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Week Three

5/5/2020

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This week we will:
  • Look at ways to deepen our breathing and walking practices further
  • Introduce the third offering in our mindfulness practices 
  • Explore our next nature connection offering 

Welcome to Week 3. I hope you’ve been able to give the practices and activities we’ve offered so far a little try and found, if not all, some of them useful in one way or another. As I’ve mentioned previously, there are no strict rules with the practices, they can be fairly easily adapted and you can take as much or as little time out with them as you like, even 5 minutes a day is beneficial, just to be still and to quiet the mind.

Before I introduce this weeks activities, I wanted to take a moment to suggest some additional ways that you can explore the mindfulness of breathing and walking meditation practices within a slightly more nature focused context. Attuning ourselves to our natural environments and re-establishing our deeper connections to the more than human world, is an integral part of our mindfulness practice, and has an important role to play in supporting our ongoing mental wellbeing. 

One of the most significant reciprocal relationships we share in nature, is with that of the trees. Trees are vital to our very existence. They are quite literally the lungs of the earth, and for that alone it’s hugely important that we respect and honour our relationship to these earthly companions. Here are just a few of the benefits trees offer us:

  • They produce the oxygen we breath
  • They remove carbon dioxide (which we breath out) from the atmosphere 
  • They help to remove airborne particles and pollutants improving our air quality
  • They protect our land from soil erosion
  • They provide shelter, shade and natural defences
  • They encourage biodiversity by being a habitat for many species of birds, animals and insects
  • The provide a sustainable source of wood for energy, furniture, tools, homes and clothing
  • They are a vital source of food in the form of fruits, nuts, spices and cocoa
  • They can conserve and improve water quality as well as helping to prevent storm and flood damage
  • They support our mental and physical health

Referring to the last point, studies have shown that even just looking at trees can have beneficial effects on our health and wellbeing. The Japanese have a word for this: Shinrin-yoku or Forest Bathing. The practice of forest bathing has been carried out for decades in Japan, with research highlighting that time spent amongst trees can:

  • Reduce, anger, stress levels and high blood pressure
  • Lower blood sugar levels
  • Lift depression and low mood
  • Improve energy levels
  • Improve cardiovascular and metabolic health
  • Improve concentration and memory
  • Boost the immune system
​
We will discuss and practice Forest Bathing with greater depth at a later stage on the website, but for now I’d like to suggest next time you try your mindful breathing to find a tree you are drawn to and to sit with it a while. Or, if you prefer the walking meditation, to go to a wooded space (if close by) to walk amongst the trees and take some moments to reflect on our relationship to them, their unending offerings to us and the benefits we reap in return.

Sitting with a Tree
  • Sit comfortably by your chosen tree and begin to ground yourself
  • Soften and relax into the space, releasing any pockets of tension
  • Tune into your breath as practiced and just sit for a couple of minutes with the breath
  • Now focus on the tree, notice its form, size, colours and textures, do any creatures or insects reside on it, what else is existing or thriving alongside it, how old might your tree be?
  • Notice any thoughts or feelings that arise as you share the space with your tree
  • What similarities can you notice between your own life and that of your trees life?
  • When you feel ready, perhaps give a small thanks to your tree and finish your sit.
​
Walking amongst Trees
  • Entering your chosen space, noticeably slow your pace and breathing and begin to ‘arrive’
  • Soften and relax your body, releasing any pockets of tension
  • Tune into your breath as practiced and just take a few moments to notice your surroundings
  • Begin to walk and notice the aroma of the space by taking some deeper breaths
  • Notice the sensations of the woodland floor on the soles of your feet
  • Begin to listen for any sounds amongst the trees, wind blowing through leaves, branches creaking, birds singing
  • Walk for as little or as long as your like, try not to rush or increase your pace, take your time to be peaceful and maintain gentle awareness of what’s arising moment to moment
  • Notice any feelings or thoughts that may arise
  • When you feel ready, perhaps give a small thanks to the space and finish your walk.


                                       “We sat together the forest and I, merging into silence, until only the forest remained”
                                                                                                             Li Po


Mindfulness Practice 3 – ‘Mindfully Eating’
Time: 10-15mins
What you’ll need:

  • A piece of fruit
  • Pen and paper
  • Somewhere to sit comfortably (can be indoors or out)

Mindful awareness can be applied to what can seem like the most insignificant of things in our day to day living. When we can increase our present moment awareness with these often overlooked activities, we begin to realise how much we can enhance our enjoyment in life and appreciate all the pleasures gifted to us in the ability to see, touch, taste, smell and hear. In this practice we’re going to ask you to give active attention to a piece of fruit. Eating and drinking is for most one of the more pleasurable of day to day activities that we undertake. We can be hurrying about our daily tasks but often look forward to sitting down to a nice meal or enjoying a cuppa at the end of the day. However, when we do finally sit down with our drink in our hand or dinner on our laps, our ‘monkey minds’ are often still running around keeping busy with our thoughts, or we’re wrapped up in what’s on the television or on our phones. With this in mind, we miss the simple pleasure in just sipping our tea or really tasting and experiencing our food. 


                                                 “When was the last time you had a glass of water and really drank it?”
                                                                                                 Thomas Merton


The Practice
You might like to try this activity with others you live with, or suggest to a friend to join you via an online platform if you wanted to share in the experience. Otherwise, find yourself somewhere comfortable to sit where you won’t be disturbed for the next 5-10minutes. Ensure your phone is switched to silent and that there are no other obvious distractions within the immediate space. You only need to try this practice once, but are welcome to repeat it with other items of food or drink if you wish!

Have your piece of fruit ready to hand and take a few moments to tune into your breath and relax yourself. Now work your way slowly through the following instructions:


  1. Holding – hold the fruit in the palm of your hand, focus on it and approach it as through the eyes of a child seeing it for the first time. How does it feel, is it heavy or light? What has had to happen for this fruit to reach you, where did it begin its journey and how many people have been involved in its journey up to this point?
  2. Seeing – allow your eyes to explore every aspect of its appearance, what do you notice about its shape and form, are there any shadows, hollows, folds, ridges, nics or bruises?
  3. Touching – turn it over in your hand, how does it feel, explore its textures.
  4. Smelling – place it under your nose, does it have a scent at all, let it fill your awareness.
  5. Placing – bring the fruit up to your mouth, notice how your body knows how to do this and then gently take a bite and notice what your mouth does to receive this. Without chewing simply explore any sensations that arise in your mouth or on your tongue. Hold it there for 20-30secs
  6. Chewing – now bite into the piece in your mouth, what tastes does it release, feel the texture as you break it down between your teeth. Do not swallow just notice what processes  and changes you’re experiencing in your mouth as your body allows you to carry out this action.
  7. Swallowing – can you detect the first intention to swallow as it arises in your mind before you actually swallow? Notice what you mouth does to prepare for you to swallow, and then the subsequent sensations as it moves into your throat and down towards your stomach. 
  8. After-effects – take a few moments to register what your mouth and body are doing in the aftermath of eating. Do you notice a desire to take another bite of the fruit?

You’re invited to make some notes of your experience or share and exchange it verbally with whoever you chose to do the practice with. What might they have noticed or experienced that you perhaps didn’t? How many times in the past have you paid so much attention to eating, and was your experience transformed by the simple act of just focusing more?
We often place food and drink in our mouths without giving it a second thought, it goes in and just disappears, unnoticed. What normally happens to all that taste? Once you’re able to see the difference in paying attention to something seemingly insignificant, you begin to recognise the real cost of ‘inattention’ and the vast portions of your daily life that are effectively being ‘missed’ moment to moment.


Nature Connection Activity 3 – Exploring the more-than-human
Time: as long as you like!
What you’ll need:

  • Pens, paper, journal, any art materials you have to hand 
  • Smartphone/ Camera (optional)

In this activity we look at exploring the ‘more than human’ world, and channelling connections to our non-human companions. Forging relationships by spending the time to deepen our understanding of the natural world around us can not only widen our perspectives, but can also help us to feel less alone as we cultivate the knowledge that everything is interconnected, and coexists together as one. This is a great activity to have some fun with and yet can be profoundly insightful at the same time. It can cause us to look more deeply at ourselves, what inspires us, what resonates for us and what might the quiet voice within be speaking to us.

To start I’d like to invite you to see yourself in the form of an ‘apprentice’ who is setting out to explore a ‘being’ that is of particular interest to you. This could be in the form of anything from a bird to an animal, plant, tree, element such as rain or a particular landscape like mountains, rivers or forests. This is something that grabs you, that you are naturally drawn to, have always admired, enjoyed or even feared but perhaps never questioned why.

There will of course be many aspects within nature that draw us, but for now just start with one, preferably the first that comes into your head, as this will have been your most natural and instinctual response. Then you’re invited to begin your enquiry into this ‘being’. You can spend as much or as little time as you like investigating, you don’t have to explore all in one go, you could take days, weeks or months, go at your own pace and with what feels right. They may not say much at all to you, or they may open up a whole host of enquiries and questions that you want to explore further. 
​

As an example to help start you off, my first ‘apprenticeship’ was with Raven (Corvis Corax). These are birds that have always fascinated me and that I’ve been drawn to, so some useful questions to begin with could be:

  • What is your fascination with this being?
  • Is the interest driven by fear, joy or something else?
  • What is it that gets my curiosity?
  • What does this being speak to me on a deeper level?
  • What is my relationship to this being?
  • What is their place in the world?
  • What are they associated with on a mythological level, what stories might they be a part of historically, culturally?
  • What can this being teach me, what lessons do they offer?
  • How do they exist, how long have they been here?
  • What words and feelings are conjured up when I think of this being?
  • How are they depicted in art, poetry, books, films etc?
  • Is there a specific theme primarily attached to them?

It’s helpful when enquiring to not allow too much logic and ego to cloud your creativity and instinctual responses. So for example, when I think of Raven he naturally represents the attributes of ‘courage, playfulness and boldness’. This however could be completely different to someone else. So its important to ‘go with your gut’ and to what speaks instinctively to you. Both our ancestors and many indigenous peoples of the world place great importance on the ‘more than human’ connections, respecting their landscapes, plants and animal kingdoms and working in tune with nature and her natural cycles and whatever ‘speaks’ to you in your heart is always a great path to follow. I hope you enjoy this and have some fun with it, this is again about encouraging the ‘child within’ and returning to a way of looking at the world with awe and wonder, rather than ego and logic!

Again, we hope you enjoy trying out the suggested activities and practices above and would welcome any feedback of your experiences taking part in the course. Please do drop us any comments in the comments section below. 

When you are ready to move onto the final part of this course please click the link below:
WEEK FOUR
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  • HOME
    • ABOUT US
    • THE TEAM
  • OUR SERVICES
    • COMMUNITY GARDENING
    • 12 WEEK ECOTHERAPY PROGRAMME
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  • CONTACT & REFERRALS