EP 55: The Journey Home to Yourself with Philosopher and Teacher Peter August

If you’ve ever wondered what happens to your life when you cultivate a deep and intentional connection with the natural world, this episode is for you. Today, I’m in conversation with teacher, philosopher and former Homecoming participant Peter August. Peter also has a nature TikTok (which I’ll link to in the show notes) where he shares his practices, perspectives and experiences of being in nature with his over 72K followers.

In this episode, we talk about: what nature invites in us that we so desperately need; the nature-based practice practice that fuels creativity; why we resist the natural world and why that’s ok; how to build trust with nature and what that can bring us; the difference between physically being in nature and truly “being” in nature; what happens when we follow our intuition when faced with big decisions; what Homecoming was like for Peter; how we can approach life with beginner’s mindset and what that perspective can bring us; the practice of getting curious about what’s familiar and why that’s so profound; and what life has been like for Peter after Homecoming. We also do something really fun at the end of this episode that I’ve never done before with a guest, so you’ll have to make it to the end to hear what I mean.

I love this episode because you’ll really get to glimpse into what’s possible when you turn toward the natural world and come home to yourself.

Ok! I said I would keep this intro short, and I want to honor that, so without further ado, let’s get into my conversation with philosopher, teacher, and nature TikTok’er Peter August.

“Nature invites wonder and curiosity and play and all of the things that are essential to well-being. Why as adults should we stop playing?” - Alyssa Benjamin x Our Nature
“You can go and walk into the woods, but if you don’t decide to leave your own expectations of accomplishment and doing at the door, it’s very easy to walk from one end to the other and not really see or experience anything.” - Peter August x Our Nature
“We posses something of a well of knowledge of our own good. It’s not a question of whether we’re able to understand what’s right for us, there’s a lot of listening that we need to recapture and nature provides that space.” - Peter August x Our Nature
“It’s often the small simple practices done consistently that create huge shifts.” - Alyssa Benjamin x Our Nature

Resources

Show Notes

What the journey of reconnecting with nature looked like for both Alyssa + Peter
What nature invites in us that we so desperately need
The nature practice that fuels creativity
Why we resist the natural world and why that’s ok
How to build trust with nature and what that can bring us
The difference between physically being in nature and truly “being” in nature
The inspiration and intention behind Homecoming
What made Peter say “yes” to Homecoming
What happens when we follow our intuition when we make big decisions
What the experience of Homecoming was like for Peter
Approaching life with beginner’s mindset and what that perspective can bring us
The practice of getting curious about what’s familiar and why that’s so profound
What has changed for Peter after Homecoming
A ping pong of five questions between Alyssa + Peter