Like a River

by Lindsay Roznowski, LPC

This past year, I read John O’Donohue’s poem “Fluent” for the first time, and it hit me right in the chest—simple, poignant, and beautiful. It goes like this:

I would love to live

Like a river flows,

Carried by the surprise

Of its own unfolding. 

These words spoke to me for a number of different reasons—the nature-inspired aspirations; the themes of fluidity, change, and personal growth; the release of control and the acceptance of what is; the focus on curiosity and surprise, and the wild loyalty to remain present in each sacred moment. The natural world has such gifts to offer.

With the beginning of 2026 upon us, I reflected on how this poem — and the image of the river — can be a reminder and guide for how I move through the next twelve months. Many of us have created goals or resolutions for the new year, informed by how we thought 2025 went. So how can I be more like a river? Adult life can get us tangled up — so many concerns take us out of the moment and into our heads. Whether it be work, paying bills, health issues, or navigating relationships, the mental gymnastics of trying to decode “what to do” can keep us in our heads, searching for some sense of control. In Brene Brown’s book, Atlas of the Heart, she posits that when we feel like things are uncertain or too much, we go to the following places in our heads: stress, overwhelm, anxiety, worry, avoidance, dread, and fear. Being in our heads excessively — and flooded with these intense emotions — can rob us of the present moment. When we allow these thoughts and fears to dominate our energy, our thoughts can become quite toxic and create disconnection with ourselves and our loved ones. 

Consider the image of a river. Even when leaves, branches, and debris drop into it, it doesn’t stagnate but instead continues to flow. It doesn’t wonder why the leaves are there or what to do with them. It continues to be a river, to flow, to move downhill, around bends, towards the ocean. 

So as we break out our new 2026 calendars, let’s ask ourselves: “How can I be more like a river?” Here are some additional thoughts for reflection as you begin the year: 

• How can I allow myself more flow?
• How can I use movement and breath to become more present in each moment?
• How can I more intentionally welcome the unexpected turns of life’s new moments?
• How can I embrace changes as a process of evolution and do the good work to get unstuck from old patterns? 
• How can I release some control and attachment to what I think my path should look like and embrace the beauty of what it actually is? 

Wishing you happiness, presence, and flow in 2026.

Lindsay Roznowski, LPC, specializes in supporting children, teens, and adults in navigating life stressors, finding ease from anxiety, and tapping into their strengths and innate resilience. She integrates mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, positive psychology, nature-informed therapy, and a yoga training background to co-create conditions for optimal healing and well-being. She offers walk-and-talk therapy sessions in the outdoors to those interested. Starting in Spring 2026, she’ll also be offering seasonal nature-inspired therapeutic workshops — so stay tuned! To learn more, see her website at bloomwellnesscounseling.com and contact her at lindsay@bloomwellnesscounseling.com or 215-326-9665. 

Fresh Fall: A Season for Letting Go

by Therese Daniels, LPC, CNIT

Ever since my children have been school aged, we’ve started using the term “Fresh Fall.” As far as I am concerned, the school year calendar holds a lot more meaning and determines a lot more of my life’s direction than the general year calendar. So not only does the air feel more fresh and crisp, for us it is a time for new routines, new haircuts, new clothes, new activities, new workout plans, and new eating habits. Things return to a steadier flow, settling from the wild, sweet freedom of summer. 

In my experience, the beginning of new things usually means the release of something old. As the seasons shift and the air turns crisp, autumn reminds us of the beauty of letting go. A belief I hold close to my heart, one that guides me through the waves of the year, is that we are meant to follow nature’s lead through the seasons. Just as the trees release their leaves, we, too, can use this season of fall, to release what no longer serves us. This may include old habits, toxic situations, lingering worries, or heavy emotions. The falling leaves are not a sign of loss but of nature’s pure wisdom. Nature is preparing for rest, renewal, and the eventual bloom of new growth. In this way, Fall becomes a gentle teacher showing us that release is not an ending, but an important step toward healing and transformation.

A “Fresh Fall” means more than a change in weather—it’s an opportunity to embrace clarity and space in our own lives. By letting go of what is weighing us down, we create room for new beginnings, fresh perspectives, and deeper peace. Much like nature makes way for the quiet stillness of winter and the new life of spring, we can welcome change with open hands and open hearts. This season invites us to trust the process, honor the beauty of release, and look forward to what’s waiting to take root in us.

Therese Daniels is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Certified Nature-Informed Therapist providing individual, couples, family, and group counseling in both indoor and outdoor settings. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at Villanova University and her Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology at Immaculata University. She began her experience in mental health as a college intern and has been in the field ever since. While her early experience centered around supporting children, adolescents, and families, her experience over the past decade has expanded to include adults and couples. Her emphasis today is on nature-based, mindfulness practices with clients of all ages. Drawing from Nature Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Mindfulness-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Solution-Focused Therapy, she supports people with anxiety and depression as well as those navigating life transitions, developing coping skills, and looking to strengthen their self esteem. She facilitates growth and healing by integrating tools from energy work, body movement, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), and creative arts expression. She works collaboratively with clients to create treatment goals and discover methods that best meet their needs. To learn more, see her website at https://www.theresedanielscounseling.com/ or call her at 410-919-9673.

Spring into Growth

by Therese Daniels, LPC, CNIT (Certified Nature Informed Therapist)

We have been conditioned by society to set new goals in January, the start of a new year. Start fresh, stop doing this, start doing that, get to the gym. While in theory this may seem like a good idea, it goes against our roots, against Mother Nature. Bears hibernate, trees, plants, and vegetables delay growth. Nature rests in the Winter and maybe we should too. 

Spring is the season of planting and growing. Many people lose motivation pretty quickly for those goals they set at the start of January. An article in Time magazine states that as many as 80% of people fail to keep their resolutions by February and only 8% of people stick with them the entire year. But think about how you feel in the Spring. When that first sunny day hits, the temperature is above 55 degrees (which feels hot because our bodies have adapted to the cold) and you want to rip off those socks and break out the flip flops and let your toes breathe and soak up the sunshine! Motivation for goals is more likely to stick at this time of year because that is what is natural. This is when we plant seeds for flowers and food to bloom later in the season. The animals wake up and are rested and energized for new things to come. Colors come back! This is a reason why setting new goals in the Spring vs. the Winter is something to be considered.

Goal setting and comfort zones

As a Certified Nature Informed Therapist, I have been able to encourage people to use the many benefits of nature to help them in goal setting and in getting comfortable with the uncomfortable. Some of the greatest things in life involve a certain level of feeling uneasy. Meeting new people, starting a new job, moving to a different home, exercising, parenting, even love has a level of discomfort. If we ran from all of these things, what would happen? Not much. Growth mindset is a term that has become popular over the past several years. The general meaning of the term is that you thrive on challenge and don’t see failures as a setback, but a way to make shifts to continue to move forward and set new goals. To keep going, to grow. 

Last Spring, I was working with someone who had pretty severe performance anxiety and he had a big martial arts challenge coming up. We took our sessions to the trails and more importantly, to the creek. There is a swing that hangs under a large bridge that runs over the creek. My client showed a lot of interest in getting to the swing but was afraid to do so. There were steep and muddy hills with tree roots and branches and wet leaves along the way. And once you got down to the water’s edge you still had to enter the water and navigate slippery rocks to get to the middle of the creek where the swing hung. It took some time, but by the summer, he was swinging on that swing and feeling so proud. Each week we got closer and closer, and he felt more and more brave. Throughout our sessions, I was able to use our experience in nature and transfer it to his fear of performing in front of others. He realized he could do things that felt scary and have success. A week after he went swinging, he took his martial arts test and passed with flying colors! 

I believe we can find a balance between allowing ourselves the time to rest and prepare while also believing in ourselves enough to face challenges and to get back up when we fall down. Look to nature to and follow its course. Going back to our roots and what is innately in us and around us can help us spring into growth! 

Therese M. Daniels, MA, LPC, is a Certified Nature-Informed Therapist who has been in the mental health field over 20 years. She provides individual, couples, and family counseling for children, teens, and adults. She offers regular nature walks and creates nature retreats to introduce the power of nature to support healing and wellness. She specializes in supporting people with anxiety, depression, self-esteem struggles, life transitions, and more. 

Nature Heals

by Therese Daniels, LPC, Certified Nature Informed Therapist

My love for nature and the outdoors began in my childhood — climbing the trees of the local parks, playing hopscotch on the streets in my neighborhood, catching minnows in the nearby stream, and going on countless picnics and hikes with family members. I did not fully recognize the healing aspects of nature until adulthood; it wasn’t until then that I was able to look back and identify the numerous times nature had been an emotional healer for me. Three moments really stand out in my memory. The first time was on a hike with my aunt in the Poconos Mountains when I was nine years old.  The hike was known for having a big waterfall along the way, and waterfalls were my favorite. Well, I fell within the first 5 minutes of the hike and scraped my knee pretty badly. My Aunt offered to turn around and head out, but after a few moments of letting the tears flow, I recall imagining the sound and the vast image of the waterfall, and I breathed in the fresh scent of the pine trees surrounding me. Then I picked myself up and hiked on to find that beauty — and it was well worth it. Nature gave me strength and courage.

The second big occurrence was the summer after I graduated from college. I decided to do some traveling, so I headed out West and landed in Wyoming — living and working in Grand Teton National Park for about 3 months. A small blip of time, but a life-shifting blip of time for me. Something that had dimmed and shut down inside of me during college, and it was re-lit and opened up. Within 48 hours of parking my car in Wyoming, I reconnected with my clarity about who I am and regained my confidence. I had never felt more myself than I did amidst those mountains. Nature gave me a renewed sense of self and courage.

The third memorable experience was in the summer of 2017 when I volunteered for Ronald McDonald Camp for the first time. The camp is held for children who have cancer (or who are in remission from cancer) and their siblings. At the time, I had been going through some things in my personal life that I considered difficult. Being in the middle of the woods with like-minded souls, in rustic cabins facing the elements of nature, with these beautiful, resilient, grateful children was eye-opening and perspective-shifting. The pure joy in these children’s faces, while getting to do the things that “normal” kids get to do all of the time, was nothing short of extraordinary. The conversations that formed naturally while walking from the cabins to the lake to the dining hall were deep and meaningful. It was then that I realized that I had a strong desire to combine my love of nature with my passion for my counseling career. This is where I belonged. Nature gave me motivation, new perspective, and the experience of pure joy.

Nature heals. Just being in nature and breathing in fresh air for as little as five minutes has been shown to lower heart rate, stabilize blood pressure, and decrease the production of stress hormones. A study done by Robert Ulrich in 1984 found that patients recovering from surgery who had bedside windows looking out on leafy trees, healed on average a day faster, needed significantly less pain medication, and had fewer post-surgical complications than patients who instead saw a brick wall. These are just a few of the numerous facts out there that identify the healing aspects of nature. People have generally become more “heads down” than “heads up,” constantly scrolling through social media, “snapping” friends, sending group texts, sorting emails, etc.… instead of looking up at the sky, admiring the trees, naming the shapes in the clouds, and counting the stars. It is believed that one of the reasons nature is so beneficial to our physical and psychological well-being is rooted in our biology. Our ancestors evolved in wild settings and relied on the environment for survival, so we have an innate drive to connect with nature. Being in nature regulates and resets our nervous system to its true natural state, free from all of the distractions of our modern world. So, I encourage you to get back outside, soak in the beauty and benefits of the outdoors, and get back to your roots!  Here's How:

Re-wilding

The term re-wilding in relation to humans means to revert to a natural or untamed state of being. It is the process of reawakening our connection to nature and unearthing a more true, more wild, more holistic way of life that centers around nature and simplistic living. Some of the simplest ways you can do this are to go barefoot and sit on the ground. Take off your shoes and walk in the grass, dirt, or sand. Put away the picnic blanket and sit straight on the earth and feel the grass on your skin. And just breathe.

Sit Spot

Go for a short walk and find an easily accessible spot in nature where you can sit for at least 10 minutes a day. It can be under a tree, by a stream, on a park bench, or in your own backyard. It is best if it can be somewhere you can access easily, so it can be part of your daily routine (or as many days of the week as possible). Sit for 10-30 minutes and read a book, write in a journal, meditate, or simply breath. Use your senses to absorb the environment surrounding you.

Nature heals! Summer is approaching so get out there and take advantage of the medicine that is right at our fingertips whenever we want it!

Therese M. Daniels, MA, LPC has been in the mental health field for 20 years. She provides individual, couples, and family counseling for children, teens, and adults. She offers regular nature walks to introduce people to nature-informed therapy — and believes in the power of nature to support healing. She specializes in anxiety, depression, self-esteem, life transitions, and more. Learn more at https://theresiliencycenter.com/practitioner/theresedaniels / and www.theresedanielscounseling.com. Contact her at therese.danielslcpc@gmail.com or 410-919-9673.