When someone speaks this phrase they are often indicating that something stinks and they don’t know where it’s coming from. Perfume, fabric softener, and all the strangeness of the cleaning products aisle also come to mind. Our sense of smell is literally attacked by modern fragrances. It’s no wonder that new Wilderness Awareness School students, […]
Welcome to the WEST! This is where the sun sets as we gather around the dinner table in the evening. This the time of Fall harvest, gathering the fruits of the year. As mentors we are tasked with gathering the stories of our students. It is in this shield that we help to weave those […]
Let’s take a journey into the South East. This is a place of rapid growth, deeper orientation, electricity, rapid growth, a child’s passions, motivation, and Vitality. The Ordinal directions represent a place of transitions from one direction to the next. If the East is new growth and birth the southeast represents the rapid growth and […]
Let us enter the South! The South represents the summer solstice, the longest day of the year, or Mid-day when the sun is at the highest point in the sky residing directly in the South. This where we do the hard, physical, and mental work. This is where we make commitments and practice. We call […]
Let us all take a deep breath as we relax into the South West. Here at The Immersion, this is an important shield to cultivate as we continue our journey around the medicine wheel. This is where the connections in our learning journey deepen. In the plant metaphor, this is when the internal woody growth […]
The days have shortened and darkness rules the land. With the cold north winds blowing winter is upon us. A time when living in the Northern Hemisphere calls on your skills as an empowered human, to survive. The winters could be so harsh age was determined by how many you’ve lived through. Characterized by the […]
Come in, grab a blanket and warm yourself by the fire as we gather in the North West. A place of darkness after the sun has set and the light has faded. A time of year when the leaves have all fallen and the forest seems still, dark and wet. The time before winter comes […]
Take a moment to stop reading and listen…. You hear that? That is the sound of the North East We are now entering into the end of our series, and as our name implies, the Medicine Wheel is a circle. The North East represents the mystery between where things end and new things begin. This […]
Imagine for a moment that first day of spring, when you wake up in the morning and the sun is rising in the east, the new green plants and shoots are emerging from the earth. The lovely songbirds have returned from their winter migration and are singing in the bushes outside your house. This is […]
Listening to birds and watching bird behavior allows us to become aware of animal activity, to sneak up on wildlife or unsuspecting friends, and to enhance our senses. In my year at Wilderness Awareness School’s Immersion program, in Duvall, Washington, I explored the school’s teachings about birds, bird watching, and awareness. Here I’ll share some […]