Lean Into Love: Lessons from a Walk on the Coast

This morning, I was walking along the gorgeous Moss Beach coastline with a dear friend. As we walked, we found ourselves talking about love — not the abstract, poetic kind, but the very real, everyday love and mutual fondness that exists between her, her husband, and myself. We paused as the birds around us suddenly began chirping, almost as if they were trying to catch our attention. My friend jokingly said, “Yeah, you’re whistling at me!” and, in that exact moment, a bird gave the perfect cat-call whistle. I bent over in laughter — such good medicine.

As we kept walking, I found myself reflecting on how rare it is to talk about love this openly. Our culture seems to celebrate fear, danger, and worry — we share our anxieties freely, but talking about love can feel strangely taboo. Fear feels practical, even responsible, because it signals we are preparing and protecting. Love, on the other hand, asks us to soften, to trust, to reveal what matters most — and that can feel vulnerable.

This is why I love ANFT Forest Therapy, which is rooted in heart connection. On every walk, we are invited to listen from the heart. I carry a piece of driftwood shaped like a heart to remind myself — and others — to pause and share from a deeper place than just the mind. When we soften into the heart, we access a higher form of intelligence. The forest becomes our ally, and even the birds seem to join the conversation, reminding us that love is always available if we’re paying attention.

Perhaps today is an invitation to lean into love — to speak it, notice it, and celebrate it. What would it feel like to name aloud the love you have for a friend, a partner, a place, or even the earth itself? These conversations are not indulgent — they are medicine. They restore our connections to ourselves, each other, and the living world around us.

🌿 Come Walk with Me

If this speaks to your heart, I’d love for you to join me in person. For upcoming events, forest therapy days, nature journaling, myofascial release, and more, please visit my event calendar here: Somatic Ecotherapy Events.

Let’s lean into love together — in nature, in community, in shared breath.