May 24th, 2008 Heather
We are now in the midst of the final weeks of our residential program, the grand finish to quite an amazing year. Being intense rite of passage sort of experiences, they are shrouded in mystery for us beforehand. Afterwards, we are charged to keep our secrets so as not to ruin the surprises for future residential students. So, alas, I will not be able to go into the wonders of scout camp last week, nor the challenges of survival week next week. You will just have to imagine experiences beyond your wildest dreams and assume that they are all happening to us, right now.
I will give you at least a little to go on. Following are comments from my classmates about their time at scout camp. “I felt an overwhelming sense of oneness with the community and the earth.” “I finally felt all our core routines become part of who I am; I found myself foxwalking, leopard walking, using owl eyes… automatically.” “I experienced taking myself down from the human pedestal and becoming purely animal.” “I felt completely safe and cared for.” “I felt more scared than ever in my life.” “I pushed all my edges and discovered new ones.” “Something shifted in me.” “It was the most amazing time of my whole life.”
Stay tuned, dear readers, until after our next mind-blowing experience.
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May 17th, 2008 Heather
Wednesday and Thursday this week couldn’t have been more different. If you had visited our class on Wednesday, you would have experienced a typical rainy spring day in the northwest. We were on school land, scattered around the various wetland areas getting characteristically wet and dirty. One group was up to their knees in the muck of a skunk cabbage swamp, looking for macroinvertibrates. Who knew that there is actually a creature called a Cyclops? Other groups were catching frogs around the ponds – or missing frogs diving back into the ponds- and checking out salamander egg masses in various stages of development. Later in the day, you would have witnessed the dissection of a dead bullfrog, which added a whole new dimension to the usual desire for an after- class shower. Wet, chilled, muddy, froggy, and smiling, we had a great day on Wednesday.
Thursday you would have gotten a whole different picture of our program. You would have seen us dressed up and in various disguises, playing scouting games in the city. We took our awareness practice into an urban environment where we practiced blending in, sneaking up on and scouting our instructors in a pretend scenario of “follow the bad guys”. Cell phones in hand, we talked code to our teams and attempted to successfully complete our mission without making the general public suspicious. Any kid who has ever played spy games with their siblings would have loved this. Any adult who still has any kid left in them would have loved this. Sitting in a sunny city park at the end of the day, we were warm, clean, dry, and smiling, after yet another successful day of learning in the residential program.
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May 11th, 2008 michael
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May 9th, 2008 Heather
This week, as usual, our Wilderness Awareness School village was bursting with life. Just as the Thimbleberry are leafing out, the Red Elders are flowering, and some of the Salmonberry are already thinking about turning sweet pink flowers into tart orange berries, we too have been going about the business of growth and development. One day found us honing our scouting skills through the art of natural camoflauge, sneaking and hiding games, and stalking adventures. This was preparation for an upcoming week-long scout camp where we will connect even more deeply with the way of life of a traditional tribal scout. Another day this week found us leading groups of youth school children in sensory awareness activities and games. For some of us this was the first experience leading a group of kids. For others this was one of many, but for all of us this was a window into the magic that happens with children who are nurtured and nourished in nature, by adults who truly see and value them. Our third day was more of a philosophy day where we reflected on some of our experiences and started looking ahead to the future. We spoke of the art of mentoring, rites of passage, community, and healing. This active group who might complain about having had to sit in classrooms in the past seemed to sit pretty contentedly for nearly six hours talking about big subjects. Sharing big ideas among a supportive community, putting our experiences here and in our lives in a larger perspective is very nourishing, equally yet different from hide and sneak games and interacting with children who are truly alive and at home in the woods. Our village is like that. There’s a lot going on here, a lot that might seem pretty foreign to a lot of people. But we like it that way, and so, I think, would any open minded person who gave it a chance.
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May 5th, 2008 michael
Please excuse the quality of these photos, I WAS blindfolded:
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May 1st, 2008 Heather
Sensory Awareness
I didn’t think it could get more intense than our last sensory awareness day where we found ourselves doing a barefoot, blind, “find the drum” stalk in a shrubby cedar grove. Today makes that seem like kid stuff. When we showed up at school today, we found a sign posted at the trail entrance to Malalo, our designated meeting space for the day. “Welcome. Please put on your blindfold, meet in Malalo as planned and get a friction fire going. Keep your blindfolds on until further notice.” Further notice turned out to be the end of the day, a full 5 hours. Amazingly, we did get a fire going and cooking hot in less time than it sometimes takes us with our vision. We also met the various other challenges we faced throughout the day, including lots of bushwhacking, animal forms exercises, following a scent trail, plant/tree identification through touch and taste, and sit spot time. Not surprisingly, there was some frustration among us, but what I will remember more is the laughter. The recurrent, spontaneous, contagious laughter of people who know each other well enough to joke and sing and feel our way together and relax into whatever reality we happen to find ourselves. When we finally welcomed back our sight, alone and silent now in the forest, the colors and slow movement of moss on the sunlit vine maples was mesmerizing. Even now, as I write this while stealing glances out my window, everything I see seems brighter, more vibrant, full of beauty. As are we.
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