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Learning about the Wild World Around Us · Divas That Care Network

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's Divas That Care Radio.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: Stories, strategies, and ideas to inspire positive change.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Divas That Care, a network of women committed to making our world a better place for everyone.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: This is a global movement for women, by women, engaged in a collaborative effort to create a better world for future generations.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: To find out more about the movement, visit DivasThatCare.com after the show.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: Right now, though, stay tuned for another jolt of inspiration.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_01: Hello to all.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Divas that Care Network.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_01: I am Joyce Benning, and I will be your host for this invigorating, robust lifestyle show.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_01: I want to thank each one of our listeners, as I am very grateful for each one of you.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_01: And you have all tuned in for a real treat today, as we have our returning diva, Deb Matlock, back with us.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_01: And she is going to talk about learning about the wild world around us and how this holds value.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_01: Oh man, does this ever sound like a very interesting topic.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_01: Deb, could you please briefly introduce yourself to our listeners today?
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_01: Hello, everybody.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_01: My name is Deb Matlock, and I live in Colorado.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_01: I have a small business called Wild Rhythms, where the focus is on developing and nurturing our deep and sacred connection to earth, animals, and the world of spirit so that we can move from that place and live in our world and do our work in very authentically connected ways.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_01: How beautiful and how fitting.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_01: how your business goes right along in with what we are going to talk about, about learning about the wild world and how it holds value for us.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I just love that.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_01: Well, how would you like to start to share to our listeners today about learning about the wild world around us?
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the first thing that comes to mind when I think about that is that so much of our lives...
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: demand of us focus away from the wild world, whether it's our email, our jobs, just our busy routines with our families, house cleaning, whatever it is we have.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_01: I often look at my own to-do list and so much of it is not about turning my attention towards the wild world and connecting, understanding, you know, what's going on out there.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think one of the reasons that it's so important to say, hmm, I think I'm interested in focusing this direction is I think it will broaden our viewpoint and allow us to extend our lives for many of us a bit beyond our to-do list.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_01: Now, certainly there are some people out there, you know, who are people like yourself where the wild world is so intimately connected connected to the work that you do.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: But for a lot of us, it's not.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_01: And we have to make that conscious choice to say, wow, I really want to learn about community and my wild neighbors.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_01: And who am I living here with?
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yes.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, how true that is.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: And it just brought to me, because I am blessed to be able to be outside and be in nature with the wild neighbors.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_01: the wild world around me, and we had some friends come down, and they were just amazed at the big, we call them sunflower weeds here, that are growing everywhere.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: And they were like, oh, those aren't weeds.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_01: Those are just absolutely gorgeous.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, okay.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: They see it from a whole different perspective than I do because I see it on a daily basis.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_01: So I think that is so true that we...
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_01: When we get busy and wound up doing our to-do list, we don't even see the little small things that are out there to focus on to give us part of the wild world, just like those wild sunflowers growing.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_01: I just kind of know they're always there.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_01: So I don't think much about them.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: And to somebody that doesn't see them daily, they're absolutely beautiful.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_01: And that thought just came to my mind when you said that.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I think that what you're bringing up is a perfect example of this.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_01: If we open ourselves to learn, and whether that means we are buying a couple field guides and looking at the birds that come through our neighborhood, or we're going to walk our dog with a little more awareness of the seasonal changes as we're walking through our town.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there's a lot of ways to do that, and we can talk about those.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_01: But one of the things that I think it does is it opens us up to the patterns and the rhythms and the just very natural changes and shifts that go on around us all the time.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like the sunflowers you just mentioned.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_01: You know, certainly they're a seasonal, beautiful phenomenon that in a few months when the snows and the cold come, you know, they're going to be brown stalks picking up and, you know, the birds will have taken all the seeds out and they're going to, you know, and so it's one of the ways I think we can deepen our connection, put our roots down and ground our own energy into the places where we live is being open and curious to learning about who's here and what is going on around me.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, how true that is.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_01: And to ground our own energy, because what a better way to ground your energy than for me personally to be out in nature and taking in what it has to offer.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I'm with you 100% on that.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_01: It's like I can be sitting at my computer and getting very frenetic in my mind and working, working, working, and then I go outside and it's...
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_01: it's just amazing how I can just take that deeper breath, even if it's just for a second.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I think when we know a little more about the wild world, what birds are migrating through at certain times, what plants are growing, what wildlife activities are happening, it just allows us a focal point.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_01: Like right now here in Colorado, it's October, and the squirrels are very busy getting ready for winter.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_01: Their activity level is completely different than a few months ago.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: Their boldness is different.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_01: They are not afraid of the dogs.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_01: I kind of keep reminding them, these are still dogs, even though you're busy getting ready for winter.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_01: Don't walk across the yard on the ground in front of a sleeping dog.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_01: Not smart.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_01: But it's interesting because it's such a beautiful way for us to extend our understanding of our own lives.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_01: You know, what are we doing in the fall?
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_01: What little different things do we do?
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_01: Do we can plants from our garden?
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: Are we doing a fall clean out of our closets?
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we do those things too, and it's such a beautiful way to explore our relationships with all these other beings.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yes.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_01: How true that is.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_01: And when we speak of fall, I always think about the trees, how they change colors and the beauty that we can get from that and just soak that up because, I mean, that only happens once a year and only happens at kind of almost a short period of time because as they start to change color, they fall off.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_01: So if we can...
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: Take those moments, and no matter where you are, there's always parks.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_01: There's always places to find the trees that are changing colors like this.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: And just enjoy that beautiful moment of what that tree is experiencing in the fall of the seasons.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and the more that we learn about the wildness around us, the more that we're able to say, oh, the robins usually come back in March, and these trees usually change earlier than these trees.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_01: I know around where I live there are certain trees that are very early leaves of color changing and some that are much later, and it's fun to watch the show kind of move through the canopy of trees in the neighborhood because the different species behave differently.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_01: And when we open ourselves up to learning these things, learning the species, learning the patterns, we allow ourselves to also become witnesses to everything.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_01: And this is where one of my favorite authors, Terry Tempest Williams, is a nature writer and activist.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_01: And she said something in a book I read a few years ago about how bearing witness to our places, knowing our places, is one of the most important things we can do.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: It allows us to say, wait a second, the hummingbirds are usually here by now.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_01: Why aren't they?
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: Or why are we having such an early fall or a late fall?
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_01: It allows us to see what's going on and then act, whether that's big action like, hey, we need to talk about some legislation about migrating birds or whether it's small action like, ooh, these birds are usually gone by now, but they're here and it's getting cold.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_01: you know, what can I do to support them?
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_01: What can I do to be a player in this process instead of just sitting back and focusing on my human life only?
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_01: Right, right.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_01: How...
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: kind of of how we can give back to nature itself like maybe those birds maybe put out a little more feed for them if they're still around and it's starting to get really cold that they just haven't migrated away yet be aware of what's happening around us in the nature and it will we all live in harmony together that way because we realize what they are doing And we can offer some help to them, too, just like the beauty that they give back to us when they come in in the spring and give us that.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_01: I always know spring is here when the robins come, and I'm like, oh, my goodness, we're almost there.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: So, yes, if we can in turn give back to them in the fall.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_01: with a little extra food and things like this, it's always a good feeling to know that you've helped, be it an animal, be it a person.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's always such a good feeling to be able to know that you gave something to help them to be a little bit better in life.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_01: And the robins are a beautiful example.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: Here in Colorado, robins are also harbingers of spring.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_01: And also, in the spring, we can get some pretty doozy snowstorms.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_01: Like, that's when we often get our multiple feet, you know, and very wet, heavy snow.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_01: And one of the things that the ground-feeding birds like robins are challenged by is they come in, it's spring, it's beautiful, then we get one of these, you know, two- or three-foot...
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_01: And so one of the things we can do for robins in our area is we can shovel not just our driveway, sidewalks, patios, but part of our garden and our lawn, just exposing some soil, exposing places where they can look for worms, for example.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_01: Now, the worms might not agree with this plan, so I'll put that out there.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_01: But it's an interesting thing.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_01: By knowing what the wildlife needs and doesn't need from us, you know, we can contribute.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_01: Another way to consider is with, for example, Halloween decorations or holiday decorations.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_01: You know, looking at who's living in our area and what do they need.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, do I put holiday lights in that tree where I know a lot of birds roost at night?
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe I don't do that.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe I don't put holiday lights or maybe I only put them over here.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like getting that intimate connection with our places is allows us to make really conscious, heartfelt, and informed decisions where we can still celebrate and decorate, but we do it in a different way.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_01: We do it in a way that's conscious of who's here besides us and what are their needs.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_01: You know, around here, Halloween, one of the things that is often out are those kind of those fake spiderwebs I don't even know what the material is.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_01: It kind of stretches through people's trees and bushes and everything.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_01: But wildlife advocates will often say that those are just death traps for birds and bats because they're very sticky.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, so you can put up really wonderful Halloween decorations but maybe not use that stuff.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: You know, so the more we know, the more we can be really good allies to the wild world around us.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_01: Mm-hmm.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_01: Oh.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_01: Those were beautiful examples, very beautiful, of learning and knowing what is around us.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_01: And is this going to affect them in a negative way or a positive way?
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: And where to put things like that?
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, that was a great example, especially with Halloween coming just around the corner, and then we have the Thanksgiving and Christmas and with the lights.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, if those are the trees that they roost in, Why are we having to put lights in there to scare them away?
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_01: So, yeah.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I love that example.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, exactly.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I think that's where, you know, when I think about learning about the wild world, you know, basically opening ourselves up as naturalists to our communities.
• 13:36
  SPEAKER_01: It just opens up so much, the magic, the excitement, the curiosity.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my goodness, the one thing I can say is the more I learn about the natural world, the more questions I have.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_01: It's like every little bit that we learn opens up a whole new arena of questions like I didn't even know to ask before.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's just like such a demonstration of this beautiful mystery and the complexity of life around us.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, my gosh, we don't need to sit in front of our TVs and screens to be entertained when we have all of this amazing life around us no matter where we live.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_01: I guarantee no matter where we live, the magic of the wild world is happening.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yes.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, the magic of the wild world is all around us.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_01: Like even in the cities, I mean, there's always the parks.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_01: There's the zoos.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, there's different places where you can find it.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_01: And even if you're growing something out on your patio, a plant or something, or a small little garden in plants, I mean, there's always the wild world around us if we just take the time to look for it a little bit.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: And it's like...
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: The example of the sunflowers, they thought they were beautiful.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_01: And had I really taken the time to see that beauty?
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_01: Not until they said something, because I see them every day.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_01: So, yeah, it's just stopping that moment and going, oh, wow, this is beautiful.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_01: And how, like you said, how your curiosity gets built up and you just, there's more and more questions to answer.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: How did this come here?
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_01: Where did it come from?
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_01: Just like all the wild sunflowers, how did they all get here?
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_01: How did they all start growing at one time?
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: And with the rain all we've had around here, how beautiful they've gotten and how big.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_01: And it's just, yeah, your curiosity just, it can go wild with your imagination on everything that's happening.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and I love what you said about the sunflowers and how it was somebody coming to visit that kind of planted them out, because I think we all do that.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_01: We're all used to being where we are and seeing what we see.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: But one of the ways I think we can engage with this learning of wild nature is to say, all right, I'm going to go out today on my dog walk or my trip to the store or whatever, and I'm going to try to look at this place as if I don't live here.
• 16:09
  SPEAKER_01: You know, as if I was in some faraway land that I've never visited before, and I'm just going to say, what catches my attention?
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that I thought, oh, I would love to know more about this plant that is growing all along the highway, and I've never thought about it because I'm going 55 miles an hour, but then going home and looking it up on the Internet or getting a field guide and learning about what is this plant that grows in Armenians in my neighborhood or...
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_01: on my path to work, who depends on it?
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_01: You know, how is it pollinated?
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: Do butterflies migrate through and need it?
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like what does this plant do here?
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_01: Instead of just dismissing it as we drive by.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_01: And, you know, it's fascinating to me because we all do it.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_01: We all do it.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: We all get in our heads and we live our lives and there is so much.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_01: I guarantee I've lived in the front range of Colorado my whole life.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I guarantee there is so much I do not know.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: Even though I work professionally as a naturalist, I guarantee there is so much I do not know.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, and that was so beautiful, too.
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_01: Just like when you're on your drive or on your walk, act like you've never seen it before and build your curiosity to find out what it is and what purpose it is serving.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_01: Because it...
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: It all works together, like I said earlier, in harmony to help one another out in the wild nature and to help us.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, the learning experiences that we can get from just raising our curiosity and opening our eyes more and even our smells.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_01: Some of these plants give off a beautiful smell.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, why does that plant have that beautiful aroma or smell?
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_01: Different things like that.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, just opening up ourselves for the curiosity that it can arouse inside of us to see what is all happening out there in the nature and the wild world.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh, that is exactly, you know, like there are certain flowers that are...
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_01: have wider, flatter blooms that are more conducive to butterflies.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_01: And certain flowers that have little closed-up blooms that the bees have to kind of wiggle their way in to get to the center.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: And then there's the flowers that have the longer blooms that you've got to be a hummingbird to get yourself in there.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's all just right there for us to look at and see and not only enjoy...
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_01: But to feel like we are in community with all of these beings, that we start to value, okay, wow, I see how that flower plays a role.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: And when the butterflies are here, this flower is really important to them.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_01: So what if I put more of this flower in my garden, for example?
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_01: Can I support the butterflies better?
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_01: Conversely, can I learn about the native areas, the wild open spaces, and are there ornamental flowers or plants that I have in my yard that are actually dangerous and kind of move in and proliferate and push out native plants that perhaps I shouldn't be putting in my yard?
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_01: And a lot of local nurseries with a focus on native plants can help people know what to not put in their yards and what they really need to put more of in their yards to support the wildlife and the insects and the birds that any area might have.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_01: A lot we can do with just a little bit of knowledge.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: It's very empowering, I think.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I do too.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: I definitely do.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_01: And when you mentioned the butterflies, I mean, when you see a butterfly, rather than just seeing it, Look at the beautiful colors that they represent on them.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_01: And every single butterfly I see is different.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_01: I'm like, oh my word, look at all the different colors that they bring.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_01: And you can see two or three at a time together and each one represent something different in the way their colors come across.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I've just been amazed.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_01: I've really noticed the butterflies this year because there's been quite a few of them, and I'm like, oh, they are just so magnificent.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_01: They're just beautiful.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I think that that magnificence and that beauty and also the amazing things we can learn that just blow my mind.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: Like, for example, there are some butterflies that the pattern on their wings is, at the very end of the bottom of their wings by their back end, they'll have what looks like two eyes, kind of colored circles.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_01: And it looks like that's the head.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_01: And so if they get predated or if somebody's coming to eat them, they may go for that part.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_01: And it might be that just a piece of their wing gets consumed, but their head and their eyes and the rest is okay and they can move off.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_01: And it's just an amazing, amazing...
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_01: And there's so many little insects that just beautifully camouflage.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_01: You know, some of them are also good to know about if we're growing crops.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_01: We might need to know if certain insects are moving in and be aware of that.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_01: Others are relatively benign and, you know, they're not so invasive.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_01: But it's amazing to me.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_01: We've got some little greens and...
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sitting there right next to a plant in my garden and I don't even see this being because the camouflage is so good.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_01: And then when I notice, it's just like, it's an amazing, like, wow, you and I are here together.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_01: In this little part of the earth, like, look at how amazing you are.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_01: I don't even know who you are.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_01: I've got to go learn about you now.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, isn't that so true?
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean, how, like you said, we're all part of this community.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_01: piece of this earth and we're all breathing in the same air because like the butterflies the plants they all have to have air to to survive and so do we and we're all breathing that air we're all taking in what is out there in nature and around us just like they are so that's how i i always say we just all live under the same sky together Yeah, and I think one of the things I've seen people come up against when they start to get curious about the wild world, they start to want to develop their naturalist skills a little bit, you know, is feeling intimidated because there is so much out there.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_01: There is so much to learn.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_01: And like I said a few minutes ago, I mean, I've worked as a professional naturalist and educator for over 20 years, and I still feel like a beginner is and what I actually know.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm pretty sure I'm going to feel that way for the rest of my life because there's so much.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_01: But what I like to tell folks is not feeling like we have to start with everything.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_01: You know, if somebody feels really passionate about butterflies, then start with butterflies and focus there and get a nice little butterfly field guide for your region and, you know, go to a, if you have a local nature center that has a, education program, you can look for, you know, do they have some on butterflies and plants that butterflies like and, you know, so we can let our passions and our heart also guide us into these learnings.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_01: We don't have to stand outside and go, oh my gosh, I have to learn everything about all of these plants and animals right now.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_01: Forget it.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_01: I'm going to go inside and clean out the fridge because that's easier to do, you know.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, so well said.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_01: And I loved how you said find out what your passion is.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_01: If you are, like you said, if you're passionate about the butterflies, then concentrate on them.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_01: If you're passionate about a certain plant or different things like that or gardens or anything like that, look inside your heart and find what your passion is and then start with that.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_01: That is beautiful.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_01: I love how you said your passion.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I've got a friend who just loves clouds.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_01: And clouds are beautiful and they're very expressive and there's so many different ways that they look.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_01: And so she has kind of made it her hobby to learn about clouds and weather patterns.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_01: And oh my goodness, she has all these interesting facts.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_01: But also, now she can look at the sky and she knows so much more.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_01: than she did before, where I might say, oh, look at those pretty clouds, or that looks like a storm cloud.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_01: That's about the extent of what I know, you know.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_01: And she might say, well, actually, this is this and that, and it means the wind patterns and this and that.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, wow.
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_01: And all she did was focus on clouds.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_01: And now she also has this amazing information when the weather is changing.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_01: She'll know it before a lot of the rest of us.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_01: But, you know, it just was a passion of hers.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_01: And now it's this amazing thing that she knows so much about.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_01: And it helps her feel connected.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_01: She feels such a connection to the weather patterns and the rhythms.
• 25:19
  SPEAKER_01: She has followed her passion and how it has broadened her learning and her experiences to deal with different things.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_01: And she feels like, it almost sounds, she feels like she is giving back because she can tell like you and share with others what those clouds up there really mean.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, that's beautiful.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and she's actually said she feels like the clouds allow her to have a conversation with wildness because they really are telling us a lot if we understand what they're saying.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_01: I agree.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I don't know a lot about them.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: I just know their beauty and what I think I see within the clouds.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_01: I love looking at the clouds, too.
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_01: They are just gorgeous.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_01: And that's something...
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_01: Anyone that has that passion can follow it.
• 26:13
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, wherever you are, you can walk outside and see the sky and see the clouds.
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: They're there.
• 26:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they're there.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_01: And even if we're standing in a cloud because it's a foggy, rainy, you know, they're there.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_01: You know, and that alone is another cool experience of, wow, we're living in a cloud today here.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the fog is so thick and we're doing this, you know.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_01: And again, just tapping ourselves into that as opposed to just, oh, It's a foggy, cloudy, rainy day.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_01: I have to wear an extra layer.
• 26:42
  SPEAKER_01: You know, our lives, I think, can be more joyful if we look at it slightly differently.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_01: Like, ooh, we get to live in a cloud for a few hours.
• 26:52
  SPEAKER_01: How often do you get to do that?
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_01: Right, right.
• 26:55
  SPEAKER_01: And enjoy the beauty around that fog, because we had fog here, well, it was yesterday morning.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I mean...
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_01: It puts a whole new look on everything.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's like it has a whole new dimension when you look at it through the fog.
• 27:10
  SPEAKER_01: And there's beauty in the fog if you just take a moment and stop and look at the beauty that you can see in the fog.
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_01: But, yeah, that is very awesome.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, definitely, definitely.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: Well, Deb.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, go ahead.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, we are getting close to the end.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_01: I was just going to ask you, how would you like to kind of sum up and give some good tips to our listeners today about what all we have talked about?
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, actually, that's perfect.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_01: That's what I was about to say is I think one of the ways we can start this is just to find a spot.
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_01: Go outside, whether it's in your yard or your office building, find a spot, plan to visit it, once a day, once a week, even for just a few minutes.
• 28:01
  SPEAKER_01: Who's there?
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_01: What's happening?
• 28:03
  SPEAKER_01: What are the changes?
• 28:04
  SPEAKER_01: And what are you curious about that you can go back and learn more about?
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_01: So the spot can be a place that you go to relax, but it also might be that one time you see an interesting insect that you want to go look up or you're sitting there and the clouds are interesting and you want to go look up those cloud shapes.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: But if we challenge ourselves to say, ìWhat is one thing I want to learn?î about this place that I see all the time.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_01: You know, this tree by the table that I sit by for lunch every day at my office.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_01: You know, but now there's a bird I haven't seen before.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_01: Who is that?
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_01: Where are they from?
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_01: Are they migrating?
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_01: What is going on?
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_01: Like, just letting our minds be open and curious I think can expand our worlds and our communities so much.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yes.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, that was a beautiful way to sum it up and give...
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_01: Give the listeners just one small thing that they can do.
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_01: Just go out, like you said, where they're eating their lunch each day.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_01: Just look at one thing you'd like to learn more about and focus on that.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: And I feel they will be amazed at how much they can learn from just that one thing and feel so much more connected to that.
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_01: the wild world that is around them and the values that it holds to help them deal with even other aspects of life is how I always feel.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I agree 100%.
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, definitely.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_01: Well, Deb, this was an awesome, awesome interview again.
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_01: I loved all the information you shared.
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_01: And I just want to thank you so much for being my monthly guest here on the Robust Lifestyle Show.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, it is my honor.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_01: I really love chatting with you.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_01: You are so welcome and it goes right back to you because I love chatting with you.
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_01: It is just awesome.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_01: And I want to thank all of our listeners too for tuning in today and be sure and tune in on the first Thursday of each month when Deb shares more information about the wild world around us.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_01: And please share this show with all your family and friends and check out And until we connect again on robust lifestyles, stay strong and healthy.
• 30:46
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening.
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: This show was brought to you by Divas That Care.
• 30:50
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