“People use tattoos to get over emotional pain, as a form of healing. Tattooing is my way of giving my love back to the world.” - Nathalie Standingcloud Do you have any tattoos? If so, what do they say about you? If not, have you ever thought about getting one? What story would you want that tattoo to tell? https://wilddialogs.substack.com/p/origins-skin-deep-e66?r=13nlz

Many of you may already know Rachel Carson, but for those who don't, she has been a heroine of mine for decades. She was a marine biologist and nature writer whose book, "Silent Spring," ignited the global environmental protection movement. In it she outlined the dangers of pesticides - asking her readers to imagine a world in which we no longer had bird songs because they'd all been poisoned. The book led to a nationwide ban on DDT and other pesticides and ultimately led to the creation of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). An amazing woman.

So here is my first attempt at nature drawing on my dry erase board. It is not perfect, but it was FUN! The quote is from Gary Snyder, an American poet, essayist, and environmental activist. Please choose a poem by Snyder and share it with us (drawing is optional) during the week. Tell us why you chose it and what about it appeals to you. One of my favs is: HOW POETRY COMES TO ME It comes blundering over the Boulders at night, it stays Frightened outside the Range of my campfire I go to meet it at the Edge of the light - Gary Snyder P.S. I hope you'll give the drawing a try. It's a great way to turn your noisy mind off.

Have you ever heard of a Buddha Board? It's a reusable drawing board that looks like a dry erase board, but instead of markers, you use a brush dipped in water to write. As the water dries, whatever you wrote (or drew) on the board disappears. We will be doing something similar, writing one quote per week on our board, then using that quote to inspire us. You can post a favorite quote, photo, sketch or poem of your own or simply talk about what came to mind when you read what was written on our board. The only rule is that whatever you share should be related to animals and/or nature. A new quote will be posted every Monday. If you've got a quote you'd like to share, please DM me. Be sure to include the author of the quote. For example, this week's quote is from John Muir. Have fun! P.S. The past week's quote disappears on Sunday night :-)