For this magnetic, insightful conversation, I am joined by Andrea Russel, your local artisan baker and somatic arts practitioner, who came on the show one moon ago to speak about exploring grace, place, and facing oneself through the lens of her thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. She curates the platform somahikes, where she has shared on instagram the living and evolving story of her hike that keeps growing into new seasons of life.
Conversation outline:
Why she hiked the Appalachian trail 5:54
How to hold yourself up when the major structures of your life literally disintegrate 7:12
Somatic therapy: (and pleasure activism) body-based approach of change and transformation on individual and collective levels through the realm of the experience 9:22
What is “wild”? What is “nature”? 13:35
Biggest surprises and lessons the trail served up 19:42
Who gets to belong in outdoor adventure spaces 26:28
Practical reflections on different parts of the trail (and which ones hurt the most) and how to get through them 30:45
Unlearning definitions of success and failure (38:09)
the necessity of periodic retreat from our edge, and why we have a winter. 48:30
Check out the article by Vanessa Chavarriaga mentioned at 28:00 https://www.melaninbasecamp.com/trip-reports/2021/7/30/the-case-for-not-reaching-the-summit
Other books: Pleasure Activism by adrienne maree brown Underland by Robert Macfarlane