Ep4: The Fire That Transforms

As the North Rim of the Grand Canyon burns, this episode of Sacred Steps becomes more than a meditation—it becomes a collective ritual. Guided by Zeena Speciale, co-founder of hiKin and a witness to the Canyon’s healing cycles, we walk through the grief of loss and into the sacred wisdom of renewal. This is a fire walk—for the land, for ourselves, for what’s been lost and what still wants to rise. Step by sacred step, we remember that fire doesn’t just destroy. It clears. It awakens. It transforms.

What is Sacred Steps: Meditation In Motion?

Zeena Speciale, a shamanic Reiki master teacher, certified sound healer, and co-founder of hiKin—a community where hiking and kinship move as one—guides this weekly podcast into the heart of mindful movement and soulful connection. Sacred Steps offers walking/hiking meditations, breathwork, and nature-rooted reflections to help you find presence on the trail and clarity within.

Find Zeena at Soul Collective, her spirit-based yoga studio in the heart of Cave Creek, AZ, or at soulcollective.love.

Zeena: 00:04

Welcome to Sacred Steps, presented by Heikin. I'm your host, Zena Special. Today, I wanna tell you a story about a fire in the Grand Canyon. When I first heard about the blazing fire in the canyon, I froze. Grief rose up in my chest, not just for the land, but for the memory of it.

Zeena: 00:35

Grief for the trees that won't return, for the tiny creatures and critters with no way out, too small to flee, the habitats lost, the homes destroyed, for the lodge where I shared so much laughter and joy with my husband, for the trails and all the quiet corners of refuge now turned to ash. I paused to honor what was being lost, to remember what once stood, to carry those memories with reverence. And then I remembered, fire is part of the land's wisdom. Long before we ever set foot here, the canyon knew how to let go, how to clear what no longer served, to make space for renewal, for the next bloom, the next breath, the next life. When lightning struck the canyon, it wasn't always a tragedy.

Zeena: 02:11

Sometimes, it was a beginning. The land remembers this. And somewhere, deep in your bones, so do you. As you begin to walk, let this moment become your arrival. Feel your feet on the earth.

Zeena: 02:40

Feel the ground beneath your feet. The earth holding you alive. Listening. Walk forward with intention, with purpose. Walk like the earth knows your name because she does.

Zeena: 03:07

Take a slow breath in. Feel your ribs expand. And exhale. Let something soften. Your jaw, your shoulders, your belly.

Zeena: 03:32

Again, inhale. This time, holding the breath at the top. And exhale. Let's do this once more. Inhale.

Zeena: 03:49

Presence. Hold. Feel the stillness. And exhale, release. Now let your breath return to natural.

Zeena: 04:08

Just breathing normally now. Calm. Steady. Start to notice the length of your inhale and the length of your exhale. Perhaps you notice that you're inhaling for three counts and exhaling for three counts.

Zeena: 04:34

There's no right or wrong. Whatever counts feel right for you today. Letting your breath find its own natural rhythm. Now let your steps match that rhythm, syncing your steps to the rhythm of your breath. Let your breath's natural rhythm set your pace, and let this rhythm become your meditation.

Zeena: 05:14

Each step, a match struck. Each breath, an ember. You've lit the flame. Now that your rhythm is steady, it's time to turn your attention inward. Notice your body, not just your breath, but the places that speak up when you move.

Zeena: 05:48

Feel into the soles of your feet. Are they aching? Tired? Do they feel strong? Notice your calves, your knees, your hips, any tightness, any resistance.

Zeena: 06:13

Breathe into it. Let those places be acknowledged without judgment. Now scan up through your spine, the low back, the shoulders, the neck. Is there a soreness? Maybe a weight you've been carrying.

Zeena: 06:47

Now bring your awareness to your chest and notice any sensation there. Maybe your heart feels a little tender, not from exertion but from memory. Let all of it be part of your fire walk. Nothing is excluded. The ache is sacred too.

Zeena: 07:17

Inhale, awareness. Exhale, acceptance. Now as you continue walking, I invite you to bring to mind something you've lost, not just in the canyon, but in your own life. Perhaps it's an old version of yourself, a dream, a relationship, an innocence. You don't have to name it, just feel it.

Zeena: 07:59

Allow whatever rises to arise so that it can be released. And when it does, breathe with it. Inhale, acknowledge it. Exhale, let it fall away. Grief may arrive.

Zeena: 08:30

Let it. Before rebirth, there's loss and we don't bypass this. So let yourself grieve for what has been lost. You don't need to rush through this. Fully feel the ache, the letting go, the memory.

Zeena: 08:58

Let it rise with your inhale and fall away on the exhale. Inhale, I remember. Exhale, I release. Inhale, I honor. Exhale, I surrender.

Zeena: 09:27

Keep walking. Now imagine yourself at the edge of a burnt landscape. The trees, charred but still standing. The soil, blackened but breathing. The silence around you hums with heaviness.

Zeena: 10:00

Smoke curls in the distance. This is the burn zone, the sacred aftermath. Imagine yourself walking through what remains. As you move through the ashes of this place, let the soles of your feet touch the soil with reverence. Step by sacred step.

Zeena: 10:34

And then, we see it, tiny green shoots pushing up through the soot. Color returning to silence. The first wildflowers beginning to bloom. Life claiming its place once again. Look among the ruins, what the fire couldn't take.

Zeena: 11:07

The foundations that endured. And there, around those same stones, something new is rising. The lodge once lost, now being rebuilt, not in spite of the fire, but because of it. This is how fire works when it's trusted. It clears.

Zeena: 11:41

It awakens. It renews. And so do you. So let your inner fire rise up within you now. Inhale and fuel your truth.

Zeena: 12:00

Exhale and burn away the false. With each step, feel the excess burn away. Burn away what no longer fits. Old stories, outdated fears, or ashes now. Let what's true remain.

Zeena: 12:28

As you are walking through sacred fire, not to be destroyed, but to be transformed, to remember who you've always been, To reveal what has always been whole. Inhale, courage. Exhale, doubt. Keep walking. Let your body carry the memory of what was.

Zeena: 13:07

As your soul arrives into what's next. Take a full breath in and the long breath out. Feel your spine lengthen, Your shoulders melt. Your body light. You've walked through fire today, not to suffer, but to remember your strength.

Zeena: 13:46

You honored what was. You made space for what is still becoming. And like the canyon, you carry wisdom in your layers. You carry gold in your ashes. You carry stories of renewal.

Zeena: 14:12

Inhale trust. Exhale gratitude. Place your hand over your heart and whisper to yourself, thank you. I remember. Feel that heat beneath your hand.

Zeena: 14:35

That's your fire. It hasn't gone out. In fact, it's just begun. So let this walk be a reminder of your own resilience. Let your next steps be a beginning.

Zeena: 15:04

If you're looking for more ways to move, heal, and align with your soul's light, visit soulcollective.love or come find me in the hike in Facebook group. That's h I k I n. Hiking plus kinship. We'd love to walk beside you there. Thank you.

Zeena: 15:25

Thank you. Thank you for allowing me to walk this journey with you. I'm Xena Special, and until our souls meet again, keep shining.