Conversation with Tom Hirons: Exploring Poetry, Love and Hope. Ep 28

Art made by Cille Vengberg

In this episode we explore the power of poetry and the thing about hope. This episode is a conversation with poet Tom Hirons. I first discovered Tom's poetry on Instagram and it has a certain way of grabbing me.

We discuss hope, Whiskey, fires, love and activism. Tune in to the beauty of Tom Hirons' inspiring words and ways in a World, with hope not fueled by optimism but love.

Known for ‘In the Meantime’ and ‘Once a wild God’ Tom writes in ways that brings you to far a way land and the earthly muddy ‘here’.

In this episode we touch on:

• The impact of poetry

• The reputation of poetry

• Poetry as expression of soul

• Poetry as activism

• The power of poetry

• The importance of love

• Unexpected occurrences and hope

• Whiskey and storytelling traditions

“ “poetry has a power to speak to things and open doors in us that the language of everyday conversation, or, you know, especially kind of political discourse, whatever, just doesn’t have””

— Tom Hiron

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Tom Hirons was born and raised on the Suffolk-Norfolk border in East Anglia, but lived in Scotland for almost twenty years before gravitating to Dartmoor in the Southwest of England. T

om has been storytelling publicly for over 15 years and writing for much longer.

He now teaches storytelling for Hedgespoken and has been known to mentor a writer or two.

Find him here

Website

Instagram

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You may also like

TO MENTOR WITH THE WILD; WITH SOPHIE STRAND

KINSHIP AND FORAGING STORIES WITH GAVIN VAN HORN

MOVE LIKE WATER WITH EASKEY BRITTON ☾ 5

Richard Skrein - Reciprocity, Play and Thank You as foundational skills. Episode 25

Art by Cille Vengberg

Today I speak with a really good friend of mine, Rich Skrein. We’ve been in the same storytelling mentorship for nearly a year now. We share many different interests and I’ve been curious about his work with nature, children and educators since first getting to know him.

It became a heartfelt conversation about our place, as humans, in the greater eco system.

Rich shares about his work, about returning to England, being a primary school teacher and started taking his students outside to experience nature. He observed the transformative effect it had on the children, witnessing them coming alive in ways that couldn't be fully expressed within the confines of the classroom. A transformation happening in him as well.

We get into the more personal wonder about and in the world and how we as adults need this just as much as the children.

“How much awe and wonder was there when I was able to take them to the beach? How much awe and wonder was there when I took them to the deep forest? It’s right there. They were able to grow in ways that I couldn’t give them in the classroom.”

— Richard Skrein

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Richard is a Forest School teacher trainer, ecological educator, storyteller and author. He can be found in the woods of Europe and England and is a storyteller and experienced educational professional with a profound and enduring passion for the natural world.

He worked for many years in the classroom as a primary school teacher before swapping four walls for the magic of natural environments.

He is the author of three books: 5o things to do in the wild. 50 things to do with a stick and 50 things to do in the snow.

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Find him here

Instagram @richardskreinoutdoors

His website

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Other episodes you may enjoy

HOLISTIC SURVIVAL WITH LUKE MCLAUGHLIN ☾ 9

THE ROOTS AND STITCHING OURSELVES BACK TOGETHER STORIES WITH JAN BLAKE

DISCOVERING THE CRACKS IN THE MIRROR WITH BAYO AKOMOLAFE

Erica Berry - Wovles and the stories we tell about fear. Episode 24

Art by Cille Vengberg <3 - Check her work out here

In this episode I have been so blessed to have a conversation with Erica Berry, author of the book ‘Wolfish- Wolf, Self, and the Stories We Tell About Fear’.

This is a brilliant book that I highly recommend. Ever since putting it down, I knew I had to talk with her some how. And here we are.

We dive into the impact of consuming a constant stream of fear-based stories. From the overwhelming amount of news and information focused on fear and trauma that bombards us in today's world. But also the stories that are ancient. The ancient fear stories that we told, and heard, for many reasons.

We talk about wolves and the history of out of proportion fear that has existed around this beautiful animal.

All of this conversation centered around Erica’s study with wolves, collective and personal fear and what emerges with that - love.

“I think there’s something beautiful in actually thinking about the idea of a lone wolf as someone looking still for connection and actually being vulnerable.”

— Erica Berry

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About Erica Berry

Erica  is a writer and teacher based in her hometown of Portland, Oregon. Her essays appear in publications such as the Guardian, The New York Times, Yale Review, The Atlantic, and Orion, and her first book, Wolfish: Wolf, Self, and the Stories We Tell about Fear, was published by Flatiron/Macmillan in 2023.  She is currently an Associate Fellow at the Attic Institute for Arts and Letters and a writing instructor with Literary Arts in Portland.

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Find her online

Instagram @ericajberry  

www.ericaberry.com.

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Other Episodes you may enjoy

THE ROOTS AND STITCHING OURSELVES BACK TOGETHER STORIES WITH JAN BLAKE

KINSHIP AND FORAGING STORIES WITH GAVIN VAN HORN

MELTING THE ICE IN THE HEART OF MAN WITH ANGAANGAQ

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Why knowing your story matters, when holding space

The first thing we look at in The Art of Holding Space is our stories about being in relationship, community, together. What we bring with us into the spaces we create or participate in. The old, the new. The family ones, the School ones, the others. 

The stories about our place, roles, expectations, assumptions, wounds and longings.

There are the obvious ones and sometimes the more subtle threads. But they can have a lot to say about how safe we feel. Or the way we connect inward and outward as we take a seat. Without feeling we have to play a part, to be worthy. 

A new edge for me is becoming more visible and it is really shining in relation to motherhood. I feel my old stories poke as I witness their interactions and school yard challenges. It takes a lot of consciousness to remember what is mine and what is actually their experience.

I am meeting them A LOT at the moment! Even though many carried threads have found some ease, they will probably never leave my system completely. It weaves in. 

Knowing our history of togetherness, the in the light and the ‘in the shadows’ can support us in creating a safer container for not only participants, but also ourselves. We can tend to ourselves with intention and care in a different way. It can become easier to get proper supervision and plan curriculum and content that we can actually hold in a responsible way.

Having this perspective and insight with us, I feel, it’s important. The things we often think set apart, are the stories that truly connect us.

The art of holding space begins February 8th - read more here

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To Mentor with the Wild; with Sophie Strand

It’s been a long time coming, but I am so excited to share this interview with Sophie Strand.

Sophie Strand is a writer based in the Hudson Valley who focuses on the intersection of spirituality, storytelling, and ecology. But it would probably be more authentic to call her a neo-troubadour animist with a propensity to spin yarns that inevitably turn into love stories.

Her first book of essays The Flowering Wand: Lunar Kings, Lichenized Lovers, Transpecies Magicians, and Rhizomatic Harpists Heal the Masculine is forthcoming in 2022 from Inner Traditions. Her eco-feminist historical fiction reimagining of the gospels The Madonna Secret will also be published by Inner Traditions.  

She is currently researching her next epic, a mythopoetic exploration of ecology and queerness in the medieval legend of Tristan and Isolde.

In this episode we talk about:

• Storytelling

• What it is to root our spirituality

• Activism

• What it is to be in awe

and so much more

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You can listen to the episode here on your favorite podcast platform

You can also find it on Spotify

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Find out more about Sophie, her books and writing here:

• Website

• Instagram

Read more about her new book here

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{CONVERSATIONS WITH THE EARTH} RIVER SPIRIT

THE SERIES 'CONVERSATIONS WITH THE EARTH' IS A COLLECTION OF ENCOUNTERS BETWEEN HUMANS AND THE WILD. THEY EMERGE FROM THE MINI COURSE 'HOW TO BECOME INVISIBLE IN A WORLD THAT DEMANDS TO SEE EVERYTHING' IN THE COURSE THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE SPECIAL NATURE ENCOUNTERS THROUGH ESSAY, PICTURES, POETRY OR OTHER EXPRESSIONS. THEY ARE CONTINUOUSLY PUBLISHED HERE ON THE WEBSITE.

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River spirit

Spirit of the river, clear and pure, flows with ease and beauty. No obstacles too difficult for her to overcome and she does so firmly but tender. Her gentle sounds are soft and soothing, whispering “let go”.

She welcomes me with joy and laughter, playfully caressing my naked body as I step into her cleansing, fresh waters.

Here I fell at home, a daughter of the river.

by Sigrid Fay

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{Conversations with the Earth} A Story by Clara Pagliaro

A story: 

The rain slowly moved in,

the ocean calling her name.

Finding herself walking down nearly bare,

perhaps showing up to be.

Hesitation encompassed her mind as she stood upon the waves 

gently showing her her own currents. 

"Do not fear" sang the sea.

She sat, surrendering and immersing her body in the vast and salty milk of the mother. 

Every hair on her body stood, her breath deep. 

Her mind whispering prayers to the universe,

"Don't let me go, keep me right here"

The ocean pushed her small body back and forth like a child being rocked. 

Her body frozen, desperate to shut

yet every breath releasing discomfort and opening her soul. 

The rain slowly moved in, 

It is only here she can see herself in all her wholeness. 

Mind still, body numb, lost in nature's power. 

It is here she listens. 

Clara Pagliaro

The Roots and stitching ourselves back together Stories with Jan Blake

I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much during an interview. And that says a lot really!

Jan appeared on screen and even though I usually do interviews audio only, I couldn’t get myself to switch the camera off. As soon as we said hi, we were in where the gold is stored. She had me in tears after the first few minutes, so I forgot to hit record, so after 10 I had to stop and remind myself why we were here. She became a friend within that hour and a half, that’s how it felt. She shares about story, about the lies told throughout time about color, race and place. I could have spoken with her for hours and I hope that you find her words, insights and way of meeting what is human, as moving and important as I did.

Enjoy!

About Jan Blake

Jan Blake is one of Europe's leading storytellers who has been performing world-wide since 1986.

She was born in Manchester, of Jamaican parentage and specialises in stories from Africa and the Caribbean. Specialising in stories from Africa, the Caribbean, and Arabia, she has a well-earned reputation for dynamic and generous storytelling. Recent highlights include Hay Festival, where she was storyteller in-residence, the Viljandi Harvest Festival in Estonia and TEDx Warsaw. 

She has developed relationships with several major arts organisations, including the National Theatre, where she is the Consultant on Storytelling; the London Philharmonic Orchestra; and Battersea Arts Centre. She has performed at all major storytelling festivals, leads storytelling workshops for schools and universities and is a regular contributor to BBC Radio programmes. Her own storytelling company and school is the Akua Storytelling Project.

In 2011, she was the recipient of the biannual Thüringer Märchen Preis, awarded to scholars or performers who have devoted their lives to the service of storytelling. As part of the World Shakespeare Festival in 2012, she was the curator for Shakespeare’s Stories, a landmark exhibition that explored themes of journey and identity, in conjunction with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

Find her here:
https://www.janblakestories.co.uk

https://www.instagram.com/janstoriesuk/

Watch her Tedtalk:



Other people's mess and restoring the earth

the 3rd load of the day

There was a time where we believed that everything we buried in the ground would disappear. Very literally. Also very metaphorically. Once our trash has been picked up it’s gone. But it’s not. Most plastic ever made stil exists on the planet. We know it, but somehow we don’t really believe it. Out of sight, out of…

A few weeks ago my partner and I took the wheelbarrow to the back of our rented land. We have done this several times a year since moving here 8 years ago. The practice of burying trash was easy back in the day. Who cared what went on up there in the forest. We have cleared this land of car batteries, toilets, kilometers of rusty fence, buckets, tools, cans, glass and all shapes of plastic.

It is never ending. It is as if the earth turns once a year. Offering our shit back to us. ‘Here, clean up your mess’. We have thought ‘this must be it’ so many times. As it turns out, there are always more surprises. It’s not our mess. We don’t know who turned this beautiful spot into a dumping ground. But we are taking responsibility for undoing it.

Another item that has become part of the tree. On the other side cans have grown into the bark.

The glass could cut animals and kids. They could eat something that was stuck to a plant etc. We both get annoyed as we drag all this stuff out of the forest. Spending days clearing the ground, because other people didn’t know better or didn’t care.

Sometimes people have asked why we’ve done so much to this rented land, especially knowing how little our landlord cares.

The thing is, even with the illusion of ‘my land’ this will always be our shared earth. In that perspective how could we not?

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Melting the ice in the heart of man with Angaangaq

This interview is special to me. I got to sit with elder and storyteller Angaangaq Angakkorsuaq from Icewisdom.com.

He is a shaman, traditional healer, storyteller and carrier of the Qilaut (winddrum), whose family belongs to the traditional healers of the Far North from Kalaallit Nunaat, Greenland. His name means ‘The Man Who Looks Like His Uncle’. Since he was a child he was trained by his family- especially by his Grandmother Aanakasaa – for becoming a shaman. The spiritual task given by his mother is: “Melting the Ice in the Heart of Man”.

The conversation started very personal, about his visit to the tiny town where I was born, North West River - Labrador. I haven’t met many who have been there. The conversation took off from there, with the question of ‘What is the spiritual significance of climate change’.

He is warm, full of heart and wisdom. I hope you enjoy his words. He closed our talk with a song. It still sits in my body.

LISTEN HERE:

Find his work here:

https://icewisdom.com/

Donate to the Healing Center - Healing Center - Aanakasaap Illua - Icewisdom - EN - Angaangaq Angakkorsuaq

The Body and Envisioning a New World with Stefana Serafina ☾ 14

Oh my has this episode been a long time coming. But it is landing here at just the right time.

My dear friend and mentor Stefana Serafina is our guest today. Her work has transformed my life. The way I live in my body and what I experience because of the intimate relationship with its language.

It became a very rich conversation about body, my body, your body, the body as the extension of Earth. .

A conversation and reflection about the risk of not including our bodies (again!) in the visioning for the new world that might be shaping with this crisis. 

About the body having to be the guide and the way in this hopeful emergence of a renewed human race. 

I’m so excited to share her work with you! We would love to hear what you take away from this episode.

ABOUT STEFANA:

Stefana Serafina, M.A., is an embodiment educator, writer, and embodied empowerment facilitator based in the San Francisco Bay. She is recognized for her unique and multi-faceted approach to body–based self–discovery and transformation.

She is the founder of Intuitive Body and Dance ©, which has grown into an international platform providing resources, experiences, and education for returning to our bodies’ inherent intelligence

For over a decade, Stefana has been teaching and facilitating transformative, movement-based embodiment in California, Europe, Central America, and online, and developing the Deep–Body model that is at the foundation of the work.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

My Grandmother's Hands : Racialized Trauma and the Pathways to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies - Resmaa Menakem

The Body Keeps the Score : Mind, Brain and Body in the Transformation of Trauma - Bessel van der Kolk

My bodies, My earth - Ruby Gibson

Waking the Tiger - Peter Levine

FIND STEFANAS WORK HERE:
https://www.intuitivedance.org

Plant Whispering with Rachel Corby ☾ 13

Well well well, back again with a new episode for you. This time with a woman I love dearly. Rachel Corby is a very special teacher, and I’ve had the privilege to have her teach courses 2 years in a row.

In this episode we will be talking about working with plants. About what plant whispering means and how this work is more important today than ever. She is a very experienced and respectful teacher - to the plants and students and her wisdom runs deep.

ABOUT RACHEL CORBY
Rachel Corby is a plant whisperer, medicine woman and organic permaculture gardener. Rachel has been working with plants and their healing properties since having her eyes opened to the incredible healing world of plants whilst working on a volunteer project in Guatemala back in 1998.

Rachel has been teaching remedy making and how to make more spiritual connections with plants since 2006. She runs workshops, online courses and retreats teaching these skills and encouraging the rewilding process. She is the author of the book, Rewilding Yourself; Becoming Nature. 

GO FOLLOW RACHEL HERE:

FACEBOOK

INSTAGRAM

WEBSITE

Sacred Storytelling with Leah Lamb ☾ 12

Welcome, welcome, welcome. If you are returning you know that this episode has been a long time coming. If you are here for the first time, thank you for being here. But to all welcome to the new home of ‘The Becoming Nature Podcast Show’. 

I can’t wait to bring you new interviews and converstations. I can’t wait to continue connecting with you all. I can’t wait to see what this new Podcast home can bring. ENJOY TODAY’S episode. <3

I’m excited about bringing a new episode to you and this interview was fun to do. This conversation is with Leah Lamb. She is a storyteller, a writer and thinker. An activist. Last year I joined her course and dived in to the world of storytelling and storytellers from around the world. This art is revolutionary and we are all storytellers. So what stories are we telling? Listening to? And trusting?

In this episode talk about: 

☾What a storyteller is today

☾What a storyteller’s role was years ago

☾What a scared story and a zombie story are

☾We talk about how story can change our  ways

☾We talk about how the current story about climate isn’t helpful

And so much more… 

Please enjoy her words of wisdom. 

About Leah

Leah Lamb is a writer and producer. She is the creator of Soul Stories and the Speak the Spark, storytelling for a new paradigm, program. 

Her work plays with a lexicon that weaves myths, archetypes, and the hero’s journey into our modern world. She’s been a voice for the environment as a producer and host of the green channel at Current TV, and have written for Fast Company, Vice, Spirituality & Health Magazine, National Geographic News Watch, GOOD, The Huffington Post, and the Discovery Channel’s Planet Green. 

Also Leah’s first novel, The Whale Dreamer, is almost ready for you to read. 

Where to find more about her work: 

www.leahlamb.com

www.speakthespark.com

ALSO MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

Stephen Jenkinson - listen to my interview with Stephen here…

Find his work here - Orphan Wisdom