It was a warm, misty winter day and the FOREST kids rolled in with lots of energy despite the rain! We started our morning giving gratitude for the contrasting winter season we have been experiencing and had an awareness meditation to connect and orienteer us to our landscape. Then we went up to Basecamp for snack before breaking into our morning activities.
One group spent some muddy fun out in the rain! After some tree ID and awareness challenges, they practiced sensory observation, which led to the art of “fox walking.” This is a technique that allows one to walk through the forest (or anywhere) without making a sound, or very little sound. We put our practice into action with a few fun rounds of “Eagle Nest,” during which the foxes sneak so quietly and slowly up to the eagle, who is blind but can hear well. The goal is to try to steal as many eggs as possible without being heard.
After much success and laughter, we explored the frozen and slushy swamp. The winter conditions allowing us to venture further than ever before, we discovered hidden cattail forests and beaver dams that are normally out of sight as one would look into the swamp from the forest.
One group took some refuge from the rain in the barn to work on some medicine making. We chopped up some ingredients to make Fire Cider, an infusion of some potent and spicy vegetables and herbs that can be grown in a garden (some that we may grow at Flying Deer’s garden!). Each person made their own jar, crafting their own combination of ginger, garlic, onions, pepper, turmeric, holy basil, lemon balm infused with apple cider vinegar, and a bit of honey to help with the taste. It’s great for overall wellness and to boost your immunity!
After morning session, we got to work building the fire, which was challenging in such soggy conditions. It was a struggle, but we managed to get a fire going to help warm ourselves next to during lunch while we shared riddles. Sit spots were cold but peaceful and some noticed the Chuck the squirrel had been hard at work creating a solid cache of spruce cones, including some of the cone bird feeders we made our first week.
After sit spots, we headed up to Red Pine Site to play a well-loved game of Hawk and Flock. With the foggy landscape, it was eerie to have to search for the bandana food when a hawk could be behind any tree! It was an epic game, and with great teamwork and creativity the songbirds were successful in getting all the food (and some extra surprise ones left on the landscape) and get all the songbirds safely back to their nest.
—Painted Trillium (Lauren), Poison Ivy (Dan), Black Walnut (Raven), February 3, 2022