Tag Archives: outdoors

Using your Surroundings to Punctuate your Meditation Walk

Posted on August 15, 2012 | Leave a comment

Photo of "A Fresh Start" trail signage at Hemlock Bluffs, Cary, NCA walk doesn’t stand on its own – all of the elements that are nearby can be used to punctuate your meditation, to give it a unique flavor that’s tied to a specific location.  I often take into account signage, boardwalks/bridges, intersecting paths/roads, stairs/switchbacks, etc. to add a unique focus or rhythm to a walk, or to shift to another segment of my walk (e.g., from release to silence, or from silence to gratitude).  I’ve used bridges to recite a special affirmation, stairs to focus on a key quality (e.g., peace, love, faith), and bridge crossings as a place to pause and set intention for the next segment of the walk.

Photo of "It All Flows Together" trail signage at Hemlock Bluffs, Cary, NCAt one of the local parks, Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve in Cary, NC, the trails had numbered signs that correlated to secret-decoder trail guides to learn more about plants and animals in the area.  When I first started walking there I used each numbered sign to kick off a gratitude as I walked the short Swift Creek Loop Trail for the 3rd lap (I used the 1st lap around for release and the 2nd lap around for silence) of my meditation walk.  With 14 signs along that trail, I embraced 14 different gratitudes to finish out my walk.

Photograph of "Room for me?" trail signage at Hemlock Bluffs, Cary, NCThen, earlier this year, these signs magically morphed from numbers (and the need for trail guides) to titles, pictures and descriptions as part of the signs themselves.  Sure, sure – one could easily keep with the same practice as before, but on closer look a new magic had been added.  Although the signs were still about the nearby plants and animals, they could just as easily be about oneself and one’s journey through life – sometimes with a “direct hit” and other times in a more metaphysically-speaking way.  Here’s a sampling of the sign titles (I kid you not!):

  • “A Fresh Start”
  • “A Different Landscape”
  • “A Race to the Top”
  • “Remnants of the Past”
  • “It All Flows Together”
  • “Life Abundant”
  • “Home, Safe Home”
  • “Tale of Two Habitats”
  • “Room for Me”

So, what started out as a simple, sign-based gratitude practice has now morphed into a more thoughtful, sign-based guided meditation – what do these mean in terms of my life?  I am both amazed and delighted by this shift.

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Posted in Meditation walking

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Always a favorite tree – always!

Posted on July 7, 2012 | Leave a comment

Whenever I think about my favorite hiking spots, not only do I remember my favorite trails, but I also remember my favorite trees.  How is it, or perhaps more poignantly, why is it that my mind has this need to identify a specific tree in each location?  Or, what is it about a given tree that even puts it on my radar?  Here are some of my favorite trees from different trails in the Raleigh, NC area:

Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve (Cary, Swift Creek Loop Trail)Favorite tree - Umstead State Park (US70 entrance, Sycamore Trail)Umstead State Park (US-40 entrance, Company Mill Trail)

Favorite tree on the Hinshaw Greenway, Cary, NCFavorite Tree - Lake Crabree County Park (Lake Trail), Morrisville, NC

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m undecided if it’s uniqueness or a sense-of-art that brackets my tree choices.  But, what I do know is that while I’m ‘connected’ with my trees I feel a sense of wonder and joy and freedom.  And, I couldn’t tell you a thing about what type of tree any of these are, because in the moment of connecting it’s all about a hearty ooh-ahh feeling rather than a heady bing.com description!

Trees locations (in order of appearance): 1) Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve (Swift Creek Loop Trail), Cary, NC; 2) Umstead State Park, US-70 entrance (Sycamore Trail), Raleigh, NC; 3) Umstead State Park, I-40/Harrison Ave. entrance (Company Mill Trail), Raleigh, NC; 4) Hinshaw Greenway, Cary, NC; and, 5) Lake Crabtree County Park (Lake Trail), Morrisville, NC.

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Posted in Let me say THIS about THAT

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“ Walk As One at 1” (World Labyrinth Day)

Posted on May 6, 2012 | Leave a comment

The labyrinth at Millbrook Baptist Church, Raleigh, NCThe first Saturday in May is World Labyrinth Day – a day that is recognized by The Labyrinth Society (TLS) and other labyrinth enthusiasts around the world.  So, when May 5th rolled around, I wanted to be a part of this ritual, this event focused on “walk as one at 1” in each time zone around the world that would create a wave of peaceful energy moving around the planet.  So there we were – me and a handful of labyrinth enthusiasts putting Raleigh, NC into the wave by walking at 1 PM on the 11-circuit Chartres style labyrinth at Millbrook Baptist Church .

Having had the opportunity to train as a labyrinth facilitator with the grand-master of labyrinths, Lauren Artress, I eagerly want to teach others about labyrinths and ways to walk, as well as experience walks for myself.  The typical pattern of walking a labyrinth is walking-in RELEASE, at the center RECEIVE, and walking-out RETURN.  The theme for the day was to focus on peace.  Walking-in we breathed in the pain/suffering of the world (focusing on any worldly issues that rested heavy in each one’s heart) and breathed out peace into those situations.  At the center we asked questions about peace (How can I be a peaceful warrior?  Or, what do I need to know to be more peaceful?) or stood in silence with the thought of peace.  Walking-out we focused on situations in our personal lives where we wanted to infuse peace.  Before the walk started, two of us opened up the labyrinth energy by walking clockwise around the perimeter.

Millbrook Baptist Church labyrinth - centerSo, how did it really go?  To take in the pain/suffering of the world (tonglen meditation) is not an easy task, as there is so much negative energy around us.  I chose to focus on the rain forests of the world – the devastation of which impacts worldwide ecology, unique plant and animal microcosms, and peoples who live in/near these forests.  I would have stayed with this focus for the entire walk in, but there were black clouds and thunder nearby so I thought it best to leave “rain” out of my thoughts.  I then focused on the 50 – 100 species of wildlife that vanish daily from our earth for the rest of my in-path.  At center, I focused on how/where I show up as peace and where more peace was needed.   In the midst of this centering work, the thunder roared louder, and with it I shifted into “storm thoughts” – What were my childhood storm stories that still ran through my head?  Where are the lines drawn between being overly safe, sane, or stupid when it comes to weather?  What are my past experiences with lightning and heavy rain?

Millbrook Baptist Church labyrinth - circuits, lunations, cuspsI started the walk out, focusing on areas in my life where I wanted more peaceful thoughts, emotions, interactions.  After a few minutes, the downpour began – and my walk ended.  Several participants ran the out-path to finish.  Later, two of us went back to close off the labyrinth energy by walking counter-clockwise around the perimeter – stepping in warm water puddles and getting fully soaked.  There is no such thing as a bad labyrinth walk.  And, absolutely everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) that happens while labyrinth walking is metaphor – in much the same way as dreams.

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Anatomy of a daily photo gratitude practice – 3 months into a yearlong adventure

Posted on April 8, 2012 | Leave a comment

Photo of sunset at Apex Community Park (clouds reflecting in the lake)On January 1, 2012 I committed to a daily photo gratitude practice – taking and posting (Flickr) outdoor “great-full” photos.  My passion has always been the outdoors (mostly nature) so it seemed like a good fit. Now, at the three month mark I decided to take a look back at what this practice has meant to me.  Taking pictures as a gratitude practice:

  • Makes me so aware of scarcity and abundance - the two ends of a mental teeter-totter. Some days I can’t imagine what is worth taking a picture of (“OMG, why did I commit to this insanity?”); and, some days I can’t imagine ending this practice when the 366th day rolls around (“geez, I could take a picture of a pile of dog poop and be grateful that I didn’t step in it”). After three months, most days are abundant. I’ve learned to take a few extra pictures (my “spares,” so to speak) to turn down the pressure of EVERYDAY, yet in doing so, the small space that opens up allows me to slow down; and, in slowing down I see more; and, in seeing more … well, you know the rest.  I rest in the “just right” sweet spot on the teeter-totter between the stress of too few photos and the depleted, disconnected-in-time energy of too many photos.
  • Dwarfs the actual importance of any given photo compared with sitting with a photo and allowing it to conjure up feelings, memories and associations.  And, it’s from this emotional wellspring that the words get written – so it’s the words that are imbued with positive energy.  Then, the photo itself imports that energy – creating a circular buzz-fest of gratitude.
  • Gives the “thrill of the quest” an energy of its own. What will I see today that makes my heart soar? When will I see it? Will it take me by surprise, or will I go looking? Will it be of the natural world or the man-made world? I leave myself wide-open for everything; and, I truly live with my camera to honor this anytime-anyplace energy.
  • Creates pure magic.  I remember two times where this played out.  First, was the day I went searching for daffodils and instead came across two feasting vultures and a hunkered down squirrel.  I learned that behind the drama of life (the two vultures) is a quieter, more interesting story (the squirrel).  Second, was the day I was sans photo and asked the universe for assistance.  An “EYE AM” license plate appeared in front of me; and I was then stopped at a railroad crossing.  I learned that gratitude has amazing power – my next two times at this rarely used crossing had me waiting for trains.  And, I recognized my affinity for license plates (who knew?)!
  • Demonstrates that using different camera equipment really matters.  On the day of the vultures, I gave up my cell phone camera for my go-with-you-anywhere camera; and, on the day of the turtles I knew I wanted a go-with-you-anywhere camera with a zoom – to feel as if I was on the log with them!

Photo of a moss covered tree stump with leaves, rocks, etc.Through this gratitude practice, I see deeply all that is around me.  At times, I know that there are things to SEE but not photograph, but never the other way around.

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Posted in Everyday spiritual practices

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