grays w♾️dard

at the deep listening® workshop i led at pocketbook hudson this past sunday, we explored the idea of listening with the heart as an organ of perception at the threshold between the year of the wood snake and the year of the fire horse. most people familiar with deep listening® are aware of the sonic meditations created by pauline oliveros. fewer people know that the practice also includes dreamwork and movement drawn from qi gong, tai chi, and kinetic awareness. it felt right to incorporate the lunar year as a way of tuning into the depth of these practices. we listened inwardly and outwardly for a sound memory that resonated with our hearts (the organ associated with fire). we listened to what our hearts were dreaming of on the precipice of the lunar new year. explored the feelings and sounds of wood and fire from the liù zì jué practice of qi gong, and performed the pauline oliveros scores “the snake” (1974) and “horse sings from cloud” (1975). we closed with an adaptation of pauline oliveros’ “the heart chant” — people were invited to make a sound that symbolized their heart sound memory. we stood with one hand on our own heart, and one on our neighbor’s back as we vocalized our own heart sounds, and then each other’s sounds, and then brought the shared experience back into our bodies to move through the rest of our day. the deep listening® at @pocketbookhudson series continues sunday, february 22nd and sunday march 1st at 1 pm. free with rsvp. for those not in the hudson area, my online deep listening in space(s) series kicks off on march 18th. link in bio. (cont. in comments)

excerpts from my performance @dissonantworks this past thursday in honor of my gram, and inspired by ginkgo, a tree that for me is a holder of memory and time. after dosing the audience with a ginkgo essence i made with leaves gathered the last time i was in st. louis (the last time i saw my gram), i asked them to notice whether they felt in the past, present, or future during the performance. this ritual included recordings of past improvisations, invitations to my matrilineal ancestors to be present as i played with sound, and a keen i learned in ireland that describes the enduring but shapeshifting nature of grief. it was a rehearsal for tomorrow when i keen at my gram’s celebration of life. thanks to @touchfreak for putting this together and to @janet__xmas for the beautiful performance and for being another seance grace. 🎥 @lechuzzzzza

the way i think about working with vibrational essences is deeply intertwined with the way i think about listening, and i love weaving together my essence practice with opportunities for people to engage with multiple ways of listening. i’ll be slinging essences in two very different experiences in the near future: this saturday, september 27th at 3 pm i’ll be returning to @iodreams ’ 30th annual dream festival with a mini-version of my collective dreaming offering, the snake sings as it sheds its skin in the starlit orchard (ssssso). i’ll be dosing attendees with a collective dreaming essence formula and leading us through a guided practice to weave together and embody our collective dream. i won’t be playing live, but this offering will feature an excerpt of my 9-hour performance from the last ssssso winter solstice sleep concert — arguably one of the most bananas things i’ve ever done. 156 hunter st., kingston, ny. attendance is by donation. then on friday, october 10th i’ll be performing live (and also dosing the audience with an essence) at the barn at west family (267 chair factory road, new lebanon, ny). thrilled to be playing in support of @jonmueller suggested admission: $10. 📸 @touchfreak

May Day (May 1st) has long been associated with labor movements and the ongoing struggle for workers’ rights, evolving from and coinciding with European folk festivals like Beltane and Floralia that marked a season of blooming, bright fire, and connection to the living world and one another. This year, May Day falls on the Full Flower Moon in Scorpio, a moon tuned for shedding outdated ideas, structures, and ways of being so that something new can grow. The Blooming Resistance participatory potion draws on the spirit of these seasonal energies to nurture our combined dreams of liberation. Through this process, our dreams will be cross-pollinated and amplified by one another, carried in spring waters collected on the Full Flower Moon in Scorpio, as well as essences selected specifically based upon the unique constellation of dreams offered. We’ll work with our potion individually, and then gather near the Solstice to compare notes — because magic is more fun when you get to see it mirrored in others. Submit your dream by: May 3, 11:59 PM EST Potions ship the following week Learn more and add your dream into the mix via in bio Happy Beltane / Floralia / May Day to you and yours! May you find rest, play, flowers, community, or whatever it is that helps you feel free during this potent moment. 💚🪻💚

sound on 💦

*UPDATE: free spots have been claimed; registration is now by sliding scale* my online workshop series, deep listening in spaces, kicks of this wednesday, march 18th at 7:30 pm. this idea and format focused on exploring deep listening® through the lens of “space(s)” first came to me when i was completing my deep listening® certification through @centerfordeeplistening in 2021. a world made much smaller by the pandemic was even more condensed for me by mobility restrictions due to health issues. my physical world was the most limited it had ever been, but my studies of deep listening® (and my concurrent viewing of neil degrasse tyson’s ‘cosmos’ 🚀) made my experience of that time expansive. i found space in my body that i didn’t know was there. i found connection and resonance and magic with people all over the world from the confines of my bedroom. i’m excited to bring deep listening in space(s) back now in a time when the need for finding and experiencing space for listening, moving, and dreaming is so important. these are skills we need for creating new worlds. this series is sponsored by @centerfordeeplistening more info and regististration at /form/260095955283162

new substack post is uppp. plans for 2026 include less scrolling and more writing, listening, gathering, and creating things that aren’t easily digestible on social media — like the seasonal audio pieces and writings that i’ll be sending to paid substack subscribers. i’m running a lil imbolc discount for folks to sign up for an annual substack membership before february 4th. you can also sign up for a founder’s membership that includes a one-on-one 45-minute custom essence formula session. excited for what is getting born in more expansive spaces. and speaking of space … the illustration above is a collaborative dreamscape that was created in the deep listening® in space(s) workshop series that i ran in 2021. 🌌 this series will be returning on feb 4th. we’ll follow an intentional arc through sound, movement, and dreams that will culminate in the creation and sharing of our own sonic mediations or other deep listening-inspired creations. it will be a consistent group that meets online every other wednesday evening from february 4th - april 15th. limited to 12 participants. sliding scale $120-$300, with $210 being considered the true price. two free spots are available to LGBTQ+, BIPOC, and/or disabled folks on a first-come, first-served basis. more info and registration via link in bio. free, in-person, deep listening® at @pocketbookhudson workshops are continuing! rsvp in advance on eventbrite - link in bio! sponsored by @centerfordeeplistening the next one is on sunday, january 25th - 11 am i’m continuing to only sign on here sporadically, so if you want to be in touch or have me come to your thing, holler via phone, email, or even snail mail 🐌🐌🐌

For those of you unable to attend Sunday’s Solstice Deep Listening® at 9:30 am @pocketbookhudson , I’ve put together a series of original scores to invite exploration of movement, sound, and dreams through listening. Inspired by the Twelve Days of Yule and Christmas, these scores were created specifically for the liminal time around the Winter Solstice and the end of the Gregorian year. You can download the a PDF with all 12 Days at freqofnature.substack.com. These listening scores are informed by somatic listening, dreamwork, seasonal rhythms, and the Deep Listening® practices pioneered by Pauline Oliveros, IONE, and Heloise Gold. They can be practiced at the threshold between one year and the next, or serve as a divinatory cycle for the months ahead (each practice corresponding to a month in the year ahead) — or used in any way you choose! I’m kicking off my 12 Days tonight, the night before the solstice, which will result in the 12th day being 12/31. I’ll be off social media for deeper listening during my 12 Days of Listening. 
There is no wrong way to interpret these scores.
They can be started at any time and engaged with at any pace or order you choose.
These practices can be done alone or with others.
They may be repeated.
They may change over time. Listening is a relational process. Notice if you find yourself returning to a sound, movement, symbol, dream, or other trace from these listening practices.
This is listening, too. The scores are arranged in four successive progressions through movement, sound, and dreams. This arc of movement, sound, and dreaming is the same format that my new workshop series, The Resonant Field, will follow. In addition to listening through this arc, we’ll also be listening with seasonal mystery plant allies. We’ll meet on the first Wednesday evening of each month, starting in February. Enrollment opens January 1st.

🕸️🌀❄️winding down the year w/ a flurry of activity❄️🌀🕸️ link in the place where links live first up - returning to @etherhudson , the club space in @pocketbookhudson , tomorrow morning for another deep listening® workshop, sponsored by @centerfordeeplistening . we’ll explore gentle movement practices inspired by qi gong and tai chi, and then shift into sonic medititations (text-based recipes for listening and making sound) by pauline oliveros — specifically “the tuning meditation” and “environmental dialogue.” free w/ rsvp. then on weds., dec. 17th, i’ll be leading a practice for embodying and amplifying the soundscape of your dreams in the last session of dark moon listening of the year. this is the last dark moon period of the year, of saggitarius season, and before the winter solstice — the longest night of the year — a perfect moment to go deep into the dream realm. on the winter solstice itself i’ll be back at @pocketbookhudson during the exact moment of the solstice. the word “solstice” comes from the the latin terms sol (‘sun’) and sistere (‘to stand still’), because in these moments, the sun appears to stand still before shifting its direction. we’ll be using the sun’s movement as an invitation to pause and be with what is amidst the constant buzz of the holiday season. (slide 4 photo by @snarkkkkkkk from last year’s solstice ritual @visit__net ) then on the very last night of the year come find me at @community_rave_network ’s nye fête @theavalonlounge . i’ll be there listening to your dreams for 2026 and offering drops of vibrational essences for your drink to start the year with aligned plant magic (and probably taking some dance breaks). these are like mini @_freqofnature dream drops essence consultations! big things brewing for next year, too — subscribe to my newsletter at freqofnature.substack.com to stay up to date as i spend less time on here.

Could there be a better way to kick off the programming for a new space than gathering to listen to it and fill it with sounds from the community? I’m so excited to be leading a Deep Listening® workshop @pocketbookhudson this coming Friday at 10 am. This event is free with limited capacity; RSVP required (🔗 in bio). Rooted in the work of queer Latinx composer Pauline Oliveros, Deep Listening® explores sound, movement, and dreams through “sonic meditations,” which are text-based prompts that encourage listening and creative expression. Oliveros urged people to “listen to everything all the time,” an invitation that you can take as deeply as you wanna go! This event is sponsored by @centerfordeeplistening .

A FREE @_freqofnature ONLINE OFFERING A special Samhain essence circle for connecting with Datura, an infamous, powerful, and poisonous plant sacred to many cultures. Known by many names, including moonflower, thorn apple, jimsonweed, and devil’s trumpet, Datura goes deep - a wise but sometimes strict grandmother who opens your eyes wide so you can perceive possibility where previously there seemed to be none. We’ll meet on Saturday, Nov. 1 to dose and meditate together with Datura essence (mine, yours, or you could just watch and still get a lot from it), and share about how we experience it - then I’ll share some deep Datura background. Your Datura knowledge and experiences are welcome, too. This workshop will be recorded. Sign up in the usual place. If you’d like to purchase a 1 oz. bottle of Datura flower essence to use in the meditation, Venmo @grace -woodard $15 with your mailing address (email [email protected] for international shipping). Essences are energetic medicines the preserve the resonance of a plant in water and a preserving menstrual such as brandy or apple cider vinegar. Essences are a safe way of working with the energy of Datura without any of the poisonous or psychoactive complications. Packages will ship 10/27.

Dark Moon Listening is back and starts Sunday, October 19th! 🌑 Link in bio to register! 🌑 Dark Moon Listening has shapeshifted to be less workshop and more monthly listening meditation gathering. In its new form, each Dark Moon Listening gathering will begin with a brief celestially or seasonally inspired listening prompt, followed by 45 minutes of listening, and some time to connect and reflect on our shared listening experience. Dark Moon Listening sessions can be attended individually or as a series. They are donation-based. Our first gathering will focus on the idea of “Listening in Balance” to mark the end of Libra season. ⚖️