The rain was light and it layered a chill on my shoulders and pierced through my sweatshirt. The path was wet and slippery and soon I realized I was headed into dusk, possibly even the darkness of this early autumn night. The moon was emerging ever so slightly after its fullness slid into that magical half moon grin. I needed to walk further to reach the stone.

I saw it up ahead. That boldness, that grey textural rough outer layer waiting for me to reach it and place my tired body upon its aged creases and folds.

I sit.

The moon emerges.

The night sky is dark. I remember my fear in the darkness. I remember the friend who taught me to walk by the light of the moon and to trust its guidance.

I trusted for four years and now here I sit.

Kumari of the Woods.

I was afraid the stones would not speak their story and the trees would not shout their misery. Until…I decided to listen.

Let go and listen. I can feel the history the stone forest holds. Their outrage and their pain after knowing others took their spaces and had their own agendas for the land.

This is what it takes. To listen.

No more noise. No more self-pity about our own miseries. No more roadblocks in the forest or permits hanging from the hemlocks.

Kumari of the Woods is whispering. Just listen.

Five years ago I walked in these woods alone after someone I loved left me. He needed to go. I thought I needed to leave, too. But it was my son, Ben, who knew this forest held magic. Ben convinced me to stay and not run away. Of course, he was right.

And here I sit, light rain falling, my black yoga pants sticking to my skin and my tears matching the stream of water running down my neck. The forest holds our heart and its stories.

This is why I am here and Ben found the stone, we found the VISION and it is all about one thing: allowing yourself to be seen, heard and loved.

(I think the stone forest thanked me).

We all deserve to be loved even with our imperfections and problems, some we do our best to hide from others. But to be loved we need to be seen. We need to be visible. We need to be honest, vulnerable, and afraid. What meets us is the acceptance we need. Someone on the other side who tells us we are enough. They tell us we are beautiful even when we are scarred and damaged goods. One tiny voice inside our head whispers, “I think you are perfect just as you are.”

Be at peace. Sit on your stone in your forest and listen.

You can come to Kumari of the Woods and sit or…find your own Kumari of the Woods. Your stone awaits you if you seek it.

Make a reservation or just close your eyes and imagine you are one with the stone forest.

Anyway you do it, it will be the right way to walk in the darkness.

Kumari Patricia