Tuesday June 26, 2018
Starting my morning in the woods has not only allowed me to see positive results in my day but overall in each day that follows, and I only do this once a week. I have noticed myself wanting to soak in every single moment that each day presents to me, or you could say I’ve taken on a more ‘go with the flow’ approach to life. I have only been doing my morning sits in the woods for less than a month. Before my morning sits in the woods I would go through the motions of every day just trying to complete everything on my to-do list. This way of life brought along stress, boredom, tiredness, and anxiety. Just recently I have been able to accomplish things that I need to, but I am much happier and relaxed. I think this is because every morning that I’m in the woods I have to pause and just sit and listen. At first this was hard work! I had trouble clearing my mind and trying not to think about everything that I needed to be doing. However, now I go to work excited to go sit and focus on nothing and see what today brings me. I arrive excited to soak in my moment in the woods and the thoughts and things that I am going to see today in life.
This might be because every morning I have a story and it’s only my story that I know. It might not seem significant to others because it’s not super action packed. However, sitting in the woods and seeing and hearing things that make up my story also gives me a deeper appreciation for what’s actually going on. The tree I sit on is dead and that allows the mushrooms to grow on it, the birds above me are letting out warning signals to everyone else that I am there. The bugs beside me are existing to feed the birds. I always wanted to try meditation prior to going out in the woods each week but I never tried because I was too busy and didn’t know how and honestly felt like it was silly and something people told themselves that had an effect. However, when my boss told me I was going to spend some time each Tuesday morning sitting in the woods in my own area I thought it was the perfect chance to try it out. After doing it the first time it was hard to clear my mind, but then it was like magic. I noticed the effect it had on my body, my breathing became calm, my body became relaxed and eventually felt like it was a part of the log I was sitting on. My heart rate steadied and my posture and muscles relaxed.
After opening my eyes after some time I noticed I was more alert. I began to notice things around me I didn’t before. I became more patient and interested in the things going on around me like an ant crawling on a leaf. On my walk back I noticed the beauty of little things I didn’t see on my way into the woods. These things happening all around me put a smile on my face because I was able to be a part of what was going on in the woods that morning. How lucky I am to be alive at this point in time. Suddenly, anger from getting stuck in traffic that morning and running late vanished. I was then able to think more clearly about the work I was going to be doing that day. I didn’t arrive to my desk with a bad attitude and stress. I was not well rested a lot of mornings but after my sits in the woods, I was still more alert and relaxed.
Tuesday July 10, 2018 10:53 am
Today in the woods I sat in a different spot which offered a different experience. I thought about the weird day I had yesterday and the main lessons I got out of exchanges with 2 people. Yesterday I had dinner and then went to trivia night at fountain square. We were sitting there and a man sat down at our table. His gray shirt and face was soaked with what looked like sweat but he assured me it was water from the fountain. His opening line was do you believe in God?
I thought about Jamie another stranger I met that day and that some people get so wrapped up in themselves they use others and have tunnel vision that blinds them from life. That romanticizing things can really have a negative impact on your life. But how did she arrive to this whole idea? The ego. Putting soul over ego is a good mantra to have.
I then thought about meditation, how each time I go into the woods and meditate there is a lesson. If I were to sit among the trees each day, each day I would have a different lesson. Why would I want that? A lesson. Learning is fun, especially when it’s about life.
Tuesday July 24, 2018 10:12 am
Today I walked into the woods feely groggy and not well rested and just kind of here. After arriving to my sitting spot I thought about my future career, which led to thinking about my future salary. Worry and anxiety washed over my body. To my right a bird began to call out loudly, its squeaks echoing through the woods. I sat a little bit longer and listened and my thoughts shifted. When I go into the woods I feel immersed into the environment around me. I feel like I’m in a different world. It’s easy to forget about the natural environment when you don’t take time to experience it.
Eventually I ended up having a pleasant meditation. My body began to slowly dissolve into the trees and the sounds of the birds and bugs around me. I stayed here for a good minute. I felt a sense of oneness and connection. I layed back on my tree and the longer I layed there the more connected with it I felt. I felt the same way as when my mom held me in her lap on the couch as a teenager. I really felt the tree hold me.
I opened my eyes up to a sunny blue sky that filled me up with happiness and joy. It’s getting close to my favorite time of the year around August/September. During this time the sun is out and the air is cooler just like today. I felt thankful for the sun, wind, and time in the woods. By the time I left the woods today I felt present, relaxed, and happy.
COMMUNITY EARTH ALLIANCE 