The Science Behind Touching Trees
In early 2025, I lost my job. II was in the middle of a divorce. Most of my community and friendships disappeared. And I had just signed a mortgage for my very first home.
Everything I thought was stable suddenly wasn't.
The early months of unemployment were dark. The darkest I've ever lived through.
Desperate to be Heard
As little girls, many of us are taught NOT to listen to our bodies.
When you grow up in a high-demand religion centered around phrases like "Praise to the Man," those messages become ingrained from the time you're barely old enough to speak. By 18 months old, we were already learning them through one of the most powerful forms of conditioning that exists: music. We sang a song of jubilee that we were stars shining brightly for all the world to see - but ONLY if we do and say happy things all day.
We learned to ignore our emotions. Be happy. Be pleasing. Make life easier for everyone around you. Deny what your body is telling you for the comfort of others. That wasn't just encouraged—it was celebrated. It was the goal.
Be.
Perfectly.
Happy.