That feeling in the forest, when you sense a rhythm and knowing larger and wiser than your little anxious brain. The ferns, trees, fungi and mosses are running on ancient time and knowing, that breathes so slowly, inhaling our our exhales into the earth. In the forest, I feel like my body can remember that it is not the silly thinking of groups of people trying to sell things and prove things that are in charge. It is thoughts so old and expansive I don’t even know the words. In the forest, my body can remember how to be cared for.

This is my fourth illustration considering the body as an organism in ‘Botanical Bodies.’ Also a moment to consider that all bodies deserve access to nature without judgement, and that our current sizeist culture is a barrier to this. Many folks in large bodies cannot access equipment or sizes they need to take part in nature based activities, and / or are treated negatively when occupying these spaces. All people, in all bodies, should feel welcomed in nature spaces without a lens of healthism or fitness imposed upon them.