I’m very fortunate to live in a home where the view is mostly green.

My two-story one-bedroom apartment begins on the second floor and spans up to the third, giving me luscious, treehouse-level views of some of Florida’s signature banyans and palms.

When I come home after a morning of teaching, I am instantly soothed by the sight of the trees. They dance and laugh and ask me, “Why are you so worried, sweet one?”

When I nap, I keep the blinds open. One of my greatest pleasures is waking up to the sight of the leaves playing in the lazy afternoon breeze.

I am also a learning plant mom.

My newfound enthusiasm for houseplants has sent me on several trips to Home Depot, each time returning with a waxy pothos or succulent that makes the air in my home richer and more aromatic.

We have all experienced the palpable brilliance of a spring morning, whose fresh oxygen makes us feel like our lungs are expanding to twice their capacity.

Those of us not native to Miami certainly know the sharp crispness of a snowy winter’s day. You know, the kind that shakes us awake to our aliveness and irrevocable oneness with the elements.

Miami natives might be more familiar with the dewiness of a humid ocean wind – the kind that makes us feel so small in the grand scheme of things and yet so wildly free.

Nature is full of an untouchable, inhuman, elevated energy.

But how is it that nature provides us with so much magic? What power does it possess to make us stop in our tracks, slow down, notice, breathe, and come out of the small thinking of the ego?

Nature is so profoundly healing because it embodies pure being.

Nature epitomizes what it means to be at peace, fully in our purpose and free of the mind’s constant turbulence.

Nature’s constant death, growth, and rebirth is a perfect example of the cycle we go through as humans. We ebb and flow, hibernating and coming alive again on the path to becoming the highest, most connected versions of ourselves.

Nature is not in a hurry to force growth whose time has not yet come. It shows us patience and trust in what we can’t yet see.

Nature is clarity of purpose. Nature loves and supports all living things. Nature is pure, life-sustaining energy.

Connecting with this pristine, heightened energy can bring us home to ourselves. It reminds us who we are when we’re at our best and most elevated.

Connection with nature heals spiritual, emotional, and even physical wounds.

I am currently reading Dawson Church’s Mind to Matter, which includes a story about a woman’s miraculous recovery from uterine cancer. Upon receiving her terminal diagnosis, this woman turned to nature in several forms.

She began spending hours a day in the forest. She started to eat high-vibrational foods grown from the earth. She created a ritual of bathing in water each day.

After nine months of living in harmony with nature, every trace of cancer vanished from her body.

The healing power of nature’s elevated vibration is ineffable.

But how do we – particularly those of us living busy lives in urban centers in a society that has profoundly disconnected itself from its earthly roots – connect to nature?

How do we harness that healing magic when we are commuting on hot, busy highways or power walking to Starbucks with our eyes glued to our phones?

The power of nature is available to all of us, no matter how busy we are or how manmade the structures we spend our time in. But we must make the conscious choice to rewire our minds, which have been taught not to notice or cherish.

It’s not about living in Bali and dancing naked in the rice fields every day. Nature has magic for all of us. We need only make the simple choice to slow down and see it.

We must set the intention to allow that healing energy into our daily lives and consciously open to receive the gifts.

All it takes is the intention. From there, Mama Nature will do her work.

My Top 5 Daily Ways to Connect with Nature

1. Uninterrupted walks in nature. No phone, no AirPods. Just you and nature. Instead of looking down, give text-neck a break and look up. Breathe it in. Offer up thanks for the gifts, the beauty, and the calm. At the end of your walk, notice how your energy has shifted. Remember that feeling. You can bring it with you into the rest of your day.

2. Outdoor meditation. I find that outdoor meditation connects me deeply to Divine consciousness. When I’m lucky enough to spend time at my mom’s beach house, I meditate on the sand, breathing in sync with the ebb and flow of the crashing waves. But this is also doable without the luxury of a beach! You can meditate in a pool chair, in your yard, in the grass at school, in the courtyard at work, on the steps of your apartment. Notice the fresh air, feel the breeze and sunshine on your skin. Imagine it replacing all negative energy inside you with purity and love.

3. Mindfulness. This is one of my favorites, because it can be done anytime and anywhere, whether you’re outside or just looking out a window. The next time you catch a glimpse of the trees, become aware of their sentient presence. Simply notice the peace of their existence. Remind yourself that just a few feet above your head, there is a wise presence ready to ground you. If you live somewhere chilly, take notice of the bare branches or a frozen body of water. Marvel at nature’s endless cycle of death and rebirth, and remember that cyclical nature is mirrored by our soul’s. Winter’s darkness is always followed by spring’s abundant aliveness.

4. Listening for messages. This past summer when I took The Balanced Blonde’s Waking Back Up to Your Soul course, I learned to listen for nature’s messages. In the presence of Mama Nature, if we quiet our minds and open our hearts to receive, we just might hear the subtle whisper of Higher Wisdom coming through. If you have never heard the voice of Higher Wisdom, it may at first be challenging to distinguish it from your own thoughts. It’s very subtle, but the truth it imparts is unquestionably elevated. If you catch yourself gleaning a tidbit of wisdom that your constantly moving ego-mind probably wouldn’t be capable of, trust that Mama Nature has connected you to the voice of the Divine. My favorite message I’ve received in a quiet moment with Mama Nature is this: “Laugh, dance, be free! Life is FUN!”

5. Expressing gratitude. Say thank you to Mama Nature as often as you can. When you sit down in the grass for a coffee date with a friend, whisper a silent thank you. When you feel the first few drops of rain kissing your skin, whisper a silent thank you. When the sun peeks its head around from behind a cloud, whisper a silent thank you. Notice and revel in the blessings. The more you expand your positive energy field by expressing gratitude, the more space you create for infinitely more blessings to flow through you.

There are endless ways to connect to nature's magic. The five listed above have become my go-to tools during my busy daily life, but the possibilities are infinite.

Perhaps for you, stabilizing your energy field with a hot bath is the best way to connect to the elements. Maybe it's growing and eating healthy foods from the earth. Maybe it's swimming or dancing in the rain.

Whatever connection to nature looks like in your daily life, I wish you grounding, deep peace, and palpable joy.

Remember that all living things are irrevocably intertwined, and that the magic of Mama Nature is simply a reflection of the magic that lives within you, too.

Enjoy reconnecting to your own magic, sweet one.