Retreat Recap: Connecting with Mother Earth, May 2023
Forest Bathing: Connecting with Mother Earth
On Saturday, May 13, a beautiful group of Balanced Soul Forest Bathers explored the Marion University Eco Lab. We “Connected to Mother Earth” by discussing what we each experience in nature that feels nurturing.
An honest conversation was explored around the pain for many around Mother’s Day. We allowed in sensitivity concerning those who may have lost their mothers to death or illness, for those who may have desired to become mothers but could not, for those who had mentally ill mothers, and for those women who had lost a child or had been adopted.
We focused our Mother’s Day connection towards our inner feminine, which is not restricted to conventional motherhood. We held the thought that whenever we look beyond our own needs to foster and nurture the needs of others, we take on the role of Mother.
For this Mother’s Day, we honored all the women in our life who came before us, cared for us, mothered us, nurtured our spirits, taught us how to love and be loved, inspired us to make the world a better place. We completed a group meditation and a silent walk through the Eco Lab marsh, using all our senses (including our sense of imagination). Upon reaching the Eco Lab outdoor classroom, we relaxed further with gentle yoga stretches. Our group then took alone time to fully ‘bathe” in the gifts of nature. The group was asked to find a sit spot in nature, listen to the whispers of Mother Earth and to bring back an answer around some aspect of their life. Returning from forest bathing we created a group Mandala made from items found on their Forest Bath and finished our time together with a cup of dandelion tea.
Additional Highlights Included:
Sighting purple Iris flowers in the marsh
Enjoying the company of two mallard ducks
Seeing a beaver dam
Hearing the sound of a beaver whipping it’s tail across the water
The smell of honeysuckle
Feeling the intensity and healing power of the sun
Viewing vibrant horsetail plants
Taking in many different shades of green
Feeling and breathing the thick, damp air
To conclude the event, we read the poem “The Moment of Your Birth,” by Rebecca Campbell reminding us to love the Mother in all of us and the amazement of being birthed into our unique lives.
The Moment of Your Birth, by Rebecca Campbell
Before you were born your soul consulted with the cosmos to arrange the details of your return. The location and conditions were carefully orchestrated and seeded as you crossed the threshold of the in between – the watery world of the mother.
There you waited in the fertile void as all of the stars and the planets in the knowable and unknowable cosmos moved into place.
When the alignment was just right, a portal opened, and you were crowned upon your entrance to the world. A soul embodied. Spirit planted. Eternal woven into matter. Heaven and Earth combined.
Your cells, your flesh, your bones, your eyes, all made up of ancient exploding stars. The Universe magnificently ordered as the cosmos. Your basic existence is enough to blow anyone’s mind.
How did you get here? And why did you choose to come? Somehow, the cosmic curtains parted for the great dance of your life to begin.
This is that life and you are that dancer. It took a lot for you to be here now. To be planted here now. And what a time you chose to come.
Please consider joining us for our next Forest Bathing event on July 1st: Bathing in Gratitude. We’ll explore reciprocity breathing, Native American prayer and creating smudge bundles, offering bags of bird seed, and more. It’s sure to be another memorable and special event, and we hope you can make it!
With love and gratitude,
Jenny