A few weeks ago, I spent four days on a retreat, immersed in nature as part of my forest therapy guide training. I sat down to write about the experience, and what follows emerged from those reflections. It feels deeply personal, yet I feel called to share it—because perhaps something in these words will resonate with you.
I embraced liminality: the space between, the transition, the process of becoming a new version of yourself.
Grief is liminal. Aging is liminal. Pain is liminal. That moment before you fall asleep is liminal. We can design space for liminal experiences. Meditation, flow, seasonality – all liminal.
Forest therapy guides us to liminality – toward the space where we can become open to the in between, to the change within us, to the messages we might receive.
These are the messages that arose in the stillness:
A white pine shares its home with me. Through its support, I release decades of pain, my tears absorbed into the soft carpet of needles. It tells its friends that I am a friend. And in return for my gift of water and love, the tree gifts me with terpenes and its cushioned safety.
I sit under the branches of a cedar and realize that I am both under and over the cedar. With roots extending as far as its canopy – the tree surrounds me. I am in the womb of the cedar.
I sit with my eyes closed upon a rock on a stream bank, attempting to mimic its shape. At first, I curl up, crouching like the rock. But this is wrong. I feel called to sit upright – for the rock is not hiding. The rock tells me it is still, open, strong, and exposed.
I am reminded of guidance I have received for meditation posture: We sit upright, with a strong back and an open heart.
How is everything…so alive?
I hear someone say, “This was the first time I could just be with myself.”
Another shares, “Teach from your scars, not from your wounds.”
So on this land – and this land, and this land – I connect. I release. I know that my work is part of a movement.
A movement of loving this land, of loving ourselves.
My work aligns with my purpose. It feels insignificant, and at the same time, it is everything. It is one drop in a mighty ocean of single drops.
You and I. Together we are the mighty ocean.
A Gift of Invitations
The reflections I shared above came from being in relationship—with place, with other beings, and with the shifting rhythms of the natural world. These practices offer a way of deepening that relationship, of noticing what often goes unseen, and of attuning to the life unfolding around you.
As part of Forest Therapy practice, we offer a series of prompts called invitations—gentle suggestions to help you slow down, notice more deeply, and connect with yourself and the world around you.
In that same spirit, I’ve created three sit-spot invitations for you—drawn from the photographs below and inspired by some of the invitations I experienced during my immersion.
Spend about 20 minutes—either sitting or slowly wandering. Simply notice what comes up as you engage with each invitation: a sensory detail, a memory, an idea, or an emotion.
Invitation #1: What is Emerging?
Notice what is emerging. What is new, becoming, or arriving in the space around you?
Invitation #2: Shape Shifter
What might it feel like to embody the shape of another being? Perhaps you want to sway like a tree, shift like the wind, sit still like a rock, or move like a bird. You might choose to imagine this movement or explore it physically.
Invitation #3: Tiniest and Largest
Notice the tiniest and the largest.
Sit Spot Invitation Cards
If you enjoyed those invitations, I would strongly encourage you to keep the practice going. You can download my curated set of Sit Spot Invitation Cards HERE.
Forest Bathing: An Outdoor Experience of Biophilic Design
Seven Bridges Park, South Milwaukee, WI
May 19 (rain date May 21)
Register HERE
*Note: We have opened up more spaces!
AIA Wisconsin Conference + Expo on Architecture
May 21-22, 2025
Madison Marriott West Conference Center
Register HERE
Talk #1 (Thursday, May 22nd: 10:15-11:15am):
Forest Therapy and Biophilic Design: Reconnecting People and Place
In this session, we’ll explore how biophilic design and forest therapy can help designers, educators, and stakeholders shift not only how we perceive space but how we engage in a more reciprocal relationship with nature. We’ll look at how sensory experience can be used as a tool to support well-being, reconnect people to place, and guide more intentional, nature-honoring design decisions. Case studies and examples will be shared to demonstrate how experiential learning fosters grounded, responsive, and ecologically mindful approaches to design.
Tour (Thursday, May 22nd: 4:30-6:30pm):
Forest Therapy Walk: Deepening Wellness and Nature Connection Through Forest Therapy
This post-conference guided forest therapy walk offers a slow, accessible walk that invites participants into deeper connection with the land through sensory awareness and presence.
2nd International Conference on Forest Therapy
August 09-11, 2025 | Vancouver, Canada
Register HERE
Talk 1 Title: Designing with Nature: Integrating Nature and Forest Therapy into Biophilic Design Education and Practice
Talk 2 Title: Designing for Deep Connection: Activating Healing Spaces with Intention
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed my email and photography and were able to take one actionable item away with you. I’m always available to chat or answer any questions you may have! Just book a time with me here.
Sincerely,
Nicole Craanen, Founder & President