WEBVTT 1 00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:14.960 Welcome to Destiny. 2 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:18.320 Now, here's your host, Cliff Dunning. 3 00:00:19.760 --> 00:00:23.800 Hey, we're getting down to it here on Destiny Slash 4 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:26.280 Earth Ancients. And what that means is that we're going 5 00:00:26.359 --> 00:00:29.079 to be heading to Egypt in a couple of weeks. 6 00:00:29.120 --> 00:00:32.039 I leave on the twenty fourth. I'm going to go 7 00:00:32.119 --> 00:00:35.399 for a couple of days ahead of the crew, and 8 00:00:35.759 --> 00:00:39.759 I'm going to explore this new billion dollar museum. It's 9 00:00:39.840 --> 00:00:45.640 so big, five hundred thousand square feet that's five football fields. 10 00:00:45.679 --> 00:00:50.920 It's huge. And they're saying now that there's no way 11 00:00:51.119 --> 00:00:53.719 for you to see in one day, and I can 12 00:00:53.799 --> 00:00:58.799 imagine why it's just too big. And the new suggestions 13 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:02.000 and this is going to grow as more people experience 14 00:01:02.119 --> 00:01:07.680 this museum. You choose two to three sections. Now, I 15 00:01:07.760 --> 00:01:10.799 have not seen a program guide yet, and I'm kind 16 00:01:10.799 --> 00:01:14.519 of surprised by this because typically that's a real great 17 00:01:14.560 --> 00:01:21.040 marketing tool. In the past have purchased the museum catalog, 18 00:01:21.640 --> 00:01:25.200 which is filled with photographs, or the official guide or 19 00:01:25.239 --> 00:01:32.719 the book or whatever that has unique artifacts. I'd eat 20 00:01:32.760 --> 00:01:34.519 that thing up in a second if I had one. 21 00:01:35.120 --> 00:01:37.159 So I'm gonna have to kind of go on my 22 00:01:37.319 --> 00:01:40.480 own and see what they have on the website. I 23 00:01:40.879 --> 00:01:45.359 definitely will stay in the lobby a good two hours. 24 00:01:45.400 --> 00:01:52.439 The lobby has a progression of exquisite statuary, and this 25 00:01:52.519 --> 00:01:54.920 is a big thing of mine. If you've been listening, 26 00:01:55.599 --> 00:01:59.760 I'm you know, I was a sculptor, and I was 27 00:01:59.799 --> 00:02:03.200 a I actually got a degree in illustration, but I 28 00:02:03.359 --> 00:02:06.239 you know, you have to take the different arts as 29 00:02:06.239 --> 00:02:09.960 a student, and I enjoyed sculpture, and so I'm gonna 30 00:02:10.080 --> 00:02:13.960 really spend a lot of time looking at these sculptures 31 00:02:14.039 --> 00:02:17.520 up close and personal and my whole thing. And I'm 32 00:02:17.560 --> 00:02:20.360 finding this out more and more. The earlier you go, 33 00:02:21.080 --> 00:02:24.759 which would be Old Kingdom and pre Dynastic period and 34 00:02:25.360 --> 00:02:28.520 you follow it through to the New Kingdom or the 35 00:02:28.599 --> 00:02:34.479 Last Pharaoh Pharonic period. The earlier you go, for some reason, 36 00:02:34.560 --> 00:02:40.240 the carving style and the significance of the features is 37 00:02:40.280 --> 00:02:45.919 more defined. And the only way I can explain this 38 00:02:46.039 --> 00:02:51.759 is that the earlier periods have much more training, or 39 00:02:51.800 --> 00:02:55.759 they were much more selective in the artists who actually 40 00:02:55.759 --> 00:03:03.080 reproduced pharaohs or people as sculptures in some cases. And 41 00:03:03.120 --> 00:03:05.879 I mentioned this a couple of weeks ago. I used 42 00:03:05.919 --> 00:03:11.719 AI on the Ramsey's Too sculpture at Memphis, and it's 43 00:03:11.759 --> 00:03:15.159 partially broken. I mean the right leg is broken just 44 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:19.879 below the knee. It's missing part of an arm. The 45 00:03:19.919 --> 00:03:23.919 headdress has been damaged. The back, although you don't see it, 46 00:03:23.919 --> 00:03:26.280 it was laying in water, and so the back. You 47 00:03:26.360 --> 00:03:32.400 wrote it fairly significantly, and I ran it through a 48 00:03:32.599 --> 00:03:38.520 program on AI where I pieced together I actually laid 49 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:42.080 out the actual pieces that were missing or broken, and 50 00:03:42.159 --> 00:03:45.919 I reconstructed it. It came out beautiful. But what I 51 00:03:46.039 --> 00:03:51.319 discovered is that my guess was that it had been 52 00:03:51.360 --> 00:03:56.000 reproduced with machines. They had been cut with machines. AI 53 00:03:56.280 --> 00:04:00.319 corrected that for me, but did point out that whoever 54 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:07.199 carved it was a very very unique artistic person persona, 55 00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:11.439 And I'm beginning to think that there may have been 56 00:04:12.159 --> 00:04:17.360 machinery that was so sophisticated that perhaps they could reproduce 57 00:04:18.240 --> 00:04:25.040 human like cuts carved carved carving and facial features that 58 00:04:25.360 --> 00:04:31.240 maybe duplicated the human ability to carve stone. Now it 59 00:04:31.319 --> 00:04:34.560 does contradict that and say that the eyes are not 60 00:04:34.639 --> 00:04:37.839 quite the same, the nose, the nostrils are not quite 61 00:04:37.879 --> 00:04:41.480 the same. And one of the big tests that Chris 62 00:04:41.560 --> 00:04:43.959 Dunn developed is that you use a mirror effect. You 63 00:04:44.439 --> 00:04:46.600 put a mirror up down the middle of the nose 64 00:04:46.680 --> 00:04:50.120 and you take a photograph of the left side. You 65 00:04:50.160 --> 00:04:55.519 take a photograph of the mirror and the mirror image, 66 00:04:55.560 --> 00:04:59.199 and then you place it side by side, and if 67 00:04:59.240 --> 00:05:02.839 it looks the same, then it's likely to have been 68 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:06.879 carved by a machine. Now I have not gotten into 69 00:05:06.959 --> 00:05:10.800 the Ramsey two sculptures that are at Karnak and done 70 00:05:10.800 --> 00:05:14.879 that test with with AI to see if that is possible. 71 00:05:15.519 --> 00:05:18.120 But I have a feeling that AI is going to 72 00:05:18.360 --> 00:05:21.759 give me a hard time unless I write a prompt 73 00:05:21.759 --> 00:05:26.360 that says consider human elements in the carving as well 74 00:05:26.399 --> 00:05:30.079 as mechanical you know. And the big thing is that 75 00:05:31.399 --> 00:05:35.240 we can only judge technology by our own standards. And 76 00:05:35.240 --> 00:05:37.720 what that means is we don't have what We don't 77 00:05:37.720 --> 00:05:41.519 have the technology that they had back then. How do 78 00:05:41.600 --> 00:05:43.879 they power if they did have tools, how did they 79 00:05:43.879 --> 00:05:46.879 power them? If they had chisels, how did they power them? 80 00:05:46.920 --> 00:05:49.120 If they had sanders? What was the technique? What was that? 81 00:05:50.040 --> 00:05:53.279 So all the because we can't stretch like that, AI 82 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:56.000 is only going to be able to take the available data. 83 00:05:57.240 --> 00:05:58.759 So what you have to do is you have to 84 00:05:59.279 --> 00:06:03.279 create prompt which are very sophisticated questions that say, if 85 00:06:04.319 --> 00:06:08.600 there were machines and they had this type of cutting ability, 86 00:06:09.480 --> 00:06:11.519 would they be able to re So you had to 87 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:17.160 get into almost fabricating prompts these questions and kind of 88 00:06:18.199 --> 00:06:23.160 theorizing how this tool would cut or sand or polish. 89 00:06:23.959 --> 00:06:26.959 And this is what I fell into with Ramsey's too. 90 00:06:27.040 --> 00:06:31.639 This beautiful sculptures at Memphis, that's very elegant, and it 91 00:06:31.720 --> 00:06:34.319 was so well done that I immediately went, well, this 92 00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:39.199 is a machine cut, which I kind of want. The child, 93 00:06:39.199 --> 00:06:40.920 I mean wants it, but it's we had to get 94 00:06:40.959 --> 00:06:42.839 real and say, no, it wasn't cut. It was cut 95 00:06:42.879 --> 00:06:47.800 by humans, but their techniques were off the scales, and 96 00:06:48.360 --> 00:06:51.199 I had to figure out how we identify that, how 97 00:06:51.240 --> 00:06:56.920 we it's not aliens, But it's a different mindset because 98 00:06:56.959 --> 00:07:00.639 what the AI did pick up was a technique that 99 00:07:02.360 --> 00:07:06.319 extracted the luminosity of the stone. And what that means 100 00:07:06.399 --> 00:07:11.519 is when the light hits that Ramsey two sculpture, it is, 101 00:07:12.279 --> 00:07:15.759 it is on display, It's self reflective. It's just the 102 00:07:15.920 --> 00:07:18.600 work of genius, I guess, is what I'm trying to say. 103 00:07:18.720 --> 00:07:22.319 So you're gonna see a lot of this in upcoming 104 00:07:22.399 --> 00:07:25.759 episodes and also on the Facebook page, and I'm also 105 00:07:25.800 --> 00:07:28.959 going to put some on the Earth Ancient's website as well. 106 00:07:29.079 --> 00:07:33.839 So lots to consider, lots to be excited about, and 107 00:07:34.399 --> 00:07:36.120 I just can't wait. We're coming up to it very 108 00:07:36.160 --> 00:07:41.600 soon and I'll be continue to announce it as we 109 00:07:41.680 --> 00:07:47.560 get closer. Now, today's program is on intersecting and being 110 00:07:47.639 --> 00:07:51.079 in nature, and I was thinking about the upcoming tour. 111 00:07:51.319 --> 00:07:57.079 And when you're in the desert, it's warm, it's sandy, 112 00:07:58.279 --> 00:07:59.920 there's not a lot of foliage, there's not a lot 113 00:07:59.920 --> 00:08:03.040 of greenery. But you're also in a different part of 114 00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:06.839 the world. And so if you quiet yourself and you 115 00:08:06.959 --> 00:08:09.639 relax and don't get too charged, you can I have 116 00:08:09.720 --> 00:08:15.199 done this before, you can actually settle into that environment. Uh. 117 00:08:15.720 --> 00:08:20.279 But my mind is constantly racing because we're we're we're 118 00:08:20.279 --> 00:08:24.319 going to places that are just amazing. And when you 119 00:08:24.360 --> 00:08:27.040 see these temples, it just you just stop. And they 120 00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:31.759 were able to plug in. They could take a temple, 121 00:08:31.879 --> 00:08:34.759 they plugged into the energy of the area. They built 122 00:08:34.759 --> 00:08:38.639 these pyramids, they plugged in to the Tulleric energy. Uh. 123 00:08:38.679 --> 00:08:42.000 And these statues and I'm I really think they're pre 124 00:08:43.279 --> 00:08:49.159 pre pheronic statues. They're plugged in. They're plugged in too 125 00:08:50.879 --> 00:08:53.600 to show what they're what stone can do with light, 126 00:08:54.200 --> 00:08:59.600 which you can do with your mind, and it's amazing. So, uh, 127 00:08:59.679 --> 00:09:04.799 today this program is on connecting with nature and I've 128 00:09:05.000 --> 00:09:07.960 spoken about this a lot. It's really critical that we 129 00:09:08.039 --> 00:09:11.600 get out and we commune and that can be a 130 00:09:11.639 --> 00:09:13.519 twenty minute walk. You know. It's funny. I was at 131 00:09:13.519 --> 00:09:17.399 my doctors the other day and he's I changed my doctor. 132 00:09:18.159 --> 00:09:22.399 This new doctor is a do O doctor of ostio osteopath. 133 00:09:23.279 --> 00:09:27.799 He's an osteopath and it's more connective tissue and bone 134 00:09:27.840 --> 00:09:30.639 and stuff like that. And he was reminding me and 135 00:09:30.639 --> 00:09:33.080 he had a post d on his wall thirty minutes 136 00:09:33.120 --> 00:09:40.240 a day to stay well walking, resistance training, but mostly walking. 137 00:09:40.919 --> 00:09:43.480 And that's what we were talking about in our interview 138 00:09:43.519 --> 00:09:47.679 today is getting out for a short walk thirty minutes minimum, 139 00:09:47.879 --> 00:09:51.240 longer if you can do it, and shutting down the 140 00:09:51.279 --> 00:09:56.879 monkey brain and releasing to nature. And that's really critical. 141 00:09:56.919 --> 00:09:59.519 And I was like, I'll do it once or fice 142 00:09:59.519 --> 00:10:01.600 a week, but it's it's really important to do it 143 00:10:01.639 --> 00:10:04.440 at least once a day. And I'm like, okay, and 144 00:10:04.480 --> 00:10:06.759 the older you get the more you feel it. When 145 00:10:06.799 --> 00:10:10.879 you're younger, everything's firing, all your pistons are firing, and 146 00:10:10.919 --> 00:10:13.799 you're like, I don't need to do anything. I was 147 00:10:13.879 --> 00:10:16.919 gonna sit and watch TV. But no. When you get older, 148 00:10:16.919 --> 00:10:20.600 your body's like reminding you get yourself up and do 149 00:10:20.679 --> 00:10:24.480 something for thirty minutes so that we you know, cleanse 150 00:10:24.600 --> 00:10:30.279 the blood, cleanse the liver, processed stuff, and if you 151 00:10:30.320 --> 00:10:36.120 have anxiety, depression, have emotional challenges, it really opens the 152 00:10:36.159 --> 00:10:38.919 brain and allows you to settle in a little bit. 153 00:10:39.000 --> 00:10:44.919 So today's program is Wisdom from the Woods and my 154 00:10:45.279 --> 00:10:50.360 guest is psychologist Mark Lengenfeld. It's coming to us from Minnesota. 155 00:10:50.559 --> 00:11:29.159 So I hope you enjoy the program, as you guys 156 00:11:29.240 --> 00:11:32.399 know if you listen to Destiny each week. I am 157 00:11:32.440 --> 00:11:36.720 a big advocate of being in nature and we don't 158 00:11:37.440 --> 00:11:40.799 commune enough. And I'm here in northern California and I 159 00:11:40.879 --> 00:11:43.200 have access to some of the most beautiful places in 160 00:11:43.240 --> 00:11:47.039 the world, but I don't get out enough, and I 161 00:11:47.080 --> 00:11:50.960 think it's important to do that. My guest today is 162 00:11:51.159 --> 00:11:55.240 Mark Langenfeld, and he has written a book called Wisdom 163 00:11:55.679 --> 00:11:59.360 from the Woods. A Year of gentle Guidance from Mother nature, 164 00:12:00.279 --> 00:12:04.039 And this is a great opportunity not only to connect 165 00:12:04.039 --> 00:12:08.360 with somebody who's very thoughtful about nature, but he has 166 00:12:08.679 --> 00:12:13.639 fifty two different sections of this book, which translates to 167 00:12:14.279 --> 00:12:16.240 the number of weeks in a year. And so we're 168 00:12:16.240 --> 00:12:18.600 going to learn all about this. So hey, Mark, welcome 169 00:12:18.679 --> 00:12:21.320 to Destiny. Great to have you on the program. 170 00:12:21.840 --> 00:12:23.039 Thank you glad to be here. 171 00:12:23.519 --> 00:12:25.840 Talk a little bit about this book. I mean I 172 00:12:25.879 --> 00:12:28.039 had a good chance to get into it a little bit. 173 00:12:28.240 --> 00:12:32.200 It seems that you're very connected to nature. But why 174 00:12:33.039 --> 00:12:38.240 a complimentary book towards a year? What was that all about? 175 00:12:39.159 --> 00:12:43.960 It is intended to be a devotional book so that 176 00:12:44.000 --> 00:12:47.840 a person can read one chapter per week if they like. 177 00:12:48.399 --> 00:12:52.039 And because the chapters are not in consecutive order, you 178 00:12:52.080 --> 00:12:54.960 can jump around. You can pick any chapter you like 179 00:12:55.039 --> 00:12:57.559 and say, oh, well today I want to read about 180 00:12:58.039 --> 00:13:03.799 ravens or about wolves, are about trees? You can jump around. 181 00:13:04.200 --> 00:13:08.600 It doesn't matter. It's just a weakly devotional okay. 182 00:13:09.679 --> 00:13:14.919 And as somebody who is very much connected with nature, 183 00:13:14.960 --> 00:13:19.480 which I believe you are, what does nature have to 184 00:13:19.600 --> 00:13:22.960 teach us those of us who were locked in our 185 00:13:23.080 --> 00:13:29.000 chair facing the computer and doing our daily chores. I 186 00:13:29.000 --> 00:13:33.320 would say obligations are daily obligations. But what does nature 187 00:13:33.919 --> 00:13:36.080 have to teach us? 188 00:13:36.799 --> 00:13:42.639 Well, my first thought is everything. However, I'll speak just 189 00:13:42.679 --> 00:13:45.440 for myself because I don't know what Mother Nature might 190 00:13:45.519 --> 00:13:49.200 have in store for teaching other people. For me, mother 191 00:13:49.320 --> 00:13:54.679 Nature teaches me common sense things that are right in 192 00:13:54.720 --> 00:13:57.799 front of me and right around me in my daily life, 193 00:13:57.799 --> 00:14:02.200 but I don't recognize them. Is as simple as notice 194 00:14:02.240 --> 00:14:06.639 how peacefully the clouds are going by. I too should 195 00:14:06.720 --> 00:14:09.879 let my mind be peaceful. The clouds are not in 196 00:14:09.919 --> 00:14:13.440 a rush. I look at the trees and I say, Okay, 197 00:14:13.919 --> 00:14:17.840 they're all separate trees, but on a higher level, their 198 00:14:17.879 --> 00:14:23.559 branches interconnect. We too are interconnected. There's all these nature 199 00:14:23.600 --> 00:14:28.480 metaphors that can help us and promote our overall well being. 200 00:14:29.320 --> 00:14:33.679 So what mother Nature has for me is pointing out simple, 201 00:14:33.799 --> 00:14:38.000 common sense things that I may not notice because I'm 202 00:14:38.039 --> 00:14:40.440 so busy in the human life. 203 00:14:41.240 --> 00:14:44.759 Yeah, I should mention to our listeners that you practice 204 00:14:44.840 --> 00:14:50.679 a blend of Paganism and Buddhism, Buddhist meditation. And I 205 00:14:50.720 --> 00:14:53.440 am a meditator. If I don't meditate once a day, 206 00:14:53.480 --> 00:14:57.080 I might I don't function very well. But when you're 207 00:14:57.120 --> 00:15:04.919 in nature. You call it a gentle guidance is brought forth? 208 00:15:04.960 --> 00:15:08.519 What is that gentle guidance? Is it just because for me, 209 00:15:09.519 --> 00:15:12.960 I tend to shift when I'm starting to walk on 210 00:15:13.039 --> 00:15:17.799 a nature path, and I'm shifting because my mind is 211 00:15:17.840 --> 00:15:21.559 not occupied by the daily activities anymore. I'm kind of 212 00:15:22.279 --> 00:15:27.120 shifting towards the energy of nature, if you want to 213 00:15:27.159 --> 00:15:30.639 call it that. But what what is gentle guidance? I 214 00:15:30.759 --> 00:15:31.759 like that term. 215 00:15:33.240 --> 00:15:37.720 It's suggestions. Mother nature doesn't just run you over and 216 00:15:38.399 --> 00:15:41.639 bark orders. You know. Mother nature is not a dictator. 217 00:15:42.159 --> 00:15:45.840 And so the gentle guidance is these lessons are here 218 00:15:46.919 --> 00:15:50.360 if you want to notice them. They can remind you, 219 00:15:51.519 --> 00:15:56.480 They can teach you things if you're aware. And when 220 00:15:56.519 --> 00:16:01.360 you talk about going into nature and kind of, you know, 221 00:16:01.480 --> 00:16:05.720 forgetting about the technical world, I think of it as 222 00:16:08.320 --> 00:16:14.240 disappearing because when I go into nature, there's nobody else 223 00:16:14.279 --> 00:16:17.840 around to tell me whom I'm supposed to be, and 224 00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:22.799 I forget all these labels that society puts on me. 225 00:16:23.279 --> 00:16:31.320 Society labels me as a man, white, gay, middle age, 226 00:16:32.559 --> 00:16:35.879 on and on. They label me according to my profession. 227 00:16:36.559 --> 00:16:40.360 They label me all these things. And when I'm out 228 00:16:40.399 --> 00:16:44.600 around other people. They see those things and they assess me, 229 00:16:45.279 --> 00:16:50.399 and I can see people's faces change when I tell them, oh, yes, 230 00:16:50.960 --> 00:16:54.039 I have a doctorate in clinical psychology, and they kind 231 00:16:54.039 --> 00:16:56.879 of take a step back, like, oh, have you been 232 00:16:57.120 --> 00:16:59.080 analyzing me this whole time? 233 00:16:59.360 --> 00:17:00.000 Exactly? 234 00:17:00.000 --> 00:17:03.200 It's like, please don't put labels on me. When I 235 00:17:03.240 --> 00:17:06.960 go out into the woods, all those labels disappear, and 236 00:17:07.039 --> 00:17:12.359 I feel as though temporarily my identity is disappearing, and 237 00:17:12.519 --> 00:17:18.359 beneficially I am then one with nature, not separate. I 238 00:17:18.400 --> 00:17:23.240 am absorbed into nature. All those labels fall away, and 239 00:17:23.319 --> 00:17:26.519 now I am one with mother Nature, and that's a 240 00:17:26.599 --> 00:17:27.599 wonderful feeling. 241 00:17:30.720 --> 00:17:38.200 Tell us about your interactions with nature. For me, it's 242 00:17:39.720 --> 00:17:42.559 getting back to the roots of who I am in 243 00:17:42.559 --> 00:17:45.519 a way, because I think we're nature children in a way. 244 00:17:45.599 --> 00:17:49.240 We're from the earth. Oh yeah, ashes to ashes, dust 245 00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:54.480 to dust, right, And if we're not communing, if we're 246 00:17:54.480 --> 00:18:00.319 not connecting, we lose some of our humanity, don't we. 247 00:18:00.319 --> 00:18:08.960 Oh sure? So image ahead, Excuse me for interrupting. We 248 00:18:09.079 --> 00:18:13.359 just get this distorted image that somehow humans are separate 249 00:18:13.880 --> 00:18:19.559 from nature or above nature. And when I was a child, 250 00:18:19.759 --> 00:18:24.480 I was raised to be Christian and was taught that 251 00:18:25.680 --> 00:18:31.759 humans were supposed to have headship lordship over nature, that 252 00:18:32.079 --> 00:18:37.000 somehow we are to rule over nature. I'm not saying 253 00:18:37.079 --> 00:18:41.400 that's every Christian point of view, but the Christianity that 254 00:18:41.480 --> 00:18:45.240 I grew up in believed that humans are here to 255 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:51.480 dominate and rule over nature. And as I felt my 256 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:57.880 calling into Earth's spirituality and paganism, I realize that I'm 257 00:18:57.920 --> 00:19:03.240 not here to rule. I'm of equal with nature, not 258 00:19:03.480 --> 00:19:07.480 separate from it. So it can be very I think, 259 00:19:07.599 --> 00:19:12.039 damaging to a person's emotional wellbeing if they think of 260 00:19:12.079 --> 00:19:14.960 themselves as somehow detached from nature. 261 00:19:18.279 --> 00:19:22.640 Can you give us your best explanation for what happens 262 00:19:22.640 --> 00:19:27.880 when we enter a natural setting and why it's critical 263 00:19:27.960 --> 00:19:31.319 to reconnect, especially those of us who live in the 264 00:19:31.319 --> 00:19:36.119 city who don't have access to the nearby forest. Why 265 00:19:36.240 --> 00:19:39.079 is it important as a human being to connect? 266 00:19:42.480 --> 00:19:48.440 Because metaphorically it helps us walk with earthly feet, it 267 00:19:48.480 --> 00:19:55.680 helps us be grounded emotionally, it's good for our mental health. 268 00:19:56.200 --> 00:19:58.720 I can only speak for myself. It is good for 269 00:19:58.880 --> 00:20:03.880 my mental health. It's vitally crucial to remember who we 270 00:20:03.920 --> 00:20:09.079 are and where we came from. We did not just 271 00:20:09.240 --> 00:20:16.440 drop out of thin air. We came from nature, and 272 00:20:16.559 --> 00:20:20.839 biologically speaking, touching on a little bit of neural psychology, 273 00:20:21.599 --> 00:20:25.960 it's the prefrontal cortex behind the forehead here that really 274 00:20:26.000 --> 00:20:29.759 separates us from other animals. And it's the prefrontal cortex 275 00:20:30.480 --> 00:20:35.039 that makes us plant for the future, gives us moral reasoning, 276 00:20:35.880 --> 00:20:40.559 helps us intellectualize, while the downside of all that intellectualizing 277 00:20:40.720 --> 00:20:44.400 is we kind of forget about our animal instincts. So 278 00:20:44.519 --> 00:20:48.079 when you talk about entering the woods, even for people 279 00:20:48.119 --> 00:20:51.400 who live in the city, just going into your yard, 280 00:20:51.880 --> 00:20:56.079 going into the city park, touching the earth, walking on 281 00:20:56.119 --> 00:21:00.720 the earth, touching the tree, hearing the birds, all of 282 00:21:00.759 --> 00:21:06.920 those things reactivate our instincts. And again, if I can 283 00:21:06.920 --> 00:21:10.880 talk a little bit about psychophysiology, our instincts reside in 284 00:21:10.920 --> 00:21:15.559 the center of our brain called the amygdala, named after 285 00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:19.599 the almend because it's almond shaped. The amygdala is our 286 00:21:19.680 --> 00:21:26.319 primal self. And so when we reactivate our primal self 287 00:21:26.559 --> 00:21:31.000 in nature, we're remembering and that can go back all 288 00:21:31.079 --> 00:21:37.240 the way to our cellular memory. Our ancestors passed on 289 00:21:38.880 --> 00:21:45.880 their knowledge, particular about survival, into our DNA. How do 290 00:21:45.960 --> 00:21:50.920 I know this because we have instincts One of the 291 00:21:51.319 --> 00:21:53.599 classes that I teach is intro to psych and we 292 00:21:53.680 --> 00:21:57.519 have a chapter on neuropsychology. We have a chapter on 293 00:21:58.200 --> 00:22:03.000 instincts and biology. Well, look up the definition of instincts. 294 00:22:03.039 --> 00:22:08.160 What does it mean? The literal definition of instinct is 295 00:22:10.160 --> 00:22:18.279 unlearned behavior. Whoa now hold on? How did we get 296 00:22:18.880 --> 00:22:23.880 unlearned behavior? Where did that come from? Well, clearly it 297 00:22:23.920 --> 00:22:27.680 came from our genes. Where did we get our genes from? 298 00:22:28.519 --> 00:22:34.640 From our ancestors? Our ancestors passed down their knowledge, and 299 00:22:34.839 --> 00:22:40.079 it's emphasized that most of that instinct deals with survival. 300 00:22:40.440 --> 00:22:45.680 So the ancestors are passing down their instinctual knowledge about 301 00:22:45.759 --> 00:22:50.279 survival on a genetic level. When we inherited our genetic 302 00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:55.599 endullment from our mothers and fathers, we got their genes, 303 00:22:55.880 --> 00:22:59.799 we got their instincts. And so when you go back 304 00:22:59.839 --> 00:23:05.680 and to nature, I've experienced it where mother Nature reactivates 305 00:23:05.759 --> 00:23:10.559 those instincts and then we're reminded of our primal self. 306 00:23:11.000 --> 00:23:11.960 Does that make sense? 307 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:17.559 Yeah, it does, and you explained it very well. You 308 00:23:17.599 --> 00:23:22.359 said something about observing that I would like to emphasize, 309 00:23:22.640 --> 00:23:29.640 and you actually write about it. We move too fast 310 00:23:29.759 --> 00:23:34.400 in our daily lives and we're not slowing down to 311 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:39.480 observe things as they happen. And I think the point 312 00:23:39.519 --> 00:23:42.839 you were making is that when we're in nature, we're 313 00:23:42.920 --> 00:23:48.160 forced to slow down to connect with the natural world. 314 00:23:48.960 --> 00:23:52.759 Can you talk a little bit about the importance of 315 00:23:53.920 --> 00:24:00.200 observing nature and why that is helpful and perhaps healing 316 00:24:00.559 --> 00:24:02.400 to the body. 317 00:24:03.160 --> 00:24:09.000 Yeah, it is important and healing to observe nature because 318 00:24:11.200 --> 00:24:14.240 in my experience, and I acknowledge that other people might 319 00:24:14.279 --> 00:24:19.839 have different experiences, in my experience, nature doesn't shout, she whispers, 320 00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:25.319 and in order to hear Mother Nature whisper, you need 321 00:24:25.359 --> 00:24:31.000 to be quiet, and I need to be still. And usually, 322 00:24:31.440 --> 00:24:36.200 almost always, the metaphors that I receive from the Great 323 00:24:36.240 --> 00:24:40.279 Earth Mother come in the form of an animal or 324 00:24:40.319 --> 00:24:45.599 a plant, or a cloud or water or trees acting 325 00:24:46.599 --> 00:24:50.799 in a certain way. And then they don't say things. 326 00:24:53.039 --> 00:24:58.319 For example, the owl is watchful, and she doesn't look 327 00:24:58.319 --> 00:25:02.039 at me and say you too should be watchful. Instead, 328 00:25:02.440 --> 00:25:08.359 she just demonstrates the behavior. All of these nature metaphors 329 00:25:08.480 --> 00:25:14.039 are simply ways that Mother Nature is showing demonstrating being 330 00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:18.480 a role model. And so I see, how huh? The 331 00:25:18.519 --> 00:25:22.440 owl is watching and observing, and the owl is a 332 00:25:22.559 --> 00:25:26.599 very good listener, and I think to myself, Okay, I've 333 00:25:26.640 --> 00:25:32.319 worked as a counselor. What are counselors? They're listeners, And 334 00:25:32.359 --> 00:25:37.240 so the owl became a metaphor for me for counseling. 335 00:25:38.200 --> 00:25:41.160 That's why it's good to slow down so that you 336 00:25:41.240 --> 00:25:46.319 can notice what mother nature is modeling for you. It's 337 00:25:46.359 --> 00:25:49.200 not going to be a written message on the tree trunk. 338 00:25:49.720 --> 00:25:53.279 It's going to be do as I do. That's usually 339 00:25:53.359 --> 00:25:56.359 the message that I get from any of these animals 340 00:25:56.400 --> 00:26:01.000 and clients and whatnot. Do as I do? Is it 341 00:26:01.039 --> 00:26:04.480 a time to sit and take care of myself like 342 00:26:04.720 --> 00:26:07.680 perhaps an animal? Is Is it a time to grow 343 00:26:07.720 --> 00:26:11.400 and blossom like a flower? Is it a time to 344 00:26:11.519 --> 00:26:17.799 let my waters be still like the morning lake. They're 345 00:26:17.839 --> 00:26:21.039 modeling things for us, and we need to be slow 346 00:26:21.119 --> 00:26:24.240 and still and quiet to receive those messages. 347 00:26:24.680 --> 00:26:28.039 Yeah. I like that explanation. I try to get out 348 00:26:28.079 --> 00:26:31.519 at least three or four times a week to just 349 00:26:31.759 --> 00:26:39.640 walk and dump the stresses of the job. And if 350 00:26:39.680 --> 00:26:43.960 I don't do that, I find that my thoughts are 351 00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:50.319 backing up and then I'm having more headaches and other 352 00:26:50.519 --> 00:26:56.160 issues like that. So it's actually critically important to connect 353 00:26:56.319 --> 00:27:00.599 in some manner. And I like your reference to the 354 00:27:00.680 --> 00:27:03.559 local parks. If you're in a big city someplace where 355 00:27:03.599 --> 00:27:08.240 there's a dirt and foliage, that's important, right, It's not 356 00:27:08.480 --> 00:27:12.960 necessarily I guess you could also walk in a sidewalk 357 00:27:13.759 --> 00:27:16.680 and pass your neighbors home and things like that that 358 00:27:16.799 --> 00:27:20.200 have foliage and things like that. But is there a 359 00:27:20.240 --> 00:27:25.759 great difference between a forest and a neighborhood garden in 360 00:27:25.880 --> 00:27:29.200 your walk in your I gotta call it a recovery. 361 00:27:28.640 --> 00:27:34.799 Period, right, Well, yes, there are differences. However, either one 362 00:27:34.839 --> 00:27:40.240 can be very healing. Certainly, when I go into a forest, 363 00:27:40.759 --> 00:27:45.000 as I mentioned, I kind of disappear because all my 364 00:27:45.079 --> 00:27:50.079 labels drop away. I don't necessarily get that during the 365 00:27:50.160 --> 00:27:53.519 daytime in a city park, but I do when I 366 00:27:53.559 --> 00:27:56.799 go out from my nightly walks. I particularly like to 367 00:27:56.839 --> 00:28:02.480 walk in the full moonlight. And of course, depending on 368 00:28:02.559 --> 00:28:06.480 the crime rate in your neighborhood, you might or might 369 00:28:06.559 --> 00:28:09.160 not want to walk out at night. But when I 370 00:28:09.200 --> 00:28:13.480 walk out at night, there's no one else around, and 371 00:28:14.480 --> 00:28:18.039 I have to acknowledge. It dawned on me as I 372 00:28:18.119 --> 00:28:20.640 was walking through the woods at night because one of 373 00:28:20.680 --> 00:28:23.079 the reasons why the cover of this book is Blue 374 00:28:23.480 --> 00:28:27.400 is because I mentioned to Llewellyn the publishers, I go 375 00:28:27.519 --> 00:28:30.599 into the woods a lot in the moonlight. Now here's 376 00:28:30.640 --> 00:28:35.640 something that dawned on me. I wouldn't feel safe doing 377 00:28:35.720 --> 00:28:39.519 that if I were a woman, So in a way 378 00:28:39.680 --> 00:28:43.279 I had to acknowledge, at least to myself, this is 379 00:28:43.319 --> 00:28:46.519 an example of male privilege. I can go into the 380 00:28:46.519 --> 00:28:49.960 woods at night and not need to worry about being assaulted. 381 00:28:50.480 --> 00:28:53.279 I wouldn't do that if I were a woman, especially 382 00:28:53.279 --> 00:28:56.559 if I were going into the woods alone. So I 383 00:28:56.680 --> 00:28:59.720 mentioned at the very first couple of pages of my 384 00:28:59.720 --> 00:29:03.079 book a little disclaimer, Please be safe when you go 385 00:29:03.160 --> 00:29:06.000 into the woods, because I don't want people to get hurt, 386 00:29:06.440 --> 00:29:09.519 you know, trying to connect with mother nature. But to 387 00:29:09.680 --> 00:29:13.920 your question, yes, there is a difference between just being 388 00:29:13.960 --> 00:29:16.839 in the city park and being deep in the woods. 389 00:29:17.440 --> 00:29:22.720 And the difference is the level of distractions. When I'm 390 00:29:22.759 --> 00:29:26.079 in a city park, I hear the airplanes overhead, the 391 00:29:26.160 --> 00:29:31.480 traffic going by, the buses, people, perhaps you know, children 392 00:29:31.519 --> 00:29:35.319 at play making noise. When I'm in the woods, I 393 00:29:35.400 --> 00:29:39.400 hear the water running from the creek or the lake, 394 00:29:39.640 --> 00:29:44.559 the waves, the birds, and so I'm more absorbed by 395 00:29:44.680 --> 00:29:46.799 nature when I'm in the woods. 396 00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:52.640 Yeah, and so the healing isn't as profound, I think, 397 00:29:52.720 --> 00:29:57.039 is what you're suggesting. If it's a city walk over 398 00:29:57.119 --> 00:30:03.799 a forest walk. We're gonna take a short commercial break 399 00:30:03.839 --> 00:30:07.599 to allow our sponsors to identify themselves, and we will 400 00:30:07.680 --> 00:30:13.160 return shortly with my guest today, Mark Langenfeld, discussing his 401 00:30:13.359 --> 00:30:20.440