Nature As a Reflection

Nature As a Mirror

This past spring I joined a hiking group for Highly Sensitive People (HSP)/Empaths. It combines two meaning facets of my life: my love for nature, and self-acceptance of living authentically as a HSP/Empath instead of fighting against it. Every other week, we participated in a hike, spending time in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains while discussing various ways we can use nature to manage the challenges that come along with being an HSP/Empath. This past week was our last hike for this year. Our topic: Nature As a Mirror.

Often, when faced with problem, no matter how complex, if we ask, nature serves as a wise

mentor - reminding us of the basics, what is important, and possibility. In fact, many already use Biomimicry, the practice of using nature as a blueprint, to solve problems or spark new ideas. To name only a few, consider the countless landscapes and other nature-inspired art such as Monet’s landscapes. Architects turn to nature for inspiration in designing relaxing, functional, but also visually striking spaces. Lotus leaves are studied for material development because of their self-cleaning properties. Medical advances often begin from a remedy already present within nature (there really is something to Grandma’s recipe of ginger-lemon tea with honey).

We began our hike with silent reflection. This is our time to ground, quiet our busy minds, and

simply be in the moment. Experience nature. Our leader provided us with a few prompts along the way to facilitate connecting with nature. The prompt, “How does nature mimic or represent your experience right now?” resonated with my reflective process. I was immediately drawn to the West where a clearing in the solemn rain clouds beamed with the gradient colors of a Mai Tai celebrating the sunset. The bright beautiful bunch of colors reminded me of hope - no matter the troubles I carry, there is hope and promise of something better.

A few minutes later, we arrived at a wooden bridge overlooking a rapid stream. We took some time to allow the sights and sounds of water ground us. Waterfalls and natural running water resonate deeply with me. Whenever I am blessed to be waterside, I say a prayer of gratitude and imagine the renewal of water washing away my troubles. This time, I also used a variation of a practice I learned from Sandra Ingerman’s book, “The Soul Retrieval Journey.” I collected several sticks from the trail and assigned each one a person who I needed to cut cords with. I wrapped them in a bundle using some long pieces of grass. After calling in my spiritual team with prayers of gratitude and intention, and for filling the void with love and light, I cut the cords by breaking the sticks in half. “I release you!” I tossed the broken sticks into the stream and watched them float away, twisting and turning around the rocks.

A tree standing tall near our path.

On the way back to the main trail a tree caught my attention with black stripes on its bark. I

thought to myself, “What a strange pattern.” Immediately, I noticed tiger stripes on many of the surrounding trees. Then my mind’s eye caught up and I saw searing flames all around me. This area was ravaged by a wildfire. Looking further into the woods, I saw more tiger striped trees, charred branches, and even whole trees covered in black charcoal. The empath in me weeps whenever I encounter burned areas. I thought back to when I might have heard about a wildfire in this area and quickly remembered that terrifying day, the Spring Creek Fire. In short, January 1, 2019, a faulty power line caused a fire in drought-stricken brush field adjacent to a suburban community. Wind gusts up to 60 mph and dry conditions created the perfect conditions. Firefighters very quickly deployed and fought for a week to contain the blaze. Over 1000 acres, including hundreds of homes and local businesses, were burned.

Nature As a Reflection

As I paused to allow the memory to pass, I “heard” the prompt, “How does nature mimic or represent your experience right now?” Looking back at the trees I noticed how they stand proud with branches full of life above the charged, tiger stripes. Nature’s resilience is to be admired. The trees stand tall and proud, their branches bursting with new life in the form of green leaves, glowing brightly in the sun's life-giving rays. The scars from their trauma serving as a declaration of their resilience and determination to thrive.

Oof!. . . Pause. . . Breathe. . . As a trauma survivor who fought long and hard to overcome challenges and paralyzing PTSD, these trees reflected my story.

Cycles

Further along the hike, we discussed the cycles of nature and how those cycles mirror our

experiences. We explored how life evolves in patterns and cycles - Day and Night, Seasons,

Emotions, Relationships, Life Cycles, Careers, etc. We considered the cycle of the day. Dawn

marks the beginning of a new day. Slowly, the sun rises warming the air, waking the world. Birds sing to celebrate a fresh new day. Animals wake and scurry around tidying their homes, finding breakfast, or going on a playful run. Soon, daytime arrives in its full glory and the world buzzes with life. After some time, dusk begins. The sky changes colors, adding darker hues in the East and rich, warm oranges, pinks, and purples in the West. Animals and birds slow their pace and settle. Insects spring alive announcing the solace of the approaching night, but they eventually quiet, too. Last, the world rests and the still darkness of night falls upon us, finalizing the cycle.

Nature acts as a mirror to our experiences providing poignant example after example

demonstrating a universal life-cycle pattern: Emergence → Peak/Abundance → Release/Heal/Wane → Process/Integrate/Rest. The table below shows the following examples: seasons, life, relationships, career, and emotions.

Nature's life-cycle patterns: seasons, life, relationships, career, and emotions.

By looking at our situation and identifying where in the cycle we are, we gain perspective, possibly putting to rest the fear of being “stuck.” When will this grief end? I’ll never find a new job! Will I ever find love again? These are all part of the cycle. You, too, will stand tall beaming with renewed life above the scars of your situation.

It is important to recognize that the timeline of a cycle is not fixed. There is no, “supposed to.” One person’s grief cycle, for example, may last a few days while another’s may last months or years. Just as the circumstances around the grief or relationship vary greatly, so does the timeline. Additionally, as is the case with the onset of emotions, some phases may be as small as a few seconds while other phases have vastly different timelines. Rushing a phase most often results in increasingly dramatic repeating the same cycle.

Multiplicity of Cycles

In my training as a life coach, we discussed dialectic thinking and the power of, “and.” In dialectic thinking, we recognize one can simultaneously have opposing experiences. For example, a bitter-sweet ending might invoke sadness of what is ending and excitement for new possibility. Instead of thinking situations are binary, recognizing dialectic experiences helps us to process, accept, and integrate the dissonance of our different parts. Likewise, different aspects of us may be in different stages. For example, in the Adult phase, one’s career and finances might be thriving in the Established phase, and their marriage and spiritual connection may be in Crisis - cue the mid-life crisis.

Look In Nature’s Mirror

Thriving tree scarred with charcoal

Standing in the shadow of those resilient, fire-scarred trees, I cannot help but reflect on the way nature, time and again, models strength, not just in survival, but in renewal. Just as the forest endures wildfire and springs forth new life, so too do we, as Highly Sensitive People and Empaths, find ways to rise and grow from adversity. Nature’s mirror reflects our own scars, not as marks of defeat, but as evidence of transformation and endurance - proof that healing and thriving are woven into the very cycles of life.

In these last moments of the hiking season, the lessons from the land feel especially poignant: every cycle - pain, joy, loss, and renewal - is natural, necessary, and deeply interconnected. The trees, with their scorched bark and radiant new leaves, remind us that resilience is not the absence of scars, but the grace and strength to thrive in their presence. For HSPs and Empaths, whose journeys are often marked by heightened sensitivity and deep feeling, nature offers both solace and guidance: an invitation to recognize surrender and honor our own pacing, and trust in the quiet, patient logic of cycles.

Just as nature serves as a blueprint for the world’s most innovative solutions - whether Velcro inspired by burrs, cooling systems modeled after termite mounds, or bridges built to bend without breaking - so can we look into nature’s mirror finding hope and inspiration. When overwhelm floods in, may the memory of trees with charred tiger stripes, persistent rivers, and the gentle grace of change ground us in the wisdom that we, too, are designed to adapt, heal, and grow. Like the rainbow, this is nature’s promise.

Free Printable Affirmation

Cycles Are Natural Printable Affirmation