My name is Michael Silverstein-Bode and I’m the creator and lead guide of Heartland. I have spent my whole life exploring the Oregon outdoors, walking, sitting, and sleeping outside as often as I can. As an adult, wild lands have become my most revered sanctuaries and serve as my wisest teachers.

Background

​

My twenties were oriented around meditation, yoga, and non-dual contemplative practices. After transitioning out of a career in engineering, I worked for 8 years as a meditation instructor for teens and educators through Peace in Schools. Also during this time I organized groups for men to practice authentic connection and explore dismantling internalized white supremacy and patriarchy. On weekends and school breaks I would retreat to the wilderness to reconnect and recharge.

​

The Vision Fast

In 2021 my life changed forever when I answered the call of my heart to join a 9-day vision fast in the Oregon desert. The first three days we camped as a group, refining our intentions for the ceremony and preparing to be alone on the land. On the fourth day the ceremony began and we each found our own place to be alone and fast. The following 3 days and nights I was alone with the land, no food or shelter, in ceremony with the spirit of the desert. On the 7th day at dawn we rejoined the group and our last days together we shared our stories and prepared to re-enter the world.  What emerged from this experience is a long story, but the personal and spiritual growth was astounding and changed the trajectory of my life.

​

Creating Heartland

​

In Fall 2021 I stepped away from my job as a mindfulness teacher and created Heartland. This project is an expression of my heart's deepest desire to heal and change the world through intimacy with nature. As I vision and develop this business and its offerings, every step of the way I am including the voice with my heart and the wisdom of the lands we would be visiting.

Heartland - A collaboration between heart and land.