Podcast

The solstice – winter or summer – offers a time to pause in appreciation of what the light brings. And while it also feels like an acknowledgement of what is leaving or no longer present, there’s plenty of good to be found outside in the world and inside ourselves and the other humans around us.

So how am I celebrating the light? Listen now.

What happens when all of your tasks are outside but none of your nurturing? Can you lose sight of why you built an outdoor habit to start with? And how do you take a pause to reassess?

In seasons where tasks take us into the great outdoors, it’s easy to lose sight of why you want to be there, finding yourself just exhausted as always, but this time exhausted outside.

So what should you do? Listen now.

When was the last time you took a road trip near where you live and did some of the regular tourist stuff outside?

That’s what I’ve been up to on a week-long adventure traveling a portion of the Kenai Peninsula as I work on a writing assignment. I’ve met all sorts of interesting people and tried a bunch of new (to me) things — river floating, Alaska whitewater rafting, gold mining and ziplining.

The biggest reminder? Don’t let the weather get you down.

Listen now.

When summer is short and you want to do everything, having a goal or adventure list for each summer can help keep you from feeling paralyzed by options.

And having one that’s designed to give you something to do for just a few hours on any given afternoon? That keeps the fun rolling without exhausting everyone in the process.

So how can you create a goal list that hits the mark without feeling impossible? Listen now.

Most of the time, it’s a little in my head that tells me I can do things or narrates when they feel like they are about to go very wrong. Sometimes it’s more like a movie — a dramatic demonstration of the terrible thing that’s about to happen, or a picture of the upcoming victory. According to our recent podcast guest Sarah Histand, a mental health-informed fitness trainer all of it is self-talk.

Over my days building my outdoor habit, I’ve learned to make self talk work for me with a few phrases, or mantras, I can repeat over and over.

But there’s still one major thing I struggle with.

And leaning into this negative self-talk? It produces that kind of silly outdoor fail that seems to be my personal speciality.

Listen now.