. Point out clouds, leaves, trees, rocks, and animals. Get up close to the trees. Touch them. Speak what’s in your mind aloud and be curious.
  4. Ask your child how it makes them feel to be on this walk, sitting next to the lake, sitting on a rock, or touching the tree.
  5. Take pictures of the rocks, trees, leaves, sky, water, animals … whatever you feel moved to capture. Invite your child to do the same. You can talk about these pictures later.
  6. Take a journal with you. Sit and write or draw whatever comes to heart. Invite your child to do the same.
  7. If your child invites you to feel a rock or pinecone or to dip your toes in the water or stand on a big rock or to make shadows or to catch the leaves as they fall; say “yes”, let go and have fun with him.
  8. If they want to linger a bit longer, say “yes”. Whatever is waiting for you at home, can wait. This is deepening your own connection with your child and with nature. And, also strengthening your child’s connection with nature.
  9. Choose a “sit spot”. This is a place that you and your child will visit every time you take a walk. While at your sit spot, sit in silence, and listen. The more you do this, the more you will begin to see and hear and smell. This is a good place to use your journal.
  10. During the walk, ask your child what she hears, smells, sees and what something feels like when touched.
  11. Your child is continually learning from this experience. It’s best not to attempt to make this about learning the proper names of birds, flowers, weeds, and clouds as this will follow naturally the more you walk. Take note of whatever it is and have fun researching it later.
  12. Collect rocks, sticks, leaves, pinecones, and whatever else to take home. Have a place on the patio, in the garage, or inside the house so these can be used later for research or for creating nature based art.
  13. Authentically share your own sense of wonder with your child. This may be buried deeply within. Yet, it is there. Meditate, pray, practice yoga, whatever calls to you so that you can peel back the years and layers of losing your nature connection.

C18 Trip July 2016 #32

There’s no need to wait until you have time to go camping or to get away from the city. The trail at a local park will work. A walk along the sidewalk in your neighborhood will do. Nature is everywhere if we open our heart and eyes to seeing her.

We just read two GREAT children’s books that emphasize this. They are:

The Garden of Happiness

The Curious Garden

Also, I recently read “How to Raise a Wild Child” if you want to read further and go deeper with this.

(I invited Thomas and Lillian to review this to ensure I had not left out anything. With a few additions, it is ready!)

I help to support my family with my writings. So … there are Amazon affiliate links in this post. This simply means that if you click through to Amazon for more information about a book, and you buy something, we get a few cents (and it doesn’t cost you anything more than usual). If you benefited from this writing, would you like to toss a tip in the love offering “bucket”? Oceans of gratitude … xoxo

Blessings,
Camilla
See It. Share It. BE IT … Spread Love Everywhere You Go!

Wonderfully exciting news! We’ve completed the first book trailer for my 10 year old son’s, Thomas Darnell, upcoming book, Biggest Little Photographer. You can learn more and pre-order here.

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Walk With Me: Determination and Serenity

Today’s walk with me theme …

“Continue to walk your path in peace and stick to it with determination and serenity.” ~Camilla

I had just asked Mother Nature what, if any, message there was for me on this particular walk. Right after that I spotted this lovely turtle sunning on a rock.

“In moments of stillness and acute quietness, when the noisy mind is devoid of the chaotic business of thinking, an awareness of another dimension reveals itself. It is a dimension of union; the viewer and that being viewed are one. It is the ending of isolation.” ~ Del Wynn, Ack Poetically (Discovered this beautiful quote in The Curious Nature Guide)

 Walk Turtle June 6 2013
Vintage Lake Turtle June 2016
I help to support my family with my writings. So … there is an Amazon affiliate link in this post. This simply means that if you click through to Amazon for more information about a book, and you buy something, we get a few cents (and it doesn’t cost you anything more than usual). Also, If you benefited from this writing, would you like to toss a tip in the love offering “bucket”? Oceans of gratitude … xoxo
Blessings,

Camilla
See It. Share It. BE IT … Spread Love Everywhere You Go!

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Why I Write

Bench at Vintage Lake February 2016

I feel it is my purpose to openly share my own life experiences with others. I freely explain and share lessons I’ve learned and practices I use that work for me and my family. If needed, I listen with love and compassion and intuitively share thoughts and examples from my own life.

I write about connecting with nature, parenting, mindful livingsimplicitygratitude, and emotions. Plus, I like to write and share poetry too!

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

I feel if we practice the following we will heal ourself and the world’s children will continue to have the self-love they are born with, to feel secure, to feel loved, to feel successful, and free to be who they are ……. LOVE.

  • truly love ourself and model that love
  • practice mindfulness in our own realm and lovingly share mindfulness with our kids
  • learn emotional connection and model and teach it to our kids
  • spend time connecting with nature and model this for our kids
  • practice gratitude and model and teach it to our kids

There is something inside of me that won’t let me not write. Something that gently nudges and says, “You’ve just got to share that.”

My instinct, my gut, whatever you want to call it – that’s what I’m talking about. I fought this feeling for a while. I didn’t think I had anything meaningful to contribute and wondered why anyone would care what I thought or had to say.

I feel my journey is supposed to be shared with others to inspire, give hope and to help create a shift. Another reason I feel compelled is to share the message that one’s view of life is what creates the life one experiences.

Writing and sharing snippets through social media is also healing and a way of shedding what no longer serves. When I write I can hardly contain the emotions I feel inside. The emotions are as hot as lava and as sweet as honeysuckle – from the pit of my belly all the way up to my throat. I am, indeed, compelled to share my experiences.

Each time that “little voice” inside me says “What are you doing? Why are you wasting time on this? This will not make you money!”; I begin to get discouraged. Then I receive confirmation from those around me that what I’m doing and the path I have chosen is inspiring and helpful.

Why Does It Matter?

I get feedback from others verbally, through email and facebook that I encourage and motivate them. I feel it is the World saying to me, “You see, this is why you are to share your life.”

I would continue this sharing journey even if I didn’t receive these messages. For, I know it is what I am to supposed to do. This is my unique way of sharing my given talents. When we share, in the way that only we can, we bless humanity.

I no longer question when I get a flash of inspiration or a gut feeling to share something. I have reached complete acceptance and have full faith in this little adventure I’m on with Team TLC.

As long as one person or one family has been positively influenced by my writing and sharing, I have accomplished what I feel I was meant to do. The reason I say this is because I believe it doesn’t end with that one person. It creates a positive ripple effect that spreads like the ripple created from a rock thrown in water … it keeps on keepin on spreading loving-kindness!

My hope is that you connect with, physically feel, and release worry, fear and guilt. Trust your intuition when you are being pulled in a certain direction …. EVEN if you don’t know the why or how …. and begin your own Journey to Acceptance …

I help to support my family with my writings. I share my writings for free for the benefit of others. If you benefited from this writing, would you like to toss a tip in the love offering “bucket”? Oceans of gratitude … xoxo

Blessings,

Camilla
See It. Share It. BE IT … Spread Love Everywhere You Go!

Did you know I wrote a book? It’s titled “D iz for Different – One Woman’s Journey to Acceptance” and you can read more about it here.

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Walk With Me – A New Offering

“When we are with Nature, we are awake, and we discover many interesting things and reach many a mark we are not aiming at.” ~John Muir

Vintage Lake Path April 2016

For the past 17 years I have been going for walks. What started out as an activity simply to satisfy my desire to be active; turned into a ritual for healing, releasing, discovering my authentic self, and connecting with nature.

I offer to you unique one of a kind “Walk With Me” sessions. I am a trained coach, however, traditional coaching methods and styles are not my path. My sessions feel more like conversations with a friend, yet are conversations with a purpose. I am to be a mirror. I am to reflect back what I notice that you are not noticing.

If you feel in need of an internal shift, a change in perception, a loving, warm, “mirror” to reflect back what you are not noticing, let’s schedule a “Walk With Me” session.

Is a “Walk With Me” session right for you?

  • Take a few minutes to get to know me by going here and then perhaps reading some of my writings by going here. Do you get a resounding “Yes”?
  • Do you feel you are living life too much from your head and not enough from your heart?
  • Do you feel confused about what you are supposed to be DOing?
  • Do you question what your given talents are and how to express them?
  • Do you hesitate with trusting yourself?
  • Do you feel guilty for taking steps that are in tune with your intuition?
  • Do you feel there are habits, fears, beliefs, ideas, and thoughts that need to be released?
  • Do you wish to allow more of what brings you joy and release all else?
  • Do you want to maintain and sustain mindfulness?
  • Do you want to learn how to use emotional connection to release and shed what no longer serves?
  • Do you want to know how to introduce nature connection, mindfulness, and emotional connection to your kids?

If you answered, “yes”, then let’s go on walkabout! Go here to contact me with any questions.

Each persons session is tailored, therefore no two sessions will look the same. In addition, no two sessions will be alike for those partaking in multiple sessions.

These sessions are not guided hikes by any means. We simply go for a short walkabout in domestic nature with an attitude of open curiosity. We have so many parks and lakes with trails in this wonderful area.

This is about connecting you with nature. It’s about allowing the love and beauty of nature to guide you in healing, shifting, releasing, and discovering what you already know within. It’s also about allowing nature to reflect your beauty back to you.

I guide you in connecting with nature paired with mindfulness and emotional connection to open your awareness. Although our time spent talking before and after the walkabout will have a purpose; our time walking will be slow and seemingly with no purpose.

I also ask that you bring some sort of camera as we may take pictures for you to use in reflecting back to the experience. We also may stop for a few minutes to draw and write.

“I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in.”~John Muir

Camilla Jumping Washoe Lake April 2016

(Picture of me at Washoe Lake in Nevada – April 2016 … Wheee!)

“Nature is everywhere – in our backyards, schoolyards, city parks, and farmlands. Indeed, nature is quite literally everything, from stars and galaxies to planet Earth and the stuff in you. Simply being in the presence of natural landscapes tends to reduce stress and promote relaxation. Such experiences lower mental fatigue and boost mental clarity while enhancing both work performance and healing.” ~Scott D. Sampson

Sessions hosted at my location in the South Meadows/Damonte Ranch/Virginia Foothills area of Reno, Nevada are $58 – $118 and last between one to two hours. All other areas of Reno or Sparks are an additional flat $25.

If you don’t have questions and know you’re ready, go here to secure a “Walk With Me” session by placing a $58 deposit. Once received, we will be in contact to obtain further details and schedule your walkabout. Use this Paypal link to secure your session.

“It is in vain to dream of a wildness distant from ourselves. There is none such. It is the bog in our brains and bowels, the primitive vigor of Nature in us, that inspires that dream. I shall never find the wilds of Labrador any greater wildness than in some recess of Concord.” ~Henry David Thoreau

 Damonte Ranch Trail April 2016

Blessings,

Camilla
See It. Share It. BE IT … Spread Love Everywhere You Go!

Did you know I wrote a book? It’s titled “D iz for Different – One Woman’s Journey to Acceptance” and you can read more about it here.

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Go here to subscribe to my blog to ensure you receive new posts delivered straight to your inbox! Right here!