Holidays are a time that challenge us to step outside our comfort zone.
Sometimes, we deeply look forward to exploring beyond the boundaries of our daily routines. At other times, we are so stressed that our minds remain in control mode. Questions begin to arise even before the holiday has started, creating barriers along a road that has not yet unfolded. Regrets, doubts, and the fear of making the wrong choice can quietly take over.
But then, somewhere along the way, we find our flow again. We reconnect with our passion, with our soul, and suddenly, the sky seems clearer. We rediscover the simple blessing of just being — of being fully ourselves.
And when we reach that place where we can remain grounded while opening ourselves to the unknown, something shifts.
We become ready to hit the road without a plan, to follow a big YES — a crazy YES, a YES that the mind may not fully understand yet.
Sometimes, that is exactly where the adventure begins.
So let’s make a break from our comfort zones. And enter the world of holiday healing stories!
Walking with a prayer
I surprised myself this summer by bringing the same magic I use in my healing walks into my mountain expeditions.
Medicine walks offer insights into a particular question or subject. I accompany my clients in finding a walking intention and in discovering the answers that already live within them.
Of course, I also practice medicine walks for myself. Through my own quests, I have healed some of my fears by coming to understand the deeper nature of life.
But walking with a prayer was something new.
The idea came to me when my friend Lorraine invited her community to pray for the fires in France to stop.
Walking with a prayer is an ancient spiritual practice found in many cultures: It is going on a walk or hike while holding a prayer, intention, or heartfelt wish in your mind and heart. The walking itself becomes part of the prayer — you are not simply praying while walking, but walking as a spiritual practice, carrying an intention and being open to what Nature reveals along the way, entering into relationship with place, ancestors, animals, plants, and the wider living world.
So I walked into the mountains carrying a prayer, with the intention of restoring harmony between people and Nature and to pray for the forest fires to stop. As I walked, I read the signs, listening for what Nature might be telling me about the fires and about restoring balance.
Guided by Spirit, I walked into the web of life. I came to understand that the fires were also burning away the old, making space for new growth. Healing is coming. The prayer was heard.
Now it is up to us to respect the cycle of the seasons and act with vigilance as guardians — helping people move through their weaknesses and nurturing their strengths.
I took the same approach to my own healing hike — a prayer to find my calling — and, in the process, I healed my vertigo.
Sitting on a mountain pass at 2,440 metres above sea level, with the wind blowing through my hair, I watched the people climbing the mountain below. From where I sat, they looked tiny.
Then I noticed the bees and butterflies buzzing around the mountain flowers. They have wings, yet they remain so deeply grounded, moving from flower to flower — flowers that know only the slopes, never imagining the horizontal world below.
And so did I. In this surreal landscape, I felt deeply grounded. I found my balance again.
Then I looked below at the eternal snow forming a heart shape on the mountain. I understood that my own heart needed to be as pure as this snow.
As this thought came to me, an eagle appeared, flying alone above me — awakening that familiar sense of vertigo.
But this time, I was not afraid. I felt ready to open my wings, carried by a profound sense of blessing.
I didn’t follow my partner all the way to the summit. But I understood something important:
We each find our healing where and when our soul is waiting to meet us.
Walking for change
In addition to forest bathing, I accompany people on medicine walks, guiding them into a deeper relationship with Nature and with the wisdom within themselves.
