Hi, I'm Eula Lys Dunkin. I'm a licensed therapist and coach, and I'm trans. And this is a practice specifically for trans gender expansive folks on finding grounding by embodying a tree. So we're focusing on queer ecology. We're focusing on natural elements that can support us in our days. And as always with this practice, you take care of yourself and your body and your system. Everything I say here is a prompt and invitation. You can adapt and adjust for your own body, compost, whatever doesn't land.

So as we get started, go ahead and find a space that feels comfortable in this moment for you to slow down for the next ten minutes or so. Could be your bed, a chair, a certain room in your house. Maybe it's a place outside. And just let yourself start to settle in. You can close your eyes if that feels supportive, you can keep them open. Just kind of really explore what's going to feel best for you today.

We're going to start just taking a couple of nice, easy, simple breaths in and out. So go ahead, feel the inhale. And then feel the exhale. Nice and slow and gentle. Do one more round. You can inhale. And if you want, you can exhale out your mouth, let out a sound.

Next, I want you to either visualize if you can see images of your head or think of a tree that you want to embody today. Any tree could be oak, palm, cypress, elm. And olive tree. Just let yourself feel into what tree feels like a good fit for your system today.

The first thing we're going to do is we're going to grow our roots. So if you can be in your body today, go ahead and find a place, an area in your body that feels accessible to build your roots. Maybe your feet or your hands. If it's not a good day to be in your body, just go ahead and imagine the concept of roots and still get a lot of good grounding from that. And wherever you are, whether you're growing your roots from your body or imagining the roots from a tree, go ahead and start to feel them gently burrowing into the earth. Nice and gentle. Roots are life giving. They are flexible, they are nourishing, and they're strong. So feel into those qualities as you let your tree roots grow as deep as they need to go today, helping you feel connected and grounded to this earth element that's holding you.

Now we're going to sync our breathing to the roots. And as you breathe in, just like a tree, breathe in from your root system. Breathe in this nourishing energy, this grounding element of the earth. And as you breathe out, just let everything flow that needs to back down into the root system to be recycled and composted. Once again. Inhaling through that nourishing root system, taking that energy in. And on the exhale, just like you're riding a nice gentle way all the way back down.

Next we're going to embody the trunk of the tree. So go ahead and feel into what it's like to embody the trunk of a tree. Again, either think about it. If you can't be in your body today or feel it. Maybe you feel it in your core, in your back body. Whatever tree you've chosen, just breathe in and really embody the layers inside the trunk. All those nourishing networks and fibers. Nutrients and moisture. Being able to travel. All these layers of wisdom. And you can also feel the protection of the bark. Protective outer layer takes care of you. Supports you. See you into the solidity of the trunk. You might even notice your spine getting a little bit longer. We'll connect roots and trunk now, so breathe in from your roots and feel that breath going into the trunk of your tree. And exhale connecting the trunk of your tree to the roots. Feel that grounding as you breathe in into the trunk where there's this unwavering, solid support. And then exhale feel back into that grounding in your root system.

Now we're going to incorporate the branches. So whatever tree you've chosen, think about, feel into the branches that emerge from the trunk, that reach out toward the sky and the sun. If there's movement that goes with this, maybe your arms or your hands stretch feeling into those branches, or maybe you're feeling like staying still, but thinking about and feeling into what it's like to have those branches extending outward, receiving nourishment from the sun. And again, taking in branches that are flexible with the breeze. There's a strength, but also there's movement flexibility.

Now we're going to incorporate the breath all the way through. So breathe in again from the roots from the earth. Ride that way through the solid trunk. And now breathe in all the way to the branches. Feel the breath going in and out towards the tips of your branches that reach out. And as you exhale, send that energy expansiveness all the way down the trunk and through your roots and ride that gentle wave a couple more times. Inhale through the roots, nourishing. Grounded energy through that solid core of the trunk, up through the branches we extend into the sky the nourishment of the sun. Expand. And exhale down, bringing that down back through your trunk. All the way down to the roots. One more time. Breathing in from your roots. All the way through the trunk. Extend through the branches. Taking that expansiveness, that freedom. And exhale. Send it down all the way down to your roots. Just letting that flow.

And now check in with your system. Check in with yourself. Notice what you notice. Queer ecology teaches us that nature, which is inherently queer, is here to hold us in moments when we need it. It's here for us to feel connected to is here to remind us of our truth when we're feeling lost.

So in doing this practice and embodying the tree, take a moment and see if you can connect now. To yourself. I can feel that connection to nature. And feel that holding that trees provide us that grounding. Really noticing any qualities, any even tiny shifts that have happened in this practice, letting yourself say to them.

And then when you're ready to start to expand your awareness, your eyes are closed and be open them. Take in your space. Notice if your body wants to move or stretch, really orienting with all senses available to you. Just knowing you can come back to this practice whenever you need.