We welcome you and anyone who hears the call for nature immersion, ceremony, and community. We come together in our virtual circle to reconnect with something essential and life-affirming in the midst of chaotic times. Our online community, base camp, and time in nature offer space for deep personal reflection, restoration, and exploration.
Whatever our individual situations, we have all endured the disorientation, disruption, and losses brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. In response to these unique times, an adjusted ceremonial nature experience is offered, blending online zoom councils and teachings, contemplative nature walks, and a 2-day solo (approximately 12 hours each day). While this alternative program cannot replace a regular vision fast, it does provide a viable, meaningful nature connection, based on vision fast principles and practices.
Location
All walks and the solo take place wherever you live – state parks, conservation areas, mountain trails, or your favorite creek.
Who This Is For
Many people cannot travel now or have health concerns. For others income has been reduced. Perhaps a full, in-person vision fast might not be feasible due to family demands. This is an offering to connect with nature wherever you live, to deepen your roots to your home, and to find your own wisdom during our time together.
How It Works
We use the teaching of the Four Shields and sharing councils to help us connect to ourselves, to each other, to our own wisdom, and the natural environment around us. Participants are outside in the natural world every day to immerse in reflection and restoration. Our base camp, though, will be virtual. Through the daily contemplative walks, whole group discussions on zoom, we’ll keep the program as experiential as possible. A 48-hour solo deepens intimate connection with the land, while our virtual base camp creates a supportive community during our time together.
Introduction to Contemplative Nature Walks
Contemplative nature walks mimic an actual wilderness solo but take place in a shorter time frame. An intention is set or a reflective task is assigned. Marking a threshold (a line in the dirt, walking between two trees, for example), you then carry that intention across the threshold into sacred space. With all your senses open, you wander and let intuition guide your movements. You go alone and fast, if possible, for the duration of the walk. You return, cross your threshold, and close out that day’s ceremony. Thus, you will have followed the three stages of any rite of passage: Severance – Threshold – Return/Incorporation.