Detoxing is now a thing. A few hours spent on Youtube and I’m like:

• How much coffee can I put up my colon?
• How deep can I shine my mitochondrias?
• Is my orange juice Raw enough?

Over-all, the trend is good. We should be detoxing. Our culture is toxic. The way we treat our planet is toxic — and reciprocally so are we.

On a related tangent, it appears that we’re eating more than our daily allowance of plastic. (Don’t even get me started on Fluoride.)

OUR DESIRE TO DETOX OUR BODY IS A CALLING FROM THE SOUL.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “The body is a temple.” Well, who do you think the high priest is? You are — baby! You’re the one with the two-way radio to Jah-Almighty. And sometimes that transmission comes in loud and clear — “It’s time for some spiritual re-grouping — over.”

There are moments in life when you look in the mirror and say, “Wasn’t I supposed to be doing something?” We’ve all been there. It is the question that helps to recalibrate our inner compass. It’s easy getting side-tracked in today’s world, putting off the necessary spiritual and emotional house-cleaning for whatever the ego has got on the itinerary — which is usually waaay more fun.

When I worked in Wilderness Therapy, a phrase we often said to our clients was, “Healthy choices, not fun choices.” Both have long-term consequences. Fun choices are often temporary, appeasing and appealing to the ego. Healthy choices on the other hand take time, dedication, and involve challenge. The phrase that comes to mind is: Short term sacrifice for long-term gains.

There are a thousand and one ways to create a vision quest

Once upon a time, vision quests were a part of life. It was the moment when a boy became a man — and he didn’t always survive. Death, in fact, is a key component to the vision quest. We go up to the top of the mountain in search of wisdom and when we return, we do not come down as the same person.

Today, these traditions have all but vanished. We are no longer connected to the earth like we once were. We are also no longer connected to tribe in the same way either. Which is a challenge, because:

EARTH AND TRIBE ARE TWO OF THE PRIMARY INGREDIENTS FOR A VISION QUEST.

A breakdown of my own vision quest

It’s been two years since I created my own three day Vision Quest. This is the first time I’ve made notice of it publicly. During these last two years I think I’ve shared my experience with less than ten people. A Vision Quest is a highly personal thing. It is not something that belongs on social media for likes, or for someone else’s projections, for that matter. The reason I’ve decided to share now is because I’ve had enough time to reflect and separate myself from the experience. Secondly, I believe one of the gifts/processes of the Vision Quest is when the initiate comes down from the mountain, it is expected of them to share their insights and lessons with the tribe.

When I first determined to commit to a Vision Quest, all I knew was that I was just going to do it. I was going to get in the car, drive out of town, find a tree, and sit under it for three days. Seemed easy enough.

A couple days before I headed out though, a friend invited me to do a sweat lodge (something I’ve never done before.) The conversation followed as such:

I’ve learned that when the universe sends signs during big moments of your life it’s important to pay attention. I took the synchronicity to heart and a day later my friend was pouring a sweat lodge in my honor. That evening I chose my circle at the top of a hill and stayed there without food for three days. Toxins expressed their passage out of my body through headaches, emotional upheaval, and spiritual turmoil. I got angry, I got bored, I definitely got hungry. But after two days most of those feelings dissipated and I became aware that I was anything but alone. It was like a switch — suddenly I existed in a universe teeming with life, a universe in congruence with itself. It was a place with space enough for me inside. A place where my experience mattered. There are specific details about my experience that I won’t share, only because they were so powerful and I feel that using words can sometimes debase an experience.

In the afternoon of day three I came down from the hill and another sweat lodge was poured. I was taken ceremonially out of the spirit world and brought back into the fold.

My experience gave me a lot of things to reflect on. Perhaps the biggest was how many people came together to support me. Here I was, prepared to walk into the woods by myself, and by the end of my journey, nearly a dozen people had aided in my quest. I never realized the true power of Tribe until I went on a “solo” vision quest.

The other thing that I reflected on during my time on the hill was the power of Flow. It is my belief that when your heart and intention are in the right place, the universe opens its arms for you. Before, during, and after my experience I felt like I was right where I needed to be. Every necessary detail showed up for the party. If things were taking too long, it was for a reason. If someone didn’t show up, they weren’t meant to be there. Strangers who entered my life during those moments had powerful revelations to share. My openness to accept healing brought healing to me in ways I could never have planned or imagined. My thoughts were instantly reflected back at my through the natural kingdom.

Your Vision Quest will involve Travel

Travel is inevitable on a Vision Quest. You are traveling beyond your comfort level. You are leaving behind the familiar in search of meaning.

It’s possible that you might not even leave your room. But if you can, do it. Setting yourself up in a natural environment that is copacetic to the rhythms of nature will begin to align your rhythms with the earth’s. The Earth is the most powerful metaphor that I know of — there are things She wants to show you.

No matter where you go, no matter what your focus is, here are a few things that are essential:

• Solitude
• Silence
• Abstinence
• Mindfulness

The practice of discipline is extremely important. Incorporate it into all things — discipline of the mind (observe errant thoughts), discipline of the gut (observe what goes into the physical body), and discipline of the emotional body (observe what comes out).

You are doing this for you — no one else. This experience is your experience and means whatever you decide it means. If nothing profound happens, reflect on it. If an eagle lands on your head, give thanks. Either way, you can’t go wrong, just keep going.