N is for Naturopathic

Sometimes being a firefighter was the most exhilarating job on earth…sometimes it was among the most heart wrenching. On days when the Piston Peaks Air Attack Team did everything they could, and still failed each and every team member had a different way to recenter themselves so that they could move on.

For Chief it was paperwork. After a really bad burn, the helicopter always seemed to find his way to his hanger and start pouring all of his emotions into the large stack of paperwork required to record the event. The worse the event, the more times he would do and redo the forms.

For Cabbie it was the skies. If the mission went wrong the old plane would find ever excuse possible to put distance between himself in the ground. It didn't matter if it was an extra patrol or a supply run. If his fellow firefighters didn't need him as their emotional support aircraft to process the event, than he was always to deal with a problem by putting as much space between he and it as possible.

Dipper coped by reading trashy fanfictions. Blackout fled to the kitchen and baked his way through the funk. Avalanche listened to music full blast while Drip tended to sleep it off. Dynamite and Patch both preferred to talk their way out of their grief and anger, while Maru found his answers in the bottom of a canister of high grade…and Windlifter, Windlifter used rituals to get him through the bad days.

The last couple of days had been particularly taxing on the team. They had fought a fire only for the fire to win. The flames had swept over a town in the middle of the night…there hadn't been time to evacuate everyone…there wasn't anything left of the town. The entire Piston Peaks Air Attack team hadn't even had the chance to help locate and care for the remains of the dead because the fire was still burning hot and there were additional communities in danger.

So, when the fire was out and the Air Attack Team finally had time to process what had happened in the safety of their base, Windlifter took off and headed to the woods.

The meadow he landed in was just big enough to hold his size. The trees that surrounded it were healthy lodgepole pines that stretched high into the sky but created a large open space beneath. With practiced care, Windlifter tucked himself under the trees and within the forest.

Then he breathed. The Japanese had a word for this kind of ritual. They called it Shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing. It was the act of slowing down and allowing yourself to be 100% present in the moment. Windlifter sat and felt as his tires were cradled by the mossy mud of the forest floor. Windlifter sat and listen to the sound of the wind through the trees, the music of the gliders, and whisper of the trees themselves. Windlifter sat and let all of the pain of the previous week's failures ebb away.

Only once the ache of failure located deep in his motor started to fade did Windlifter gingerly back is way out of the forest and into the clearing. As he took to the air, it was clear that it was growing late in the day. Still, the helicopter did not rush back. He tried to use the same mindfulness he had used in the forest to make observations about his flight home. To process how the air flowed around his body and to savor the feeling of warm tarmac against his tires as he came in for a landing. The base was quiet when he arrived, which was to be expected, but there was a lone vehicle on the tarmac waiting to greet him.

"So, what were you up to?" Maru asked. The tug clearly slightly buzzed.

"Forest bathing." The Skycrane replied without missing a beat.

"Alright…" Maru eyed the mud-streaked belly. "Well, you better go get properly washed up before dinner so you don't track too much mud into the hanger."

Windlifter gave a small bob then went off to let the warm water wash away the last of his discomfort.

Term- Naturopath- Naturopathic medicine is considered to be a type form of peudomedicine. It focuses on using noninvasive methods of healing. Some of these methods, think physical therapy and meditation, have well studied benefits and a valued part of mainstream medical treatment. Other forms, think essential oils and COVID-19 parties, are known to cause active harm and in some cases even lead to death. When incorporating naturopathic practices in your life, it is important to understand the benefits, as well as the limitations the risks of that practice. An example of this is when Windlifter used forest bathing to help him let go of negative energy and process his own feelings…these are realistic expectations for that type of naturopathic treatment, if he assumed that it would also prevent or get rid of a cold he would cross into the realm where the practice could cause him harm.