Author Marian took eight solo walks around Uluru — and each one changed her life. Along the way, she discovered surprising insights about the balance between men and women, the wisdom of nature, and the quiet humor hidden in deep reflection. Today we explore what this ancient place had to teach about life, love, and harmony.

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Welcome to this edition of Newsgram!

I’ve recently discovered the power of walking. I know that may sound strange, but walking just for the sake of walking used to seem kind of pointless. “Where are you going?” Nowhere. Just… walking. But there’s a quiet calmness to it — a spiritual side — a kind of soul-searching meditation that happens when you leave behind the day-to-day noise and just move.

It’s good exercise too, so there’s this mind-body benefit that makes such a simple act something to be treasured. Most of my walks happen around my neighborhood here in Arizona. But today, we’re stepping into a very different landscape — one that’s ancient, vast, and deeply sacred.

Marian Larsen walked around Uluru, in the southern part of the Northern Territory in central Australia. And while Uluru and Arizona may look different, they share something: both are arid, desert-like landscapes with striking rock formations… and both carry deep cultural significance.
That’s the backdrop for today’s journey.

Marian – I’m surrounded by trees and hills and rivers and sun and moon and birds and all this. It’s fantastic.

Sam – Marian Larsen is the author of Life Changing Walks Round Uluru, but her bond with the natural world began long before that. Growing up as an only child shaped her curiosity and her independence — and taught her how to listen, not just to people, but to the world around her.

Marian – Well, I grew up as an only child… at least for the first seven years, and that probably did a lot to form me as I was. I’ve never felt restricted… I’ve always felt family loving around me but not putting strength on me… let me grow up to be my own person. When you are alone — it’s not lonely, but you’re alone, and there is a difference. It’s not alone… it’s all one. And that is what really I feel in nature.

Sam – Being an only child taught her how to observe quietly, to trust her instincts, and to appreciate solitude — lessons that would echo later in the heart of Australia. After years of traveling, Marian began to feel a sudden, unexplainable pull toward Uluru — a call she describes as coming straight from the heart.

Marian – At the end… suddenly there was this pull inside me… almost around the heart region. I just felt it. It felt so strongly… I knew that I had always wanted to go there. I knew it would happen one day. But I had never expressed it even to myself.

Sam – Sometimes even a small, simple stone can forecast the journey ahead. While in New Zealand, she bought a small orange rock — something about it just felt important.

Marian – There was in their window display, a stone, a rock… I took the rock, I pointed at the rock and I said to the owner, “Can I get that stone?” without knowing why. She said, “You can have it for $5.” I said, “Okay.” So I got the rock.

Sam – That little stone became a symbol — a reminder that the world is always speaking to us, if we’re willing to listen. Which leads us back to Uluru. If you’ve never seen it, Uluru is often described as a monolith, but geologists would call it an inselberg — literally an “island mountain.” It rises out of the flat desert plain like something ancient and alive. Marian’s eight walks around Uluru became deeply meditative — even transformative. She says Uluru began to communicate with her, offering lessons beyond words.

Marian – It was a very, very deep transformation that I went through. I was shown it by the man and the woman because I saw it as a sculpture, a picture on the rock that started talking. No, not talking, but emanating… sending insights, knowings.

Sam – Uluru revealed to her a timeless truth about balance — between man and woman, strength and softness — the foundation of life itself.

Marian – After I have been to Uluru, I have understood via the man role and the woman role, that those two different roles are actually basic foundation building blocks in nature.

Sam – Her walks became lessons in harmony — showing that the roles of men and women aren’t about control, but coexistence. The yin and yang of energy, working together. Now, this all sounds very mystical — and it is — but Marian calls her experience a natural exchange with life itself.

Marian – It is actually quite difficult sometimes using words because words limit things to our physical world. We can’t come up with a word for what it is when suddenly these things happen and you can see it… you can sense it. Like getting goosebumps. But I am aware that it probably will even fly in the face of quite a few. But you know, I’m not telling anybody that this is how it is. I am saying this is how I have experienced it. That’s it.

Sam – Whatever you want to call it — spirit, energy, intuition — every encounter left Marian changed. She became attuned to a rhythm and wisdom that transcends ordinary perception. Her walks weren’t just about movement — they were about awakening.

Marian – What we don’t use, we lose. And that is exactly what I feel. If we open up — well, that’s what I have found — if I open up and surrender, if you want, but are willing and open without being, dare I say, a follower. That’s important. You have to be strong in yourself. But I have found I became stronger and stronger and stronger.

Sam – Marian felt a sense of protection, almost like the Rock itself was watching over her. She also noticed that everyone she met seemed unusually kind, as if they could sense something in her she didn’t even see herself. It was a powerful reminder of the quiet strength found in connection, observation, and simply being alive.

Marian – Don’t be afraid to listen to what actually is around the world also, besides your everyday… You can start feeling in yourself, getting to know yourself, what you actually want, and whether you are curious. Because it is the most important thing — like childlike curiosity.

Sam – Listen. Keep an open mind. And stay curious — some pretty solid advice.

Whether you’re drawn to adventure, spiritual insight, or simply a story of personal transformation, Marian’s journey offers a beautiful reminder that life changes when you take the time to listen.

Her book, Life Changing Walks Round Uluru, is available now on Amazon.com.

Marian – I just enjoy it. It’s fantastic.

Sam – And that’ll do it for this edition of Newsgram from Webtalkradio.com. Thanks for listening.

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