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Venessa Smith🌲Food, Learning, & Life Rooted in the Land

@learn_with_smith

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Bearing Tree Rooted Living: Remember Your Roots
Sourdough/Gardening/Preserving/Forest Bathing
Community-rooted | Local, Traveling & Online Offerings

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🌿 Meet Your Coach: Venessa Smith 🌿

Hi, I’m Venessa, a Learning and Life Coach for teens and young adults, and I’m passionate about helping teens break free from stress, overwhelm, and self-doubt so they can thrive - not just in school, but in life.

As a former high school science teacher with over 10 years of experience, I saw firsthand how academic pressures, uncertainty about the future, and the struggle to balance school and personal life can weigh on teens. That’s why I created Bearing Tree Wholistic Learning: Root to Rise - to provide teens with the tools, strategies, and mindset they need to develop confidence, social & emotional skills, resilience, and thinking & organizational skills to navigate life’s transitions with ease.

With a B.S. in Geology, science education credentials, and certification as a Learning and Life Coach, I blend neuroscience, educational psychology, and a wholistic, student-centered approach to empower young people. Through personalized coaching, I help them gain clarity, overcome challenges, and build the skills they need to succeed - on their own terms. by @learn_with_smith

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2 years ago

What if a farm could become a place of wonder, discovery, and a little bit of magic? 🌱

Join me at Blue Heron Farm for a 1.5-hour guided nature experience designed for young explorers and their grown-ups!

We’ll use our senses, look closely, ask questions, notice and uncover some of the amazing relationships happening between plants, soil, insects, fungi, and other living things. 🐛🌳🍂.

📍 Blue Heron Farm
⏰ 9:00-10:30 AM
💚 $15 per child | Participating adult is FREE

Upcoming dates:
🌿 Saturday, September 12
🍂 Sunday, October 11
🍁 Saturday, November 7

Come discover some of the hidden magic that’s happening all around us on the farm. 🌱✨

Registration is open for all three dates! Visit the Blue Heron Farm website or use the link in @BlueHeronProject’s bio to learn more and register for whichever day works best for your family.

I’d love to explore the farm with you! 💚

#BlueHeronFarm #HiddenMagicOfTheFarm #NatureBasedLearning #NatureKids #FarmExperience FamilyNatureExperience OutdoorLearning NatureConnection BishopCA EasternSierra KidsInNature CuriosityAndWonder by @learn_with_smith

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a month ago

VENDOR REMINDER ALERT! 👀

Venessa of Bearing Tree Learning will be joining us again for Year 3! She will be offering experiences that help people reconnect with themselves, nature, and the simple practices that nourish a meaningful life. ✨️

Through sourdough workshops, forest and nature bathing, gardening education, food preservation classes, and seasonal gatherings; Venessa creates opportunities for people to slow down, learn practical skills, and experience a deeper sense of connection and well-being. 🌱

🎟️️ Purchase an Experience Ticket via that Link in Bio for only $20.00
🌿 Entrance to the Wellness Market will be FREE on Saturday SEPT. 26th from 9am-4pm in the parking lot of @barsierramammoth
🌱 visit www.mammothlakeshealthandwellnessfair.com for more

Health is Wealth Babesss!! 🐒
SAVE THE DATE🪴September 25th - 27th 2026🪴
📍 @outboundmammoth

#mammothlakeshealthandwellnessfair2026 #mammothlakes #california #healthiswealth #wellnessfair Mammoth lakes, California Health and wellness taken in Mammoth Lakes, California by @learn_with_smith

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a month ago

13th Vendor Drop 👉 @learn_with_smith

Meet Venessa! 😊 “I offer experiences that help people reconnect with themselves, nature, and the simple practices that nourish a meaningful life. Through sourdough workshops, forest and nature bathing, gardening education, food preservation classes, and seasonal gatherings, I create opportunities for people to slow down, learn practical skills, and experience a deeper sense of connection and well-being.

My hope is that someone who invests in these experiences walks away with more than knowledge. I hope they gain confidence, a sense of belonging, a renewed connection to the natural world, and practical tools they can carry into everyday life. 🌿✨

Whether it’s baking bread, growing food, preserving a harvest, or simply being present in nature, these practices can help us feel more grounded, resilient, and connected to what truly matters.”

🔗 Purchase an Experience Ticket via that Link in Bio
🌿 Entrance to the Wellness Fair will be FREE

SAVE THE DATE 🌱🪴 9.26.2026 🌱🪴
🎨 @deepthoughtdesignco
📷 @sierrasummitphotography_
📍 @outboundmammoth

#healthiswealth #mammothlakes #california #mammothlakeshealthandwellnessfair2026 #wellnessintheeasternsiernsierras taken in Mammoth Lakes, California by @learn_with_smith

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2 months ago

I’m a tree 🌲 hugger…and there’s actually a scientific reason why.

Trees release natural aromatic compounds called phytoncides that can help calm the nervous system and support immune function.

This is part of the science behind Sylvotherapy, also known as forest bathing or in Japan it’s called Shinrin-Yoku.

It’s a simple guided practice of slowing down and connecting with nature through the senses…noticing light through leaves, the scent of the air, birdsong, and the quiet presence of trees.

Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it - Ferris Bueller.

Spending intentional time in nature can be one of the most powerful ways to reset.

On March 22nd & April 5th, I’ll be guiding a Spring Orchard Forest Bathing Experience at Blue Heron Farm @theblueheronproject

If you’d like to join us, you can find the event link in my bio. 🌳

Have you ever tried forest bathing before?

#forestbathing #naturehealing #treehugger #naturetherapy #owensvalley by @learn_with_smith

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7 months ago

Every time I make sourdough, I feel connected to something older than me.

To the Italian and Belgian women in my lineage who likely stood in kitchens with flour-dusted hands…feeding families, keeping rhythms, carrying traditions forward.

There is something so grounding about working with simple ingredients and time.

In a world that feels overstimulating, fast, and unpredictable, bread reminds us:

Slow down.
Use your hands.
Remember where you come from.

This is why I gather people to learn sourdough making. It’s not just about bread…it’s about reconnecting to tradition, community, roots, and ourselves.

#roottorise #sourdoughlove #italian #belgian #ancientrhythms by @learn_with_smith

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7 months ago

🌿 We were all in the same place…
but everyone experienced something different.

One person noticed bees in a way she never had before.
Another noticed differences between the same species of trees.
Someone found the scent of sage and mint come alive in their hands.
And someone shared that for the first time in a while… they felt hopeful.

This is the beauty of Forest Bathing, or Shinrin-Yoku.

It’s not about doing it “right.”
It’s about giving yourself the space to notice.

Each experience is unique.
Each experience is needed.

✨Next experience on April 5th at Blue Heron Farm. More experiences coming soon.

Immerse to disperse 🌲

@theblueheronproject 🙏🏼Thank you!

#shinrinyoku #easternsierra #forestbathing #foodforest #farmlife by @learn_with_smith

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7 months ago

Spring is waking up at the farm, and we’re excited to host something a little special.

Join us for Food Forest Sylvotherapy, a guided experience to slow down, breathe deep, and reconnect with the land as everything begins to bloom again. This is time to walk the orchard, tune into the rhythm of spring, and immerse your senses in the living landscape of the farm.

Led by Venessa Smith, a Wholistic Learning Coach and Sylvotherapy Practitioner with a background in geoscience and education.

Sunday, March 22 | 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM
Sunday, April 5 | 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM

📍 Blue Heron Farm

Spots are limited and pre-registration is required. Link in bio to learn more.

To reserve your place, email Venessa
at venessa.smith717@outlook.com taken in Blue Heron Farm by @learn_with_smith

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7 months ago

Small steps. Big shifts.

Whether it’s a project, a paper, or figuring out your next move - breaking it down builds momentum.

🥖 What’s your next small step today?

#RootToRise #SmallStepsBigChange #YoungAdultLife #ProgressNotPerfection #MindfulMomentum #BearingTreeWholisticLearning #ParentingTips #TeenStudyTips by @learn_with_smith

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a year ago

Yum! 🤤

Come learn how to make bread with me! You won’t regret the ability to make 4 ingredient (flour, water, salt, leaven) bread that is good for your gut 😌

Online course coming soon!

#nonnamaxxing #roottorise #homesteading #sourdough #naturalliving by @learn_with_smith

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4 months ago

For years, I taught photosynthesis to my students.

Carbon dioxide + water + sunlight → glucose + oxygen.

It was clear. Structured. Scientific.

But I never thought of it quite like Richard Feynman described it…

That trees are made of air.

That through the process of photosynthesis, air and light become solid, living matter.

Most of the mass of a tree doesn’t come from the soil…
but from the sky.

There’s something about that shift in perspective that changes how you see a tree.

Not just as something rooted in the ground…
but as something formed from sunlight and air.

And when you slow down enough to sit with them…
you begin to notice that differently.

This is part of what we explore in forest bathing…slowing down enough to see the living world differently.

#forestbathing #shinrinyoku #natureconnection #scienceofnature #owensvalley by @learn_with_smith

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6 months ago

Gardening with your mom has been proven to improve mood, support the immune system, increase circulation, support heart health…

…and apparently includes a greenhouse dance that helps plants grow to the sky 💃🏻🌱

But really…
gardening has been shown to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, and significantly improve overall well-being.

It turns out…
touching soil, moving your body, breathing fresh air, and being in relationship with living things actually does something to us.

And doing it with your mom?
That just amplifies all of it 💚🌱💚

#GardenTherapy
#NervousSystemRegulation
#NatureHeals
#RootToRise
#MotherDaughterMoments by @learn_with_smith

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6 months ago