Latest / Modern Sacred: Women's Work / Forest Bathing for Embodiment and Conscious Living with Taylor Smith
Transcript
- Abby: Hello and welcome back everyone to the Modern Sacred Women's Work Podcast. We're very excited today to Chelsea Henderson: Hello. Abby: be all together and have a very special guest with us, Taylor Smith. Welcome, Taylor. Chelsea Henderson: Hello, Taylor. Taylor Smith: Hello. Abby: So to introduce Taylor, we know Taylor through another guest that we had on our show, Katie Smith, which is Taylor's mom. And Taylor was Katie was at a studio where we met, like a women's empowerment studio, and and then we became connected with Taylor and she has an incredible story, an incredible work that we're excited to share. So Taylor has worked with animals and their humans since 2013 through service dog training, forest therapy, and nature-based healing practices. Her work focuses on deepening the human-animal bond through nervous system awareness, compassionate connection, and forest bathing, which we love, to support Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: both people and animals through stress, grief, and transition. So welcome Taylor. We're excited to have you. Chelsea Henderson: Hey. Thanks Taylor Smith: Thank you. Chelsea Henderson: for being here. So should we start out with maybe one of our I think we should start out with one of our questions. We have a couple of questions that we like to ask guests just to kind of get into it. And I think you are perfect for this. I'm so curious about we like to kind of get a gauge for where people are at in terms of like, are you connected with your human design, your astrology, your Enneagram? Do any of those things play a role in your life, in kind of how you engage with life, with yourself, with other people, how you define things? or if they don't, we wanna hear about that too. So that's kind of one of our our consistent questions just to kind of keep us all this through line. And I'd love to hear how you relate to those things. Taylor Smith: For sure. I'm definitely what you called a mystic. And Chelsea Henderson: Ha ha ha. Taylor Smith: I really work with tarot cards a lot in my meditations. So a lot of my messages come through that. Astrology I connect very deeply with as well. So I'm very much into listening to astrology podcasts like We Wilding with Sabrina. She's amazing. She's all about embodiment. Abby: that one's so good. Taylor Smith: astrology. Pam Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: Greengree is great for intellectual purposes. She's more of a teacher so I can kind of get lost in her work but she's very knowledgeable as well. There's also Michael Letticks who's on Instagram. He's the guy in the red robe and he posts every morning at 4 a.m. about what's going on for the day so he's kind of a fun short snippet to watch. I also love Gene Keys, if you all are familiar Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: with that. Gene Keys is more Abby: absolutely. Taylor Smith: in depth. I'm very much into really steady, esoteric knowledge and ancient wisdom and all that, so I tend to dive deeper more into... more deeper layered knowledge. that makes sense, rather than more surface level astrology. And I'm more fascinated about how our DNA and how our cellular structure changes over time as we evolve and as our consciousness evolves. So, because we have the ability to unlock a lot of our DNA. And you know, we've been told ever since we were born that 97 % of our genetic material is junk, which is fucking bullshit. Not you. Abby: That is fucking bullshit. Yes. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah, totally. It is fucking bullshit. Taylor Smith: That's the narrative that we're fed. that's how they control the masses. So it's all about population control. So we need to continue to learn more about the ancient knowledge and the wisdom that has been buried deeply in Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: ourselves and in the culture that we grew up in. and beyond that and also connecting with our galactic families as well. So yeah, I, yes, I connect with a Abby: that is so I remember Katie talking about a lot of this as well, gene keys in particular and introducing me to that. I hadn't heard of that before. And that yeah, our DNA is is within our conscious control in a lot of ways and like those genes and do you know like I'm sure you do know what your sign is, your astrology sign and your human design? What where would you fall on that? Taylor Smith: Yes, I'm an Aries, Sun, a Libra, Moon and a Gemini rising. And my Abby: Beautiful. Taylor Smith: human design is I'm a generator. So I like to make shit happen. Along with Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: DAVs. So yeah. Abby: Wow, Chelsea Henderson: Love it. Mmm, Abby: that's a lot of fire. Chelsea Henderson: totally. A lot of energy. I love that. That's good. We need that. I'm I'm Taylor Smith: Yes. Yes. We do. Chelsea Henderson: a I'm a I'm a slower mover and I'm a thinker. So my Taylor Smith: What are you? Chelsea Henderson: favorite place to be, I'm a projector and an Aquarius, Aquarius son. So I you can usually find me standing outside in the trees, kind of just like watching the Taylor Smith: I love it. Chelsea Henderson: and just thinking about. How it's all happening, how it's all coming together and what will happen. Taylor Smith: love that. Chelsea Henderson: And I have a lot of ideas. Yes. So yes, yes. And I love Abby: Mm-hmm, yes. Taylor Smith: Yes, it's amazing. Yes, yes, it's very good. Chelsea Henderson: I love how we all we all come together. That's the part that Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: really gets my excitement generating. It's just like all of us have these parts that we are. We are all these parts that come together and make this really cool hole. And that that makes me feel so inspired. I love that. I I love how Taylor Smith: We did. Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: you talk about too just the narrative of of the, you know, our genetics being junk, which I think is hilarious. It's like, why would they exist? 97% of us, like, why would that even exist? And I think it's such the the ego terminology. for just we don't know, you know, it's like instead of just Abby: Yes. Chelsea Henderson: saying we don't know what this is, which well, that's junk. We don't we don't use that. We don't need it. And it's like, well, interesting. That that's it's such a it feels Taylor Smith: Ha Chelsea Henderson: very modern mentality, you know, very almost capitalist of just like, that that's junk. Just push that to the side, keep going. And and I just Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: love the exploration of well, what could it mean? You know, like we don't we don't have to necessarily know. for it to have meaning in our lives and for it to be a part of our day to day journey and adventure. So I love your perspective. Just the curiosity. Abby: Yeah. Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: Super cool. Abby: And I'm not super versed in astrology. I'm learning I've learned that it's a wide field and there is a lot to learn. Taylor Smith: It is. Abby: It's much deeper than you think on the surface when you first learn about it. It just keeps going. But I'm really curious as someone who has so much experience with it and with gene keys and you I think you said astral family family and things like that. I don't know, w with all that information, do you feel like you're able to see the charts and kind of know what you're here for or what your offering is or how does it inform your life? Taylor Smith: Every day is a mystery. Abby: Yes. Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Taylor Smith: For the most part, I'm just here to lead by example. And that's how I feel. The more I continue to evolve my consciousness and start to see things for what they're not really. So say we live in the matrix, right? And everything's an illusion. But if you start to educate yourself to look outside of the matrix and really see things for what they are, what could be the possibilities, using quantum mechanics at your own expense, really experimenting with what you can create, because you have the ability to create the reality you want to create. But you also have to have this strong practice within yourself. to have gratitude for what you have at the moment, even though it may not be everything you want it to be, what Abby: Mm-hmm. Taylor Smith: you want out of life and what you're here for. And some people are here to have families. Some people are here to do humanitarian work and make a big impact in the world. Some people are here to just connect with the animals. And that's why I really resonate with. Some people are here to be healers. Some people are here to just... work a corporate job and they learn lessons through that. So everybody's Abby: Mm-hmm. Taylor Smith: journey is different. But I think it's really learning how to be okay with where you're at and just enjoy the human experience because you really are a spiritual being having a human experience. And so at the end of your life, you go wherever you go in whatever your belief system is. You go back to source or creator and then you go on to the next step of evolution, wherever that may be, or you go elsewhere, like whatever your belief system is. But here, I really do believe that I'm here to take in all the knowledge I've learned in all the lifetimes I've lived through my spiritual practice, through my connection with everyone here in this life and my communication with animals and just grow as much as I can. Cause really I don't really have any like huge career goals or what a family or I don't have anything like that. I just want to live in a cabin in the woods, communicate with my animals Abby: Yes. Taylor Smith: and be in nature. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: And if I can make money doing that, great. That's what I'm trying to figure out. Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: I've got money in this life so can't get out of that one but you Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: know it's just really how can I just be with my presence really in this world. Chelsea Henderson: Gosh, I that brought tears to my eyes, Taylor. I I I love the perspective of really creating space for everyone and everything that everyone is doing. You know, there's a you know, you talk about someone working a corporate job, someone who wants a family, like a lot of things that I feel like it's so easy to to disregard. You know, just working for the man or, you know, just wanting to be a mom and And I love how you just encapsulate all of it into purpose. Like there it's all got a purpose. And it's all Taylor Smith: We'll see Chelsea Henderson: for the expansion and progression of what we're doing here. And I just I love that so much. It made me emotional. It's Abby: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: just really sweet. And and I think I think that acceptance is something that I found for myself growing in my own. expansion in my own work recently of of just of not thumbing my nose at anything. You know, just 'cause it's not for me or because I don't necessarily see the purpose for it does not mean it doesn't have a purpose. And I Taylor Smith: You're welcome. Chelsea Henderson: I feel really inspired by that. I appreciate that opinion or that perspective a lot. Thank you. That's really cool. Taylor Smith: For sure. Abby: It's very healing perspective. I agree, like Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: just that idea that everyone's on their own journey. Everyone's Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: on their own journey, learning their own lessons and you really there's this quote I've been living by lately, which is tend the garden that you can touch. Or tend the part of the garden that you can touch. Rather Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: than looking at your neighbor and being like, why are they growing that? Gross or like I hate tomatoes. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: Why would they grow tomatoes? It's like, well, that's not even your garden. That's like that's not your business what they're growing. Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Abby: What do you want to grow? What kinds of foods do you like? What do you want? How do you want to set your garden up? And what values Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: do you want to have behind it? And it's just like yeah, just so freeing to allow people to be on their own journey and it Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: for sure. Abby: releases a lot of judgment. even in my own body, I feel it released when you shared that Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Abby: perspective of like, right, someone climbing the corporate ladder is learning the lessons that their soul is needing to learn on that path. And the big career aspirations, I've had moments in my life where that's been my journey. And I'm like Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Abby: you, I'm like, I just wanna like how c how can I get paid to just vibe? Chelsea Henderson: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Abby: You know, that's a big that's it's just Yeah, t chasing or or calling in our own versions of success, which kind of means knowing what you want first. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: And who you are, right? I Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: I think that is something that I've really landed in recently is there was so many years that I was doing what I needed to do, right? I don't look at it in judgment, but and there was a lot of codependence, a lot of performing, a lot of external, right? A lot of like it's my job to care for the people in my life and At that point in my life I didn't understand what that meant. And so I thought it meant just give them, give them, give them everything. And, you know, and I didn't really know I knew who I was if I would close my eyes and be quiet for a minute, but that didn't happen very often. And so it was that moment of, this is who I am. And and it still means I can care for the people that I love. And it still means that I can participate in this world and in this life. I just do it differently. And And I'm even reflecting in this moment like the energy. I love that like we're in different physical spaces and we're in different you know, Taylor Smith: Thank you. Chelsea Henderson: Abby's in a different state from us. You and I, Taylor, are probably 40 minutes away from each other at this point drive-wise. Taylor Smith: What? Chelsea Henderson: And we're yet we're in this space together, and I feel this calm energy. And Abby, I think you nailed it with just the lack of judgment, right? It's that like you brought that into this space, Taylor, when you introduced that idea of Just everyone being on their journey and you just let go of the judgment. And I realize sometimes how the judgment creeps in and my body gets tight and I get uncomfortable, you know, because it's just not the energy that I'm meant to hold, and the energy I think most of us are not meant to hold. And how this calm sets even in a virtual space. Abby: Okay. Chelsea Henderson: It's just this ease. I really appreciate that. And I think that comes from Just allowing for your own journey, allowing Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: for what you're doing, who you are. That's very cool. And I'm curious, do you feel like your work with animals developed that for you? Or that's what drew you to your work with animals? Because I feel like that's very much in that space with animals. The the animals don't judge. That's not what they're here to do. They're just being. What's your relationship Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: there? Taylor Smith: I think I always had this innate ability to. have this energy of understanding others and being apathetic. And I think as I got older, I saw that animals were the model for that. And Abby: Mm-hmm. Taylor Smith: so when I got into service dog training, and the reason I got into it is because me as a deaf individual growing up, I always wanted a hearing dog. But, you know, being raised by a single mom. She's not really a dog person. So I never really had the option to have a dog. So when I turned 25, I came across my first dog who's still alive to this day. She's 14 now and she's retired. She's deaf herself. So she can't do the work anymore. So it's kind of ironic in that way, but she did fabulous service dog work for me in home. you know, letting me know what sounds were going off that I couldn't hear or pick up on. Anyhow, so when I got into service dog training, I really began to learn animal communication, behavioral training, but then it was over the course of the years, the last 10 years, I've really been able to tap more into the energy communication of animals, especially dogs, and just understanding. how they hold space for other people, but also through my own experience with my own dogs. I also had another dog who passed away a year ago, a German Shepherd who lived to be 12 and a half. And he really taught me a lot about the masculine. And my hearing dog, Abby: Mm. Taylor Smith: who's a female, represents the feminine. So I was able to experience both sides. within myself through my experience with them. And so that helped me also develop this understanding of what is showing up for me through my dogs. Therefore, Abby: Mm-hmm. Taylor Smith: able to express that to the client, what is their dog expressing or showing them through their behavioral problems, through issues, through their anxiety, through their depression. whatever issues that they may be having, people didn't understand how to communicate with their dogs. They just said, my dog's being stubborn. my dog will listen. Or my dog just gets really anxious when I leave the house. Well, take a look at yourself. What's going on with you? It's a reflection. Chelsea Henderson: Mm, mm. Abby: Hmm. my gosh. Taylor Smith: Our dogs are mirrors of ourselves, right? So Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Taylor Smith: I'm able to translate that to the client and really help expand their awareness of, oh, let me take a look at myself. What's going on in my life? I'm really stressed out. This is what I'm dealing with. All the changes that are going on. I didn't even think it was affecting my dog. Yeah, no shit, it is. It affects Abby: wow. Taylor Smith: your dog. Everything that's going on with you affects your dog. So, people are like, Abby: Wow. Taylor Smith: So. Chelsea Henderson: So then you Abby: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: are really a healer of the human. It's just you're just taking this other. I mean like really that's such a beautiful, a beautiful way to reflect, right? Because they're such empaths. You know, I mean, Taylor Smith: There you are. Chelsea Henderson: my first dog who came to me in my early twenties lived with me through you know, the death of my mother, through, you know, moving multiple times, and he was with me. until my son was eight months old. And he he was fourteen and a half. He I got him when he was eight weeks old. He was my first baby. And my God. I mean, I my love for him, I mean, it was the you know, it's just a a different version of the love I have for my son. And it was like this just this I could see in him it's funny that you say that because I remember these moments of being like, I need to get my shit together. Because he is suffering. Like I can tell Abby: Mm. Chelsea Henderson: he is not okay in this moment because I'm not okay in this moment. So we both need to shake it off and go walk in the woods. And you know, it was such a great like kind of anchor for me and also a reflection for me of my own health and or dishealth in moments. And I just you're making me think about it in a whole other way. I never really even thought of it that way. Abby: Me too. I have a cat. Her name's Luna. She is my family. I mean, she's yeah, it's just an incredible bond. and I think Chelsea and I were talking about something similar of just she will get kind of anxious, meowing, meowing. She's allowed to go outside whenever she wants. She has freedom to go in or out, Taylor Smith: huh. Abby: but not at night, because of coyotes. But She will go inside, outside, inside, outside, meowing. And Taylor Smith: you Abby: what she wants is for me to go outside with her. She w she just wants to sit in the dirt with Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: me. And then she's content. And then she looks Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. I love it. Abby: around and she sniffs and she might close her eyes, but she wants company. And when I'm busy or have my little things going on. I can become annoyed that she's being annoying, right? Meowing and wanting. I'm like, what do you want? Do you want out, you know? And she's like, I want your presence. I Taylor Smith: Yup Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Abby: want your presence and I want it outside. And I'm like, turns out that's what I want too. Cause when I do Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Abby: go out with her, I'm like, yeah, this is what I need. And it's just recently, yeah, become apparent that it's a reflection. of where I'm at when she's meowing Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: like that and anxious is I'm going too fast. I'm not taking the time to be with her and to be with myself and that's something I just recently connected. So to hear you say that is just like reaffirming to the connection that these animals have. I mean they're like our spirit guides. I don't know. She feels like my spirit guide. Taylor Smith: They really are. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. And family, like you said, Abby. Really, it's Taylor Smith: They are. Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: just yeah, there's something so intuitive about the way that they move through their lives. And I think Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: that I reflect a lot on this, again, working a lot recently to reflect on this, not in judgment, but I reflect a lot on the culture that we live in and how everyone There seems to be this kind of trick that's been created of like the busier you are, the more successful you are. And I find that to be a real bummer because the people I see who are really hitting that mark don't actually seem very happy to me or successful. And my dogs are like, hey, let's lay in the grass and soak up the sun. And let's, you know, like and they the way that they do it is they do what humans used to do too, where they they go out, they run, they do the thing and they, you know, we gotta protect the okay, there's a thing over there, we gotta bark, we gotta go. And then they come back and they lay down in the sun next to each other and they don't move for two hours. And it's like that's Taylor Smith: No. Abby: He Chelsea Henderson: that's the balance, right? Of the like, go do the thing And then you're good. Like you don't have to keep going. But there's something that I think has been created. And I find this in myself all the time, where I've done the thing, and then I'm like pacing around the house. Like, well, well, okay, I gotta, I gotta go do another thing. I can't just like shut down and let my body rest. And the more I practice that, the more I feel like I'm more aligned with them. And also the more I feel like I'm healthy or, you know, and and more who I'm Taylor Smith: for sure. Chelsea Henderson: supposed to be. 'Cause it it's not we're not supposed to just go go go go go. And Taylor Smith: Mm-mm. Chelsea Henderson: it's not actually I don't think what works for our bodies. and certainly Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: not our souls. And they're actually both Taylor Smith: Yeah, everything. Chelsea Henderson: here now, sleeping. Taylor Smith: I really think condition to just go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go. And Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: another piece of my work that I'm really trying to bring attention to people is how do you regulate your nervous system and their nervous system. So Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Taylor Smith: I just completed my professional certificate in canine nervous system regulation. So I went through this Chelsea Henderson: cool. Taylor Smith: course learning all these somatic exercises that you can do for your dog. So I'm teaching this to clients so any client that has behavioral problems with their dog, I'm going to start at the nervous system because that's where the problems start. That is the root cause of everything, humans and animals, period. So Abby: Yep. Yep. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: getting people to be more aware of that, okay, your dog is having this issue, okay, take a look at yourself. What's going on with you? How is your nervous system? you need to regulate your nervous system. We can help your dog regulate his or her nervous system and then you could be coherent and in balance with each other. And then over time, you start to realize how fast you can recover from a traumatic event, a spooky moment, a sad, depressing moment, like whatever's happening in life. But at least they would learn the tools on how to bring themselves back down. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: and know what's right for their bodies, for their dog, and for themselves. Abby: Wow. Chelsea Henderson: Ugh That's so cool. Abby: That is so cool. I'm really curious about that. Like I worked at an animal shelter for a little while during the pandemic. I walked the shelter dogs and we took a short behavior class that was required on like how to tell based on their body language. Are they feeling Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Abby: comfortable? Are they feeling nervous? Are they excited? Are they you know, and cause sometimes nervous and excited can look the same and You walk into a pen thinking Taylor Smith: pretty awful. Abby: this dog is so excited to see me and really they're like not and they're feeling intimidated. So it's like how to read that. but that mean that is just the tip of the iceberg. That was just one Taylor Smith: It is. Abby: one, how to be safe as a you know but then when it comes to them and their stress, I think they talked about like if you see the dog like shake, you know, and shiver, then they're like Or or just they would, you know, they would tremble in the corner of their cage because there was a new environment and all these other dogs are barking. But I'm kind of curious if you wouldn't mind sharing more about like animal behaviour. Like what are the how do you calm a a nervous dog or what do you what are some of those skills? Taylor Smith: Yes. So for a dog who is nervous, so no different than us humans, have fight, flight, freeze and shut down. So we have four and dogs go through the same process. All animals go through the same process as us, depending on how their nervous system is built and has experience throughout the course of their life. So for a dog who's really scared in a shelter environment, and I really want to start working more with shelters around somatics because I think there needs to be more education on them being more aware of not pushing dogs that are in that freeze mode or shutdown mode and Abby: Yeah. Yeah. Taylor Smith: just start thinking of more innovative, creative solutions on how can you lessen the stress in a shelter environment. We can't eliminate. you know how scary it is, we could at least try to lessen some of those stressors there. And you know, and again, that takes funding. So who another problem to look at, but anyhow, for a dog who's scared, if they're going to be frozen or shut down, really it's all about entering a quiet space with them. So you can try being in their kettle or see if you can get into a quieter room away from all the dogs. And depending on the dog, once it enters the room, you are just there as presence. So you're not forcing the dog to be touched. And it's Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: no different than a human. For someone who has experienced extreme PTSD or domestic violence and is afraid of touch, the first thing you want to do is not touch them, right? Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: because that can trigger something no different for a dog. So it's Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: really just being there and holding the space. And when they choose to come to you, then you do a light touch depending on wearing the body. But again, you're looking at their body as a whole, like how is their stance? Are the muscles looking tight? Are they looking a little loose? How are their ears? How is their mouth? How is their eyes? Like you're looking at all these different little nuances to really put together a whole picture of how that dog is responding to the quiet environment with you just being there. And then you slowly build over time and it can take multiple sessions. It can take one or two sessions depending on the dog's nervous system and their resilience in terms of recovery and getting used to you being there with them. and there's different ways to like, you know, touch a dog and where to touch it. But it's all going to be based on what the dog tells you. So it's really using your best judgment in terms of your knowledge and experience and your intuition. And I like to bring that in because people don't listen to themselves enough. They go, okay, well I took this course and this is how it goes. This is the format. No, this is the Chelsea Henderson: Absolutely. Taylor Smith: framework. Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Taylor Smith: This is what you know. Chelsea Henderson: Yes. Yes. It's like that with humans Taylor Smith: Now you just have Chelsea Henderson: too though. I I find this a lot with children. You know, that I I think that we have really lost s well, lost might not be the right word, but I see a lot of neglecting intuition. in the way that people interact with other humans and with children especially. You know, there's a lot of projection, a lot of doing what we think we should do or what would work for us. And not reading any of the signs. It's it's it's it interesting to me being someone who really tries to lead with intuition as much as I can and who innately has led with intuition much of my life and seeing the disconnect there. Like A lot of the stuff going on with kids, right? There seems to almost be like a cultural fear of kids because we haven't made any space for children in this in this culture a lot. Like, you Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: know, there's this like a merging brewery culture where you can like bring your kids and let them run amok and like everyone kind of hates it 'cause no one is actually taking care Taylor Smith: Hahaha! Chelsea Henderson: of their children and everyone's kind of being a jerk Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: and like the whole thing's a little fucking insane. But it's n there's not a lot of room for it, right? There's always like the person on the airplane that's like, god, a kid. And it's like, yeah, c turns out we were all fucking kids, dude. Like kids exist because otherwise Taylor Smith: No shit. Chelsea Henderson: we don't exist. So like if you can't make space for that, then maybe you're the problem. I don't know. But the it's like this, we just we we fear it because we have lost, we've disconnected ourselves from that intuitive, like Look at them, listen to them, right? I mean, I try to practice this a lot now with the other adults in my life because I think I shut myself down to that where I was just like, I can't with other people, I'm overstimulated, I just can't do it. I'm so frustrated with other humans. And now I'm like, okay, let's take a moment. And like, you can tell the the the the cr the crinkling around someone's eyes, the strain around the mouth, the set of the shoulders is like this is maybe not the good moment to try to. approach them with a new topic. This is not the moment or it is like the open you can read it. Like it's it's it's really profound and actually quite easy if you open yourself up to it. And I think what you said is really important of like not discounting your intuition. You know, if if you do see someone and your gut says they're not in the mood to talk about something hard, then listen. That's okay, you know, it it it's probably you're probably right, 'cause we can feel on that energetic level. And I think animals are such a great representation of that. Cause they don't have we're not speaking in a in a spoken Abby: Alright. Chelsea Henderson: language. So we we do have to rely on the unspoken language and it exists and it is very much there if you're open to it. I like that. Huh. Yeah. Abby: Yeah. It makes me think about those nonverbal cues. which it you know, like you're saying with the you know, the eye crinkling and things like that. I I don't know why maybe some people have what we would call empathy or or the ability to see how other people are feeling. At least for me, I I feel like some of it is from trauma of like growing up walking on eggshells, right? Taylor Smith: Thank you. Abby: Like How's mom's mood today? Okay, like, is she, is she, you know, stressed? Is she in a good place? The tone of voice, the way of her face, the way she's walking, what she's eating, like everything I would take in because my mom was kind of scary. She had a lot going on and she had she has very big energy. And as a small child, it was very intimidating. So it was very like, you know, I learned all those cues and I've noticed in the contrast with my partner who didn't have that kind of experience in the same way. We will be watching a movie or a TV show and I will be like, Ooh, she's pissed and he's like, What? No, she looks she seems fine. Chelsea Henderson: Ha ha. Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: Next scene, the couple's in the car and she's like, I'm pissed. Why how could you have said that at dinner? And I'm like, see? I knew and he's always like, How did you know that? I'm like, I can I see how I mean look at her. It was obvious. Like her face, her eyes, her Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: shoulders, like He doesn't see those things and I Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: see them. And in some ways I read into them when I shouldn't. A tone of voice, they're frustrated with me, I'm in trouble, I shouldn't have said that, or they're you know, all of that. When maybe they're not, but I have that heightened awareness and yeah, I wonder Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Abby: if there's a connection for you with your upbringing or being a deaf individual, like, you know, it's just seeing the nonverbal communication or or how that may be Came for you. You said it since you were a kid, you've been very empathetic. Taylor Smith: Yeah, I definitely think it was a combination of things. Trauma definitely played a big part. And also being deaf, you know, growing up in a hearing world and the world is not made for people with disabilities. So that's a whole nother piece that I'm still trying to make peace with and not have judgment for because I judge the world. I will say I'm very guilty of that. I carry this. I would say feminine rage around that for sure and I've heard Abby: Yeah, yeah. Chelsea Henderson: Woop woop Yeah, girl. Taylor Smith: it. I've heard it. Abby: Yes. Taylor Smith: There has to come a point in my life and there will be a time in my life where I've made peace and I have judgment around that but it's not right now. So I'll continue being grateful about it. Yeah. We all have a rage Abby: There. Yes. Yes. Yes. Chelsea Henderson: You're in the right place, my friend. You're in the right place. Yeah, catch me on the right day. Yeah. Taylor Smith: like. We need to like, you know, do something about it. And that's what creates change. And you know, as long as you really stay untrue to your own truth and really advocate for what you believe in. And for me, it's for people with disabilities. That's always been a big thing for me. Rudy for the underdog. Cause the world just doesn't see things in the way we see things and kindness goes a long ways. But also, you know, growing up with the... a lot of trauma with my parents and alcoholism and then abusive relationships in the past and, you know, just kind of being lost. I was able to pick up along the way loss of nonverbal cues, like you say. But I think also on top of that, in being deaf, it also allowed me this whole other ability to really see things that people can't see. So more energetic Abby: Yeah, I bet. Taylor Smith: sense. And I do have the ability to communicate with animals on the other side. So when I go and meditate, I can tap into those animals, spirit guides on the other side. I also connect with my grandmother on the other side. She's also a guide of mine. And I communicate Abby: Wow. Taylor Smith: with her all the time. I see shadow figures every so often, like there's... things I'm able to see beyond this realm. So I think that also helps to bring in the communication piece of seeing things that people are not seeing. We all have the ability to, but it's just a matter of awareness and just Abby: Wow. Taylor Smith: believing. People say, I get to see it to believe it. Well, how about the other way around? How about you believe it and you see it? That's what imagination is, right? Abby: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Perfect, perfect. Yes. Yes. Abby: Yeah. Wow. That's amazing. That is yeah, the nonverbal and the spiritual. I see auras sometimes and I used to think that it was just like my eyes. You know, I would Taylor Smith: Who's not? Abby: s I would see like the outline of someone or when they would move, I would see like sort of a stagger and I'm like, am I like okay? You know, what's going on with my eyes? And and then I heard someone else talk about seeing auras and they described it exactly the same. as what I was seeing and was like, Taylor Smith: That was amazing. Abby: I'm seeing something about this person and starting to learn more about that. But just like we can get so locked into the senses that we have. Or I think is it Alan Watts who says the five colours make a man blind because you see Taylor Smith: Yeah, thank you. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: just that's red, that's green, that's brown. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: You know, like that's not brown. That's like this reddish brown with flecks of green. It's not there's not n very few things are just brown and green. And you know, Taylor Smith: Hahaha Abby: there's all this spectrum of color. It's this moving living thing and then the light changes and it changes and it's those having written down the five colors is can sometimes block out everything else in between. Taylor Smith: Yep. And it's the 3D world that we live in, the 3D Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: reality. Everything's dense in this reality. So only five senses come into play. But in reality, scientific studies have shown, I can't remember the exact number. I think it's between 25 and 33. We have 25 to 33 senses. Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Yeah. Abby: Whoa. Really? Taylor Smith: And I think that goes in line. again with our genetic material, how much are we able to unlock if we just look beyond this reality? Chelsea Henderson: Well, we have w the reality that has been created that we all participate in in this kind of material life, I think, is a reality created it feels very rigid oftentimes to me, Taylor Smith: it is. Chelsea Henderson: right? There's a rigidity of like, you know, th it's it's this or it's this, right? You're a Republican or you're a Democrat, you are black or you're white, you are woman or man, and and it's just Amazing to me, like I've been back on the Wayne Dyer, I've been reading another one of Wayne Dyer's books, and he is such an inspiration to me. And the one I'm reading now is his book on intentions. And, you know, he just talks so much about how, you know, if we the way we can self-limit using the limitations of our sus the societal input, right? If I just am Taylor Smith: Thank Chelsea Henderson: constantly in Letting the inner voice say, that's my limit, then that will be my limit because it is what I believe. And if I could can kind of work with that inner voice to remind myself that everything we're experiencing exists in a universe that is ever expanding, then I'll Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: start to get in line with that. Right. my expansion will continue to be at the forefront of my imagination, which will then drive my quote unquote reality, right? The reality of this world. And I I see so much of the rigidity creating stuckness for people. And and I think again, the judgment, right? You put my judgment of that to the side, then you start to see what how tricky that is. You know, people are just Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: trying to live in the world and and be and and there's so much of coming into this human existence that we're kind of fed. You know, you come in and you're raised by human beings who have been affected by the world and other human beings and the story continues. And so it's such an interesting journey to just shift the narrative a little bit, right? To expand. Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: Because, you know, this is the thing I I love about how subjective this re this reality, this experience is, you know, and and that's something that I love about animals is that there's just none of the None of the storytelling that we get into that's that creates a lot of that stuckness, right? Of that one time that that happened to me, and then that's my reality, right? And I just I can't let Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: go of it. Dog, my dogs don't do that. My dogs are like, cool, it's another day, it's another moment, we're in it, we're doing this. And I think what you're talking about with the expansion of the senses, I I feel like they're just so in that. They're, you know, they're Taylor Smith: there. Chelsea Henderson: it, and and the more that I unburden myself of the rigidity of this society and this culture and this kind of 3D material world, the more I realize, yeah, my senses are are much broader than that, right? Even Taylor Smith: They are. Chelsea Henderson: even just the sense of taste, right? It the it's not just one sense. It's it's there's so much going on. You can have the top of your mouth, under your tongue, the side of your tongue, the I mean, all these different flavors and and that it's smell hearing, sight, it's all the same. I have I have bad vision. I have juvenile cataracts and without my glasses I'm legally blind. And so I've experienced the world through very differing sight abilities. And so wayfinding has always been stressful for me. And as a designer I worked a lot with accessibility and ADA because I feel like the this The world, right, as we know it, this material world, again, that rigidity is exclusive to so many, yet so many of us are here and we exist. And and I think that I have noticed how incredibly diverse my one sense of sight is. Because there have been different Taylor Smith: I breathed. Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: moments where I see differently and I experience taking in the world differently. And I'll I'll compare it to a lot of my husband and I talk about this all the time because he's got, you know, he wears glasses but has very keen sight with his glasses. And even with my glasses, I'm like a little and we'll have this discussion. And he's like, you don't see it that way. And I'm like, I don't, I don't see it that way. But we're both seeing the Abby: Wow. Literally. Chelsea Henderson: same thing, literally. And it's just Taylor Smith: Stupid perspectives. Chelsea Henderson: absolutely and it and it's amazing to To be able to share that versus being like beyond the pale from that, right? Like if you're excluded from that versus included and how it broadens so much there. Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: and I f again, I find the animals are such a great representation of that because they're just, they're just doing it, however it is, whatever it is. It's just okay, we're in the moment, we're doing it. Like, let's go. Taylor Smith: Yep. Chelsea Henderson: I like that. Taylor Smith: Yeah, Chelsea Henderson: I think it's good reflection Taylor Smith: I know. Chelsea Henderson: for us because I think it's really hard to not get stuck in the rigidity, right? I mean, you talk about money, and I think that's such a great example, right? Like we need resources Taylor Smith: Thank you. Chelsea Henderson: to live, and we live Taylor Smith: Okay. Chelsea Henderson: in this world. That's that's a certain reality of what we're experiencing. And I don't Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: think anyone here is trying to say that that doesn't exist or pretend that that doesn't exist or try to ignore that fact, right? And that's pretty universal to What we're all doing here Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: right now. And it can feel so limiting. It's such an interesting resource that there's Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: so, so much of it. And so many of us could have it. And yet it's this almost like self-imposed limitation, or it's imposed by another. Such an interesting, rigid boundary that exists, yet it's something we made up. It's something that Taylor Smith: Yep. Chelsea Henderson: We can make more of Taylor Smith: It is. Chelsea Henderson: it's it's like it's something that there is enough of. And I I think about that a lot in terms of that kind of like the s the scarcity of it and and how the scarcity Taylor Smith: Thank Chelsea Henderson: makes people do a lot of things for it. And yeah, I could go on and on. But I find that to be a really interesting example of the kind of rigidity of the made up world that we're in. Taylor Smith: I agree and you know that brings another thought that I always try to bring them to people that I talk to is when they are in that scarcity mindset or limiting mindset. I try to open up the possibilities of asking for guidance for signs from the other side. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: Mm-hmm. Taylor Smith: You know reaching out to your ancestors reaching out to your spirit guides. whoever, whatever your belief system may be, like, just asking for your help. Because we Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: always have help. We just have to ask for it, whether it be from another person or from the other side. Doesn't Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: matter. But a lot of people don't tap into that possibility of being like, what do I have got to lose? Show me where I'm supposed to go. Or show me the perfect place to live. Or show me the perfect job or please bring in a partner that I really want someone who is kind and all these things that they want. Like ask for it, but Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: do it in a way where there's no attachment. That's the Chelsea Henderson: yeah. Taylor Smith: other piece to it. And a lot Abby: that's the tricky part. Taylor Smith: of people, a lot of people are attached to the outcome. because they don't trust that the universe can provide that and Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: therefore that leads to not trusting yourself. So again, exactly. Abby: Yeah. And trying to make it happen on your own. Chelsea Henderson: Yes, yes. Taylor Smith: So it's like ask for what you want, let it go, continue about your day like you normally do, think about it once or twice, but don't be like, I really hope it happens, okay. I really hope maybe today's the day, oh, maybe, you know. It's like, let the attachment go and detachment, think, is the biggest lesson for us all, is how can we live in detachment with unconditional love, acceptance, no judgment, neutral observer of your own reality? How Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: can we do that? That's overwhelming Abby: Mm-hmm. Taylor Smith: for a lot of people. But it's a problem. Abby: Absolutely. Chelsea Henderson: Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: And I mean, Taylor Smith: So peace. Chelsea Henderson: it's practice. I think I you know, that that I think is the the word that I that that helps me is like, this is just practice. 'Cause some days it's easier than others, you know. Taylor Smith: It is. It is. Chelsea Henderson: It's hard Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: not to get married to an outcome. Like what if it turns out your perfect partner is you and you really want another person? Ca you know, or what if it turns out that The right job for you is is not the glamorous one that you thought it was gonna be, but it is the right fit for you. And Taylor Smith: Exactly. Chelsea Henderson: it's hard because I think the material conditioning makes us very attached to the look of something, right? The the that and it has to fit that. I like Wayne Dyer talks about that, where he talks about, you know, loving yourself for who you are, because you're we're all divine, perfect. Creatures of the universe, right? Like we were made on purpose. None of this is happening by Taylor Smith: Exactly. Chelsea Henderson: accident. And you know, it it he'll he'll talk about like the apple blossom on the apple tree grows an apple Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: every time. It just does it. It happens. Like it just keeps happening. And so the fact that we all exist is it's on purpose. It's supposed to happen. And the way we are is the way we're supposed to be. And that can be really hard to swallow in a world where we all look around and go, But I'm supposed to look like that to be successful. I'm supposed to act like that to be successful. I mean, you talk about the feminine rage, right? Like that's something that has been such a journey for me. It's like to be a good person, to be the best version of myself, I I have to wash out all that rage because people don't like it. It's unattractive. It's not ladylike. It's not it's not nice. And it's like, well But it exists, right? Like how I I want to find a place for it. And I don't want to harm others with it. That's not what I'm looking to do. But it if I try to contain it, then it comes out and it does harm others. Abby: huh. Chelsea Henderson: So like let's be Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: realistic about the fact that it exists and it's part of us. And yeah, it's a it's a a practice, I think. That's the Taylor Smith: It is. Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: word. okay, so then can we switch gears a little bit? Because I want to talk about the Taylor Smith: Thank Chelsea Henderson: forest bathing. When we did our Abby: Yeah, me too. Chelsea Henderson: call, you Taylor Smith: for sure. Chelsea Henderson: talked about doing forest bathing. And of course, like my mind just goes to the pristine forests of the Pacific Northwest or up in the mountains here in Colorado. And and you blew my mind, Taylor. I've been thinking about this for two weeks since we talked. Like the just Taylor Smith: You Chelsea Henderson: just being in a room with a plant. You know, or looking Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: out your window and seeing a tree. So can you just expand on on your definition of forest bathing and how you integrate that into your life and how you offer it to others? Because I was so inspired by how you offered it. Abby: Yeah, me too. Taylor Smith: Yes, Forest bathing is a way to connect with the natural world in whatever environment that we're in. So, and I know it's very easy for people to, you know, just think of, I have to be in the woods in order to connect with the natural world to forest bathe. But that's just a term. It's just a label. So. Maybe we just changed the label. It's connecting with the natural world in whatever way that you, that works for you in that moment. So if you live in the city, like say downtown Denver, and you know, there's not really a whole lot of natural environment around you, but there's trees out there. So you can go sit outside on a bench and sit next to a tree. You can go sit on a grass at a park nearby. You can, be surrounded by plants in your own house or apartment, you can have rocks and crystals nearby, whatever is natural to you, you can sit with. And it's really about coming home to yourself and your own senses. So in the framework of Forest Baby, where I got my certificate in, they talk about the five senses. Of course, this is the reality we live in, but they also bring in the heart energy. So how does it feel to connect with your heart? How does the energy feel outside of your body? And they'll walk you through like, what do you feel on the left side of your body? You may not feel anything or you may notice that there's a wall, like you can sense there's something there. So they bring in that type of sensory experience and along with the five senses. And again, this is something we'll talk about. Somatics is when you feel anxious and nervous, start grounding yourself, okay? What do you see? Okay? What do you feel? What are you touching? Okay? I'm touching this. It's bringing me back to my body. One of my smelly, one of my tasty, one of my hearing. So we bring that sensory experiences into force-baiting. But we'll do it in a more natural way to connect with the natural world. Because... That's where we come from. We're from nature. And people over hundreds of years have forgotten that. Chelsea Henderson: Hmm. Yeah. Abby: Yeah. Wow. Taylor Smith: So, Abby: It really Taylor Smith: so. Abby: opens up your whole perspective of Chelsea Henderson: huh. Taylor Smith: Bye-bye. Abby: everything. Like I living in this tiny house now and we had some ants. I put Luna's kibble down last night Taylor Smith: Ha ha ha ha! Abby: and it got swarmed and I was like, there's ants in here. So we put down the diatomaceous earth and whatever and it stopped seen any but I was taking a shower last night in this tiny little shower that's in this tiny house. It's dark, there's no lights in there. There's old wood. Like it's a maybe a 15-year-old tiny house. It's all made of wood, recycled wood from an old school house. And Taylor Smith: Wow. Abby: there Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: was an ant that crawled out of a crack and back into another one and I was like, no, like the ants. But then I thought like yeah how many like we're supposed to live with bugs. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: Bugs are like our ancestors lived with bugs outside or in the hut or whatever where there's little creatures that share Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Abby: a portion of your space. Or maybe it's a spider in the corner, like and we just we hate cobwebs and and we just want everything so clean and sterile. Which I get. I was like, another ant but it was kinda beautiful to just share this little space and moment. I'm like, I'm in a Very small house and there's some ants that kind of share this space with me and how can that Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: be like good? I don't know, it it was a little bit comforting in a weird way of like, yeah, I'm living in such a way that there is nature coming in through the walls at Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: the right dosage. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. But we are that, right? I mean I my my little guy and I were just talking about this a couple of days ago, that the human body is made up of just billions of little tiny organisms. So like when we in the human experience, like I get it, I don't want bugs crawling o over me while I'm sleeping. There's a soot and a a certain evolutionary imperative to keep ourselves a little distant from that, right? And like some of that can Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: harm us. I and I totally understand the natural inclination to keep a little separation. The human bodies are much more sensitive than a lot of other living creatures on the planet. And we have to care for ourselves differently. And I totally understand and respect that. And also I think we've taken it a bit too far. Like I remember growing up and seeing commercials for like the p the the airspray that would kill the germs in the air that made it smell. And it was like, okay, first of all, we're never gonna kill all the germs, because by killing all the germs we kill ourselves, right? the everybody who's been spraying roundup on their lawn because they just can't they can't bear to have a fucking dandelion or whatever, you know, turns out that it's slowly causing all of us cancer and killing off the natural ecological systems Taylor Smith: You Chelsea Henderson: that keep us all living. So we have to be aware of of how much we try to keep that at bay, right? But then like, Abby, you could speak to this. If you're having surgery, you want a sterile environment, right? There's certain places where Abby: Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: like it's really appropriate. But I think about that so much when I reflect on my own body. This is this is not, again, it like you said, Taylor, it's it's dense in this reality. So like this feels like a body, right? This is I'm wearing Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: this sweater, which by the way, your mom gave me. This is a Katie Smith gift. I'll just point out. Yep, yep, yep. Taylor Smith: No way! Chelsea Henderson: I put it on today for you. But I am Taylor Smith: That was awesome. Chelsea Henderson: I I think I'm just I'm this body. It's one thing. It's singular. And it is not one thing. It's a whole ecosystem in and of itself. And if I can't respect the fact that Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: there's just hundreds of millions, if not billions, I mean I don't even know the number of little tiny little guys. Those are all bugs, technically, right? If we're thinking of it in terms of little tiny creatures, like so I think there's like a I think Abby to your point, there is a beauty there of just getting back into the flow of the fact that None of the things that we see as solid, you know, hard boundaries. Taylor Smith: Woohoo. Chelsea Henderson: And it's Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: all living on multiple levels. So if those little ants are coming in, you don't want them to eat all of Luna's kibble. And they exist and they're all over the place, right? Like we talk about this a lot living in Colorado with spiders. Like my son is afraid of them. And it's like, I think we need to get on the same page about the fact that there are so many spiders within a couple feet of you all the time, always. And they're part of the ecosystem that Abby: When we need them. Chelsea Henderson: keeps us going. If we if we get rid of all the spiders, if we see a black widow, we do kill it. Because if they get too close to us and they bite our dogs or they bite you, we're in the hospital, that's a big deal. Okay, fine. The little green guys that live in our plants, like let be, man. They're just doing their thing. And if we're really freaked Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: out by them, then we capture them and we take them outside. And it that's our boundary, right? But There's something beautiful about getting back in the flow of the fact that this is all l alive, all around us and and Taylor Smith: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: that's okay. Yeah. Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: Yeah, and Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: force-breathing in a way brings people back to that level of seeing Chelsea Henderson: Mm, yeah. Taylor Smith: that every sentient being that exists outside is living their life. They have their own journey. They have their own purpose. That's what makes this planet so beautiful and functional and evolving and growing and all that. It's like there was this one story I was told in my forest baby course. There was this guy who was asked to go outside and and keep in mind this course that I took was super accessible, very inclusive. People all over the world were on this cohort that I was involved in and we were from all over the world. We did this virtually so wherever we were our instructor would have to ask us, we're going to take 20 minutes, set a timer for 20 minutes. I want you to go outside, go wherever there is nature. And I want you to, you know, they would give us different props is what we call them props. So like say, you know, go, go sit next to a tree and you know, start dancing with the tree and see what comes up for you. Like whatever that looks like to you. Some people dance, some people didn't dance. It's not like you have to dance. You can do whatever you're called to do, but that's your prompt. At its open-ended, you do whatever the fuck you want. So there was this one guy who laid on a log and he started noticing ants just trailing up, like, worker ants, just trailing up along the long, and he just spent 20 minutes watching them. You know, they're carrying little things back to their colony and, you know, just really working hard. mean, ants are adorable. I love them. I love them greatly. Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. They're so they're so cool. Abby: They are so cute. Taylor Smith: It's just like this cute little, like, tiny things you could just squash and that's the end of a life. But they do so much for us. We don't even think Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: about it because they're so minute, right? And we're so big. So he comes back to the circle after 20 minutes. They bring everybody back and they say, You know, they open it to where people can share if they want, you know, you don't have to. And so this guy shares the fact that he noticed these ants working so hard, relentlessly, nonstop, just kept going. And he started reflecting how he's been doing that in his own life. And he has yet to take a pause and realize, I am exhausted Abby: Well Taylor Smith: watching these ants. It's making me realize how tired I am because I've been going nonstop for so many years in the corporate world. Abby: Wow. Madden. Taylor Smith: So it's little things like that when you go back to the natural world, it brings it back to yourself and you realize what you've been missing, you start to notice what you didn't notice before, it makes you become more present with yourself. And therefore, the more you start to implement that practice, no matter where you are, you start to really increase being present. And then therefore, your gratitude grows because you start to see what you're grateful for rather than seeing the Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: problems. Abby: Mm. Chelsea Henderson: What a shift. Taylor Smith: story shifting my mindset. Chelsea Henderson: What a shift. It's radical. It's Abby: So Chelsea Henderson: actually radical. And it's Taylor Smith: It is. Chelsea Henderson: empowering because we get to choose that every moment. And Taylor Smith: We do. Chelsea Henderson: it's a lot, it's a practice, right? Taylor Smith: It is. Chelsea Henderson: And these things you're talking about, connecting with our animal family, connecting with the natural world. even if it's just sitting down with the peace lily that is ubiquitously in almost all of our homes, you know, it's just to just be in that space with it. I I think about that on the cellular level, right? The cells in the in those bodies are just they're just at a different level. They haven't pushed themselves to here, you know, so that they can get that next thing or whatever. And and it's regulating and it's really beautiful. Taylor Smith: It is. It is. And also, it brings, it brings me another thought, Abby, when you brought up that you're living in this tiny home now, and it's like a Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: 15 year old tiny home, keep in mind, you've got wood behind you. This tiny home is made from nature. So Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: that home has a presence. She has an energy. She's holding space Abby: Hmm. Taylor Smith: for you because she's Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Taylor Smith: made of nature itself. So it's like when I moved to Washington a year ago and I never saw that house that we were going to rent. I did a FaceTime tour before I showed up and you know, my partner and I decided yes, we're going to live there. We show up and immediately my partner was like seeing all these problems with this house. But for me, the first night we got there, I sat in meditation and I tapped into the energy of that house. and I can feel how worn down she felt. She felt so tired. She Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Taylor Smith: needed TLC. She's like, I'm sorry I'm not what your partner wants me to be. I just, you know, I haven't been cared for by the owner for years. I'm doing the best I can, you know? Like, I was like, I know. Abby: Okay. Chelsea Henderson: I scared. Taylor Smith: And we're here to really make it livable and enjoy the space that you have. And so it was like my way of letting her know, don't worry about my partner, but I am here to audit you and thank you for letting us be here and we will do the best we can to make you hospitable, know, and up to standards. So it's, you know, it's like really taking into account of where you are and knowing that everything has an energy to it. Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Abby: That is beautiful. Taylor Smith: So the tiny home that you're Chelsea Henderson: It's beautiful. Abby: Wow. Taylor Smith: in, I'd be curious, know, like, how does it feel while sitting in her? What does she bring it up for you? What does she tell you? What is it that he could be? Abby: Her energy is really amazing. Her energy is amazing. Our friend Tito built this house. Taylor Smith: Wow. Abby: And he and his family live just in the big house next door. So it's in his driveway. And it's amazing to have the builder here, you know, showing us things Chelsea Henderson: Okay. Abby: and that one of the sinks was kind of dripping underneath. And so he was like, I have all of my notes from when I made this back in like 2013. Before Tiny Houses had really even blown up, he was building this thing and and see he knows like, how did I put this in and how did I put this in? And he was very intentional with where he got the wood. Like the wood floors are from an old school that was being either remodeled or torn down. Taylor Smith: wow. Abby: There's no off-gassing of any of the paint or any of the materials, and everything is made of natural wood. Taylor Smith: Wow. Abby: And it's just like she feels so well loved and he's Chelsea Henderson: Yeah. Abby: tried to sell it or he's thought about selling it. And this the people that would show up, they want to use it maybe as like a hunting cabin and Tito's vegan. Taylor Smith: Yeah. Abby: And he's like, No. Or just whatever the energy is is maybe some like kind of grungy guy who's just looking for a cheap place to live and he's like, No, I d I want it to go Somewhere that I get just the energy of the home is really important. Taylor Smith: Yeah. And he put that energy into her. So she's very well loved. Yeah. Abby: And you can feel it. You can really feel it. Mm-hmm. Chelsea Henderson: Mm-hmm. Abby: Yeah. Yeah. Well, I'm really inspired by your the whole forest bathing accessibility. Because Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Absolutely. Taylor Smith: Mm-hmm. Abby: just like what Chelsea said, I thought, forest bathing requires a forty minute drive and a whole day to get to the mountains, to Taylor Smith: No. Chelsea Henderson: Mm-hmm. Abby: go on a trail and to be guided by a person doing a forest bathing experience and And to hear you say, you know, go in your own backyard and sit on the grass and see the ants and see the the nature around you. It made it so accessible and it's just such a perfect kind of I think that we do that. I do that with the spiritual human experiences. Like God is over there. Forty God is a forty minute drive down the road. And it's like, no, he's r Chelsea Henderson: Yes, yes, yes, yes. Taylor Smith: Yeah, right! Abby: he, she, they are Here they're in the wood and your skin and your hair and the Chelsea Henderson: All around you. Abby: ant in your shower and like that is it just was really like right, it's all right here for me. Yeah. Taylor Smith: It is. It is. Chelsea Henderson: God is God is my six year old who is trying to get my attention right now. Taylor Smith: I'm Chelsea Henderson: All right. One two minutes. Abby: That's true. That's true. Chelsea Henderson: Two minutes. Okay, well, it's summertime. My husband's on site. I have a six-year-old boy here. And he has given me an hour and ten minutes, graciously. And so I'm going to wrap up So that I can go and tend to my sweet boy Taylor. First Abby: Course. Chelsea Henderson: of all, thank you, thank you, thank you. You're such Taylor Smith: for sure. Chelsea Henderson: a lovely human and so inspiring. I feel like I'm leaving this with that, Abby. Exactly what you said. that that recognition of how in my grasp all of this is. None of this is It's inclusive is how I feel. Like this is also inclusive. Like it's Taylor Smith: Thank Chelsea Henderson: just available to us. If if you know, if you can connect with your animals, your your plants, your the tree in your front yard, the grass in front of your apartment building, any of it, it just feels inclusive and like such an offering. I think there's so much Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: of our world that makes it feel like, you have to buy the thing. You have to earn the thing and it's there for everyone and I really love that. so thank you for that. Abby: Yeah. Chelsea Henderson: And you know, we we will put in the show notes any of this, but how can people connect with you? Taylor Smith: Yes, so I have a website called liminalcommunication.com and I can email it to y'all so you can see it and it captures a lot of my work around dogs. So dog trading, nervous system regulation, also offering, know, force bathing sessions. Although I don't really like to charge for force bathing because That's something we all have access to. So as a dog trader consultant, whatever I call myself, I like to bring that up as an option in one of our sessions. Like, is this something you've thought about doing with your dog? Like just go sit at a park with your dog and just start grounding yourself. And that'll help your dog's nervous system as well. So anyway, Abby: Yeah. Taylor Smith: so you can find all my information on there, liminalcommunication.com. Abby: Liminalcommunication.com and for our Chelsea Henderson: Awesome. That's amazing. Taylor Smith: and they can eat yummy food then. Abby: listeners here we are planning on doing a forest bathing session with Taylor. So that will be coming up. Keep Chelsea Henderson: Yes we are. We're excited about that. Abby: keep an eye on your newsletter or sign up for the Modern Sacred newsletter at modernsacred.com. And you'll stay up to date on that. So and it will be virtual because Taylor Smith: I Abby: I live in Oregon and you both live in Colorado. So we'll get to experience it as an offering that is accessible wherever you are. So if you're interested in that, go to modernsacred dot com and stay connected to when that will come. Yeah. Me too. Me too. Chelsea Henderson: really excited about that one. That is awesome. Taylor, thank you Taylor Smith: Wow. Chelsea Henderson: for being here with us today and for sharing yourself. You're lovely. I of course I knew that because I have gotten the to the pleasure of getting to become friends with your mother and spending time with her is just peaceful and joyous. But you're just you're just your own version of beauty and peace and calm Taylor Smith: Thank you. Chelsea Henderson: and it's such an offering and I I appreciate that people like you exist and are in my sphere and I'm grateful. So thank you for being here and for sharing this with our with our audience and with us 'cause I'm expanded. So thank you. I appreciate it. Taylor Smith: Thank Abby: Same. Taylor Smith: you. Thank you for letting me be on here and talk to y'all and I'm so grateful to be able to. So happy Chelsea Henderson: Mm. Yes. Yes. Taylor Smith: to always expand my circle of like-mindedness people, know. So, yes, thank you. Chelsea Henderson: Absolutely. Yes. Yes. I feel the same. Abby: Yes. Beautiful. Chelsea Henderson: Just like the universe, we're ever expanding. okay. Taylor Smith: Yes, exactly. Chelsea Henderson: Well, thank you so much. It's been lovely. And thank you to anyone who joined us today. And I look forward to that forest breathing workshop. That's gonna be beautiful, beautiful. Thank you. Taylor Smith: Meet you. Chelsea Henderson: Until next time Abby: Me too. Chelsea Henderson: to all of our lovely listeners. Bye. Taylor Smith: Bye.