Just Love Forest
716 acres in the Appalachian foothills of Poetry, Georgia
A sacred forest & Community for Healing IN NATURE
FOUNDED IN 2020 | ROOTED IN THE PRACTICE OF FOREST THERAPY (Shinrin-Yoku)
Inspired by the devotional lineage of Ram Dass and Neem Karoli Baba
💌 We'd love to stay in touch
Each week, we share reflections from the forest and invitations to upcoming retreats, gatherings, and ways to connect more deeply with the land.
In a time of deep disconnection, we offer something rare:
A sacred forest and a circle of people who care.
At the heart of Just Love Forest is the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing. It’s a simple, powerful way of being with nature that awakens all the senses and invites us back into relationship with the living world.
Everything we offer - retreats, community gatherings, green burials, moments of stillness - is shaped by this practice. We don’t just walk through the forest. We listen to it. We let it change us.
Just Love Forest is more than a place to visit.
It’s a living, breathing community of humans and trees, joy and grief, silence and song.
Whether you're seeking rest, connection, healing, or remembrance, the forest is here to welcome you, just as you are.
THE FACES OF JUST LOVE FOREST
What We Offer:
Monthly community building weekends
Healing and restorative retreats in nature
Green burial grounds for humans and pets
Private forest access through membership
Whether you come to walk in silence, grieve a loss, join a circle, experience the joys of nature or simply breathe, the forest welcomes you, just as you are.
This is not just a place to visit. It’s a place to return to. A place to belong.
Come home to the forest
&
Come home to yourself
Your Forest Therapy Guides
James Bala Yancey, Head Steward
Certified Forest Therapy Guide & Meditation Teacher
I believe that nature doesn’t just heal us. It reminds us who we are.
My journey began with trails and rivers, working on mountain paths in New Mexico, guiding canoe expeditions in the wilderness of Minnesota. But it was a spiritual awakening during meditation in 2017 that changed everything. I had a vision of a forest, not just as a refuge, but as a living community for healing, remembrance, and return.
That vision became Just Love Forest.
Rooted in the teachings of Ram Dass and the lineage of Neem Karoli Baba, I now serve as Head Steward of this 716-acre sanctuary in Poetry, Georgia. Here, I guide others through forest therapy, nature-based retreats, grief rituals, and green burial. But more than anything, I listen to the land, to the moment, and to what’s ready to unfold.
Whether you come to this forest to breathe, to heal, to celebrate, or to say goodbye, it is my honor to welcome you, just as you are.
Brandon Sutton, Steward
Certified Forest Therapy Guide
I’m a Georgia native who grew up exploring the pine forests in my hometown of Acworth. I’m most at home when playing in the woods and exploring life off the beaten path. My stewardship and intimate connection with Just Love Forest in the early stages of its evolution gives me a valuable perspective on the history of the land and the possibilities that the forest offers.
