Learn & Experience
A Month in the Wilds (6/2/2024) - I've done month-long silent meditation retreats before, but never in the wilderness. Most years over the past 7 years of doing nature retreats, we've spent a full month with the gear up, but I've been in and out, coordinating logistics and getting supplies for groups. This year (after our 5-day retreat), it's just me and… continue reading
Forces of Healing (4/13/2024) - There’s a little-known but very important secret about healing: when we commit to a healing or spiritual journey, we come into alignment with the entire universe. This may sound romantic or dramatic, I know, but it can be described quite logically. Biological sciences have long acknowledged that the evolution of an organism occurs for its… continue reading
The Art of Compassion (3/16/2024) - It’s wonderful that compassion has become a popular topic today. However, it’s a concept that can be easily misunderstood. All too often, compassion today is usually equated with what we do, as in “doing the right thing,” or with who we are, as in “being a good or virtuous person.” It often becomes a moral… continue reading
New Year, New Dates and Locations (1/2/2024) - In 2023, Nature's Heart became part of Eugene Insight Meditation Community, 501c3. As a combined organization, we hosted 50 Sunday evening sessions, offered meditations in the park and at hikes at Mt Pisgah, conducted two self-compassion retreats at Mandala Sanctuary, and two wilderness retreats. In collaboration with Rachelle Cornelius of Creative Spirit Collaborative, we hosted… continue reading
The Planetary Self (12/11/2023) - Simply by virtue of our birth in this human body, each of us retains an inalienable belonging to Life. Without lifting a finger, saying a word, or even “being good,” we are entitled to a home in the ancient ancestry of the Earth. Woven from the earth, air, fire, and water around us, we are… continue reading
The Nervous System of Our Earth (12/8/2023) - The body of the Earth is trillions upon trillions of times larger than our body. It’s also been here millions of times longer than our body has. The Earth literally constructed our bodies from her body, just like our mothers did. It must have also tuned our nervous systems not dissimilar to how our mothers… continue reading
Dharma Talks from the Wilderness (11/11/2023) - Links to Justin's Dharma talks past and present continue reading
Touching the Earth (9/14/2023) - According to the stories passed down, in the final moment before Siddhartha’s (the future Buddha’s) awakening, he was challenged by Mara, the embodiment of delusion. Mara asked the young prince why he thought he could awaken or by whose authority he could do such a thing - trying to inspire doubt. Sitting devotedly underneath the… continue reading
Why I Love Nature (3/28/2020) - Fortunate to grow up near natural areas, Justin’s love for being in nature began young. He began practicing mindfulness and meditation at the age of 15. His growing appreciation and care for the natural world inspired him to complete a BA in Environmental Studies at Colorado College. For several years after, he applied his love… continue reading
Insight Meditation & Art (3/28/2020) - Insight Meditation (otherwise known as Vipassana) is a mindfulness-based spiritual practice and philosophy that seeks the healthy resolution of our psychological stress and suffering. Based in the roots of Theravada Buddhism, Insight Meditation holds that contentment and peace arise from insight into and alignment with our innermost nature or natural state of being (along with… continue reading