Between Two Worlds

Recently I have been having serendipitous conversations with not only my inner voice, but also with other aligned individuals, about ‘unseen’ frequencies and energies.

Having always harboured a mild fascination for magic and alchemy – infused with a curiosity of the natural world – I have been catching myself in the last few years balancing the physical and the ethereal, straddling the natural and the scientific, with a profound sense of knowing that our consciousness goes way deeper than just fulfilling the theoretical and practical functions as a human being, on this sphere we call Earth.

I grew up in Singapore where the education system back then – and still today – was rigorous to say the least, often aimed at achieving high standards in core subjects. I wasn’t too enamoured with Mathematics, it was my weakest subject, and constant after-school tuition and persistent hovering from my engineer father helped me scrape through most of it.

I always knew at a young age that I was a tad reluctant to conform to an absolute uniformity: I was the ‘tomboy’ who would much rather spend hours exploring my local green space, climbing in and out of nooks and hiding places in a seemingly never ending, layered park filled with trees, flowers and shrubs. Hours would feel like minutes as I collected fallen leaves and lucky red ‘saga’ seeds from the saga trees, watching the myriad of butterflies, following ant trails, observing tree snakes and the occasional reticulated python digest the contents of its swollen belly, all with a sense of wonder. This colourful arena was the sanctuary I escaped to as a child, often straight after school, with a couple of close friends who enjoyed being in Nature and having adventures as much as I did.

It was when I moved on to one of six pioneer autonomous schools in the country, enrolled into a SAP (Special Assistance Plan) program for academically strong students who excel in both English and their mother tongue, that it all became quite serious rather quickly. Despite persistent prodding from parents, tutors and teachers to bury my head in my books and make sense of the world academically and bilingually, there was a sense of restlessness; either not feeling like I fit in, or my creative and naturally curious mind wondering about wandering. I thoroughly enjoyed anything that didn’t have to do with Maths or Chemistry: English as my first language, Literature (both English and Chinese), Geography in particular, as well as drama and choir. Physics was scary but exciting – with our teacher instilling fear in each of us – though it was interesting to learn how the world and universe worked.

What happened to my creative mind? The mind that desired to wander?

I hadn’t thought about going into natural sciences back in those days; it wasn’t easy to see past the competitive sectors now commonly known as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), and with my father’s expectations it hadn’t even occurred to me that natural sciences or anything other than STEM would be taken seriously. I did end up diverting my interests into media studies, doing a three year tertiary diploma in Mass Communication and loved every aspect of it, majoring in photojournalism, print journalism, radio and tv broadcast.

Through experiencing black and white photography I learned the importance of connecting to people; I enjoyed shooting fine art and portraits, and enjoyed documenting truth in natural environments. It was during a travel assignment to India and the Himalayas that really influenced the way I perceived links to land, spirit and people.

I then continued wandering through many natural spaces on this planet and for that I am grateful.

Having come a long way from photojournalism, ecology, scuba diving, conservation and to now working with ancient and veteran trees, I feel that I’m allowing myself to tap into a higher sense of spirituality; coming full circle into learning about my conscious relationship with trees, listening to my intuition and finding creative ways for myself and others to discover themselves in Nature. It is evident that when we connect to and find joy in Nature, we value it more and feel inspired to conserve this precious gift. The unseen energies enable this connection.

As well as ensuring Nature is protected from the impacts of change for future generations through science, and mitigating the implications of human development over time, I do believe that there is more importantly a need for us to connect to Nature on an intrinsic level in a more embodied way. An embodiment that keeps us in touch with our soul, and how our minds and bodies are inspired creatively by the gathered energy fields when we spend time in Nature. An embodiment that reminds us of our origins, and brings about an empathy that we can harness and apply to our everyday lives, as we aspire to live in a more conscious, peaceful and connected environment, both within and around ourselves.

With this purpose of embodiment and our foundations of authenticity, we will come to realise that there is innate courage in each of us, and a deeper sense of purpose to live in harmony with Nature and ourselves.

Our instincts will guide us as we navigate the fine lines of existence.

Nature with all her resilience and otherworldly intelligence, will be fine with or without us. Whatever journey we take to discover our connection to land, body and spirit, or if some are still wandering, my hope is that one day we will all get there collectively as a species.