As we enter the second half of the year, I’m curious, Reader, how are your EarthCare goals coming along?

Many of us commit to something for the year. But we might also find ourselves halfway through it wondering where the time went or further behind than we had hoped.

Sometimes, in that push to reach our goals, life has a way of forcing us to slow down.

In early 2024, I was on my knees, apologizing to my brain and body for how I had treated them/us. I had become bedridden with a serious illness, unable to work or think clearly for five weeks.

In the midst of building my ecological landscaping business, following my passion, helping others find a deeper connection with Nature, annnnd holding space for the huge vision I am carrying (with a team to support too)… I lost track of my own body’s wellness.

I was treating my body as a tool for labor, rather than a living system.

And that started to ruin everything.

I was living in a cycle of push-then-crash every Spring (push), Summer (crash), Fall (push), and Winter (crash). The winter of 2024 was a brutal wake-up call. One I hope to help you avoid by sharing my new guiding principle: body-first or bust.

Even now, it’s not perfect. I fall behind on emails, client work, projects and so much more.

But instead of falling behind because I was pushing, I have been prioritizing time in the gym, nourishing myself properly, and spending more time in Nature.

If you’re feeling burnout creep up, I urge you to listen to that. Because when you ignore it, everything else starts to collapse. I’d already burned out in 2023 (and likely multiple times before), and slowed things down intentionally, but had not yet realized the essential importance of a body-first business value.

Let's talk about this from an EarthCare perespective.

In permaculture (where "earth care" is a core ethic), we map our Place/land in Zones.

When planning our gardens, the things that require daily attention are wisest to place in Zone 1, where you will see them often and remember to tend to them. Take that note home today, Reader!

But there’s a zone many of us leave off the map entirely: Zone 00 - our body.

Our bodies are our personal patch of Nature. Our bodies carry us into the world, across the land, and through all our relationships. Our bodies are how we interface with the living world.

This is why I often say true EarthCare is selfcare (and vice versa).

The attention required to tend other zones comes from our body/brain, and we must learn to choose it first, even when the external world tugs at us.

It’s a lesson I learned the hard way: to keep my body and nervous system as a primary organizing principle, rather than my to-do list. It takes time to tend to our own bodies (and mind, spirit, heart) as part of the whole system, part of Nature.

I know you’re passionate about protecting Nature. Me too.

But to preserve our ability to make an impact for the planet, we must protect ourselves from burning out. I believe this more than ever as I get older and need more and more space to continue this work.

If you’re a creative, entrepreneurial person pouring yourself endlessly into work, I urge you to pull away from the screen, your full inbox, and the endless to-do list. On June 15, I am co-hosting a daylong Nature retreat with Zoe from Wild Minds. ​ You’re invited to be held by the land and guided through writing exercises, visualization, song, and movement. You'll be guided in discussion with other creative entrepreneur-types as well. We will encounter the wild unknown in Zone 4 and drop into the depths of Zone 00 as well. It’s an opportunity to choose to get curious about what happens when we slow down, listen to what is emerging in your body/gut, and envision your next steps from a renewed sense of joy and purpose. ​Learn more here and register for this day-long retreat with us!​ And if this isn't for you, I'm creating more live experiences like this soon for you :)

The tension may not fully go away in a day, but we can learn to choose ourselves, because the alternative costs so much more. It is so much harder to heal than to prevent.

Aside from retreats, here are some other ways I have committed to prioritizing my body first:

• Leaving my phone downstairs while I sleep; candlelight before bed
• Waking up to bird song and sunlight instead of an alarm
• Drinking electrolytes in my water, and no alcohol/poisons
• Movement. Stretching, dancing, working out to build strength, gardening
• Sharing stories with friends, in my journal, and in this newsletter
• Wandering and walking about without distractions (no headphones or chatter)
• Giving myself permission to shift deadlines, priorities, meetings, etc
• Singing. Alone, in the car, in the woods, while doing laundry, and in song circles

All of these make it easier to be in alignment with what is healthier for my body. Your list might look different, but these have been big game-changers in my life, and they are all free.

The same way you’d check on seedlings in Zone 1, we can check in with our Zone 00 basic needs, and make choices to remove what’s harmful, and adapt to what’s helpful.

Our bodies are our first direct experience with a reciprocal relationship with Nature. Without this foundation, everything else… your vision, your work, your relationships begin to wither.

Even though the amount of work to do out there can feel pressing, tending to our body's wellbeing FIRST is an essential step in growing our impact sustainably.

And the result, Reader?

Everything goes better, even when it feels uncomfortable (or even worse, at first).

This is where EarthCare begins, within our most personal part of Nature - our body.

So, tell me about your Zone 00. I read all of your replies <3

Over the next few newsletters, I’ll be sharing more about my Place, how to find yours, and ways to get to know it better. But it all starts in your body, as a living part of the natural world.

Stay wild and well,

Kendra

Ps. Wherever you are: reaching your goals, or running on fumes, how is your Zone 00? Hit reply!

PPS. Join me to put this into practice on June 15th with Zoe of Wild Minds in one of my favorite places near the Appalachian Trail - a day in nature, to slow down, listen to your body and encounter the wild unknown, with other creative entrepreneurs. - learn more here.​

Written by a human - Kendra Marie Hoffman

​​“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” – Jane Goodall