We gathered together and introduced ourselves: new members and veteran Spotted Owls. We widened our circle to welcome Wren, Caroline, Riahanah, and Lilah. Five members of the group have moved on to other activities. And we will be welcoming Emery next outing. We also initiated Stormie to her first outing as a new Wild Whatcom mentor! Whew! Lots of change and transition; and a perfect opportunity to have a conversation about how nature teaches us about transitions. We discussed how we become aware of these changes through our senses: the feel of cooler temps, watching the leaves change, the different smell in the air, and even our biorhythms of knowing it's time to return to school.
The veterans shared some important EC mottos with our new members: Safety First, LIBK, Be Prepared, Build Bridges not Walls, and Stretch your Edge. ( Collaborate and Compromise came up later ).
Our newly formed Spotted Owls then headed to the south side of Chuckanut Drive for a walk in the forest and a chance to meet new and old plant and tree friends. We stopped to look at Cedars and Douglas Firs; comparing and contrasting. We got curious about ferns and stinky bob. But the plant we were seeking out was Devil's Club, or, as we choose to call it, Medicine Club. We had discussed some aspects of Medicine Club before we met any; particularly it's defense mechanism of many noxious and irritating spines. The plant is covered! But we got real close and we discovered that only the stems and the upper and lower veins of the leaves have the spines. Most everyone felt brave enough to carefully touch the parts of the leaves where no spines were present. We had respected the Medicine Club, and now we had a new friend.
We had quite a fun time fox walking through the thick forest as we continued on towards Mud Bay. We had our secret spider spray to illuminate some sweet webs. And we learned how to navigate with a compass. I think everyone was happy though when we emerged out of the thick trees and saw water. Ah, a sunny day and plenty of time and water!! We sat to eat some lunch and then the long pants were replaced by shorts, and the water shoes replaced the hikers. For a good solid hour it was all play: mud, water, chasing, piggy back rides, falling in the mud, laughing, crabs and..did I say MUD!
We continued on to Woodstock Farm where we introduced the time honored game of Spider's Web. A few rounds later and it was approaching the close of our day. We separated out for about twenty minutes of peaceful place and then walked the last section of our traverse.
Coming together once more in our circle we shared our attitude of gratitude; a practice of expressing what we were grateful for in our day. As for us ( Stormie and Rebecca ), we are grateful for the fun, inclusive, curious energy of this group. We can't wait to play again.
Words of the day: Medicine Club, water and mud, new and old friends, navigation....peaceful
More photos here
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