When In Doubt, Go Outside

Read time: 2 minutes

A month or so ago, there was a national power outage in all of Spain.

(& even in Portugal!)

No signal. No Wi-Fi. No data.

For a moment—it felt like the world had stopped.

I remember looking around and noticing how quickly we all started to stress.

People running around trying to figure out what was happening.

Everyone asking: “What do we do? What do we do?”

It was fascinating to watch.

Because the instinctual response we’ve all been conditioned into… is doing.

When something goes wrong—

We jump into problem-solving mode. We get busy. We react. We grab our phones. We check the news. We try to do something.

But here’s what I did instead…

(after catching my first initial instinctual panic)

I looked out the window. And I made my way to the park.

There, I saw the birds.

Still flying. Still chirping. Still being.

No stress. No alarm. No need to change anything.

And here’s the thing…

That moment stayed with me.

And if you’re wondering why I’m writing about it now—weeks later—it’s because I don’t rush through the things that move me.

I like to sit with them.

To let them dance around.

To be with them long enough to see what they’re really here to teach me.

And this one keeps whispering back the same truth, again and again:

Nature always leads by example. ALWAYS.

And not just in the “beauty of nature” way we see quoted on Pinterest boards.

But in the way it lives.

There’s no rushing in nature. No anxiety in its systems. No checking the weather 14 times before deciding what to do.

Day turns to night.

Winter becomes spring.

Leaves fall. New ones grow.

All in rhythm. All in peace.

Even when there’s destruction. Even when there’s chaos.

Nature rebuilds. Regenerates. Renews.

And it doesn’t ask, “What should I do?”

It just is.

And I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately.

Because we live in a world of high alert.

We’re bombarded with news, notifications, narratives.

We’re taught to solve, to move faster, to keep going no matter what.

But when we forget how to simply be—we lose the very thing that makes us human.

• Stillness.

• Presence.

• Discernment.

And that, my friend, is exactly what I’ve been practicing.

Letting nature remind me.

When I’m anxious, I go outside.

When I’m confused, I look up.

When I don’t know what to do… I stop doing.

And I start listening.

To the wind. To the birds. To my own breath.

Because nature doesn’t panic.

And when the birds are still chirping… there’s probably no need for us to freak out either.

If they suddenly go quiet or start migrating… then maybe we ask questions.

But most of the time? They know something we don’t.

So today, I want to offer you this:

Before checking the headlines…

Before spiralling about what might happen next…

Before jumping into “fix-it” mode…

Look to nature.

Ask yourself:

• Is the sun still rising?

• Are the birds still singing?

• Are the trees still standing?

Then maybe… just maybe…

You’re okay, too.

Much Love,

Julian

PS. What’s one lesson you’ve learned from nature lately? Reply and let me know. I always read everything you send.