Today, in our program, I had a very magical moment with a dad and his son. We had a morning full of exploring pond life and watching the Canada Geese goslings. When we moved into a field, we found a perfect hill to roll down. Of course I put down all my bags and nets, laid down on the ground and proceeded to roll down the hill!
Wooooo, was real dizzy after that. The parents just laugh at me and watch me as the children join me in the ancient game of hill rolling.
When I encouraged the child to teach his dad how to roll, I was met with some hesitation on the dad's part.
"Oh, I don't think I could do it..." was his reply.
But with a little encouragement, he took his phone and keys out of his pocket and laid down beside his son and listen to the hill-rolling instructions. In that moment between the hesitation to lying down on the hill top, the energy shifted.... the adult-parent hat came off, and the child inside came out to play with a little boy. The adult became child-like and met the child on his turf... in child-like play.
Here is what happened in the moment and soon afterwards.
To top off this experience, while walking back, I was running and jumping in puddles with the children... and the dad asked me...
"So if you were on your own, would you be running through these puddles?"
and my friend and other parent replied for me...
"Yes she would!"
We forget to be child-like and it is through this fun state that we connect the best with children and each other... plus it is great for the soul to be free and happy. I encourage you to try it. And if you don't have children, borrow the neighbours. Let me know how it goes.
The last past 5 days, I have been touring around Ontario with the Art of Mentoring ACORN team and Mark Morey. Mark is an amazing mentor to us and many many others, in building regenerative communities globally. He is a founder of three transformational
organizations: Deep Wilds, Vermont Wilderness School, and The Institute for Natural Learning, and
the co-founder of the 8 Shields Institute with Jon and Nicole Young.
When I went down to Buffalo to pick Mark up, I didn't realize just how transforming this whole tour would be for me. The tour was full of me coming to my edges and breaking through them and growing personally through the process while building strong bonds with the team. I would like to share some of my experiences from the tour and hope you are inspired, laugh a little and learn.
We started our tour in the Northern part of Ontario, Huntsville. On our way up, the regional team was taking a group of high-school students out to work on wilderness skills and nature experiences. While I was getting pulled over by the regional police for speeding along highway 400. All that was going through my head was.... "I shouldn't have jinxed myself and told Mark I have never gotten a speeding ticket." All that Mark said was how this was a great lesson on slowing down and that he just had to use this in his talk tonight. Great, what a first impression eh?
But he was right, it was a great lesson to not be so rushed in our daily lives and slow down. How many times have I walked by something amazing out in nature, because I was focused on just getting to the destination. How many times have you done that?
And isn't just stopping and being in teh moment something we have lost in our culture? That we get so busy with the computer, the phones, work, errands, that we forget to just stop and be in a moment.
For instance. For those of you with children or around children, how many times have you had a child run up to you in excitement to either play with your or show you something and you shoo'd them away like a fly and said
"later, I am busy"?
I know I have, many times with my own children.
Now let's just switch that around for a second and practice that you stop and be in the moment with this child. Here is what it may look like....
CHILD: "Mom! Mom! Come here! I just found something.... what is it?" MOM: Mom, drops what she is doing and comes over and gets down at the same level as the child.
"Oh WOW! I don't know..... what do you think it may be?" What does it feel like, smell it, what colour is it? etc questions questions questions.
You may even know what it is, but the discovery is waiting to explode out of the child. CHILD: "cool, I found it over there under that tree! I think it is a nut"
And the child may continue to explore it, or that may be the end of it... and they are off! It could take a half an hour, or it may take a few seconds, but that moment with your child, you are sending a message that may stay with them for the rest of their life. A message of their importance.
What message do you want to give the children in your life? Or for that matter, the adults in your life as well. I found this video of a mother exploring snow with your child... you can see the importance of sharing this experience is to the child. Amazing CLICK HERE
That speeding ticket was a big one, one that definately made me slow down for the rest of the tour and keep an eye on my speedometer. A lesson that flowed out of the first day talk that I will practice into my life and with the people around me.
Take the time to be in the moment with the people and things around you. It is a start of changing the culture of disconnect to a culture of connection. A connection to each other, and to our surroundings.
Try it! And I would love to hear your own experiences.
Recently I watched an artistic view on our food source called "Our
Daily Bread". A look at our mass-producing food industry and I have to
tell you, even I was shocked at some of the things shown.
One
night I was discussing the documentary and my children overheard what I
was saying. They were curious and wanted to watch it as well. I was
hesitant at first, because I want my kids to eat their food. But after
talking with them, I thought it would be good for them to know where
their food comes from and how it goes from an animal to the styrofoam
plastic wrapped pieces of meat in the supermarket.
Easter Weekend, we planned on taking the kids smelt fishing. Something we
haven't done as a family as we always miss the times they run. But we
were in luck this year, they were just starting to run down the small
stream on our lake. We explained to them how it would all go down,
what they had to do and they were quite excited.
Ironically, that was the night we watched the documentary on our food source... it was their
choice to watch and they had many questions afterwards. So it was
fitting that we went smelt fishing to catch our breakfast for the next
morning. A continuation of what they learned in the documentary and why I
choose to buy locally from farms and grow my own food.
When we arrived at the smelt run location, there were already about 10
other people there. Some of them we knew and some were new friends we
made that night. It was quite the social event and we enjoyed it very
much.
Unfortunately, we didn't have all the proper equipment to catch the
little fish and everyone was willing to pass on their nets to the kids
to catch a few. They had to be patient and learn the technique of
catching them as they swam upstream. One of the men even waded through
the culvert to scare the spawning fish over to us. The kids had a blast.
We caught about a dozen of the fish and since I was the designated
cleaner, I was quite happy with that number.
This started conversations of hunting and fishing, about catching your
own food and knowing where it comes from. My kids were listening in and
absorbing the conversation.
When it was time to go home, about 11pm, one of the guys dumped his pail
into ours so we would have more fish... I thought it was nice, but
really all I could think of was, I had to clean more fish!
On the way back, both kids started to ask if they could keep a few as
pets, that they were not sure if they wanted to kill them. Although most
of them were already dead, the realization that their heads had to be
cut off and cleaned started to hit home for them.
This is where the lesson of the law of nature started. Talking about
taking an animal's life is one thing, but when it comes time to actually
do it, is another. We talked about having respect for the animal, that
if you are to take a life, you are thankful for it, give thanks for the
animal to give up its life so you can sustain yours. And that you only
take what you need or what the population can handle. This goes for
plants as well as they are living creatures too
.
We got home, got our knives, scissors, bowls and cleaned the sink to
make way for the process. As they picked up the first fish to clean,
they examined it. My daughter remarked how silvery it was and my son
looked at the eyes, gills and fins.
Then they started questioning if they could eat them, that these once
alive creatures that they caught was soon to look like the fish they see
in the supermarket, but something changed. They now had a connection
with these animals. That they are living creatures that had to give up
their life. The air changed from excitement of bringing home the catch
to respect and connection to just where our food comes from. A real
appreciation of the food.
They each took turns cleaning a few fish and although they were
wondering just if they could eat it. I turned to them and asked how this
is different from eating the fish we buy from the supermarket, or that
Grandpa brings to us all filleted and in a package? The connection
becomes deeper and they realize that the difference is that they
themselves caught it and cleaned it. That they have connected to the
source.
Ah, a great experience for the kids. My daughter soon became turned off
eating them, and I just said to her, "why don't you just think about how
you are feeling and tomorrow try just one and go from there." I am sure she dreamt about the whole ordeal.
The next morning, we got the smelt out and lightly battered them and
fried them. My daughter even helped in the cooking. At first she was
only going to try one. She wasn't sure if she would like it. And what
about the bones? What are you suppose to do with them? Well eat them of
course.
Time to eat them, my daughter tried one and she loved them. As we ate
them, we again discussed what goes in to feeding us and where our food
comes from. They still were not sure of the bones and my daughter ate
the fish like corn on the cob, with just the bones left with the tail.
Both my children have more respect, understanding and conservation
of our food sources, whether they come from a farm, a grocery store or
we harvest ourselves. They are now connected and understand the law of
nature and want to live by it. Thank you smelt, for solidifying the
connection.
Tonight, we will go back to harvest another dozen. This time, I am
letting my son and daughter clean them.
After my nature immersion and wilderness skills courses, one of the things that really intriqued me was making fire with a bow drill. Perhaps it was because it took me 4 days of consistent attempts to actually get my first coal. But, I did it! Here is my first coal that my friend and instructor coached me....
At the end of my course, I was invited to participate in a Women's BowDrill Challenge. I am not one to shy away from a challenge.. so of course I said "sign me up". Since the beginning of October till now, I have been practicing my skill. And want to share with you what I have learned.
For those of you who are not familiar to what a bowdrill is, it is basically an ancient tool that is used to make fire by friction. It consists of handhold, a spindle and a fireboard, and a simple bow, usually a solid, curved branch. Here is a picture of my bowdrill. The handhold is made of maple, and the spindle, and fireboard is of cedar, all carved with my knife. The branch is I think pine, I am not sure, I just found it in my woodpile at the cottage. But it was all perfect.
The first weekend I really put my skill to the test, I thought to myself... "Ah, I can do it no problem... did it once before." Yeah, that kind of thinking will get you in trouble everytime. Every attempt is a lesson and a big lesson on patience and to be humble.
I was at my cottage and the neighbours were cutting wood next door. Yeah, the only cottage you can actually see because the addition is SO BIG! But anyway, they would glance over once and a while until they got curious enough to find out what all the squeaking was about. For the next hour of attempts, I was teased and harrassed with offers to lend a match, blow torch, etc. Yeah yeah yeah. Very funny.
It was frustrating and I felt very much like this guy in the video...
But I kept on. And after consistently being patient, calm and relatively collected, with my sore arm in tow, I finally got a coal. Here you go.... My first coal in the challenge.
In the 6 months of practicing, teaching to my kids, and more practicing, I have got the technique down pretty good. I don't get a coal everytime, but that is ok, every time I learn something new. The biggest lesson, when you think you have a coal, count to 20, then count back from 20.. then you peek. Not before. So many times I would stop just short of a coal.
Another lesson is to listen. The sound of your spindle will tell you what you are doing wrong. If you are squeaking, it is because your string is too loose or your spindle is too square. Glazing can take place too if you push down too hard. Which if you spindle does start to glaze I like to throw in some sand to roughen it up.
And if your handhold is smoking instead of your fireboard, you need to lubricate your spindle tip a bit more... my favourite thing to use is bees wax.
Remember, technique is your friend. Get your stance right and support your handhold hand with your leg to steady the spindle. And so you don't tire so easily. That I learned the hard way.
The last lesson, be patient, stop when you get tired, don't get too frustrated and don't give up. It will all come.
You can still see me, or hear me in my backyard, drilling away with my bow to get a coal. And my wood stove at the cottage is now lit with a bowdrill instead of a match. My kids now know how to use a bow drill and how to build a 10 minute fire that lights in seconds. It is all in the technique.
So when you see me next, don't stare at my one arm big bicep... it is all due to lessons from the bowdrill. Now it is time to take the advanced course and make everything out of natural fibres... right down to the string. Until then, I will be singing "Come On Baby Light My Fire!"
I have a lot of fun getting down in the dirt and exploring with the kids. The kids are a bit reserved at the start as this was the first time they met me, but once we started finding ants, and stink bugs under the leaves and bugs running up the trees, it was game on. The curiosity in those kids kicked into high gear and I was discovering for the first time right there with them. To see the world through a child's eyes and discover new things is one of my most cherished and favourite things. It is through this discovery that we begin to connect with nature and have respect for it. And these little 4 year olds were fully engaged, looking through guide books and seeing who could find the next one.
So when I come across adults who never had that connection with nature, all I find myself able to do at the time is smile and nod.
On our way back from our exploring, covered in leaves, dirt and more dirt, we passed two adults who were looking on the other side of the small river. When they see I am with a pack of children, they increase their talk and warn us of the racooon across the river.
"Be careful, there is a raccoon over there on the other side. It is behaving weird as it is out in the middle of the day."
UM, ok, yes raccoons can be vicious, especially when cornered but that is when self perservation is at stake. And middle of the day? Well it was 11am. And did I mention it was on the other side of the river! Ha ha, in all my outdoor experience, I have seen some pretty amazing things, but a raccoon, walking on water or jumping in to swim over to us and attack us, I have yet to see.
BUT, I don't say anything, I just smile and nod and race to where they told me the raccoon was, with all the little ones in tow.
It took a while for the children to see what I saw, but when they did, we stood on the other side of the bank and watched the raccoon, climb up the tree and peer around the corner at us. We decided to call it Rocky.
It was climbing up the tree, and do you see that hole in the tree? What do you think is going on? Why do you think the raccoon is on that tree?
We watched on as we noticed a great foot hold on the tree for Rocky to push off for that long reach to the hole in the tree. What a smart raccoon, using foot holds to climb. A Genius!
Then all we could see was its little tuft of tail sticking up in the air in the hole. It was the highlight of the day for everyone. We now know where the raccoon sleeps during the day. So next time, we will return and see what other signs we can find around that tree.
Until next time... enjoy the outdoors and remember, if you are not dirty, you didn't have enough fun!
This summer I did something very different... I ran a day camp. One in
July and one in August. The goal is to take young kids out into nature
and teach them the ancient ways. The way our ancestors learned way back
when. There were no formal schools, nothing with walls, just the great
outdoors and an elder that possessed the wisdom and knowledge of nature,
the ways to read your surroundings so you can hunt and gather better.
So that you have an appreciation for your community as you all work
together to accomplish tasks. And to gain your own self confidence,
skills and esteem of who you are and where you fit into this world.
I
was very excited to embark on this new adventure and one of my own
mentors said something in my own teaching and learning, and that was to
approach each person you are mentoring with new eyes. To participate in
the wonder and the newness and the unknown found in the eyes of our
young. This really stuck with me as I took the camp kids out on our
daily excursions into the woods, to a local stream or pond. That it is
in their own unknown that they will learn the most. And to be honest,
it is in this unknown that I learn the most too.
Sometimes we get
caught up in the teacher role. That we must feed the answers to our
students, filling them up with facts and information, in hopes that they
will remember them. I know I have, and to be honest, has stopped me in
teaching something because I didn't have the answers. Perhaps this is
what stops other teachers, and parents. That we feel we must know the
answer... but really, it couldn't be farther from the truth.
Have
you ever watched a child try to catch a frog? Do you notice that they
are first quick, jumping about, hollering and chasing it through the
grass or pond, only to be eluded in the end. Disappointed they may give
up... or do they? I tried telling how to catch a frog... that you have
to be slow, stalking, fox walking, and quiet. But I find they ignore
what you are saying and continue their own method of capturing.
But
if you get down on all fours with them, and try to catch frogs with
them, moving slowly, stalking, fox walking and being quiet, they watch.
When they see you wrap your hands around an unsuspecting frog and
capture it, all their senses come alive. Hmmmm, so that is how you do
it.
Many people say, when the student is ready, the teacher will
appear, but I like to think that Rachel Carson said it best in the end
of one her quotes:
"It is more
important to pave the way for a child to want to know than to put him on
a diet of facts that he is not ready to assimilate."
So true. And
it is through this that I learn that I do not need to know all the
answers. That through playing games and discovering together, that I can
lead a child to their edge of comfort. That through that edge, that
child will learn to focus their attention, to sit still, to work
together among their peers, to be part of a community, to gain
confidence in their own skills and their self esteem through it. It is
through this discovering together in nature that allows each individual
to do this on their own terms. I am just glad to be part of it and
discover myself through the eyes of a child.
When we pulling into the driveway of The
Boar and Chick (@TheBoarandChick), my
daughter screamed "HORSES!!!" right in my ear. In my mind I noted to be
sure to warn my daughter when we are going somewhere that has horses. It
almost did permanent damage to my eardrum. LOL
Farmer Tania greeted us all as we started
filing in. Farmer Mark would be joining us later as he was on his way
back from the farmer's market, where he sells Black Walnut Lane and The
Boar and Chick product at the Milton Farmer's Market.
It was raining a bit, but that didn't stop
us. The kids had a great time running up and down the patio path into
the barn and watching the pigs run in and out of the barn. The pigs on
this farm were not the pink ones we are most familiar with... they were
black pigs, Berkshire Boars. They loved the rain, because you know what
rain brings right? MUD!
It didn't take much to get the kids
interested in going inside the barn. All Tania had to say was there were
piglets inside and the kids ran in. They were so cute, so tiny and
black and white, staying all cozy and warm under the heat lamp. Tania
picked one up and it started to squeal. Once Tania held the pig from
it's leg it stopped. you would think that was cruel, but we quickly
learned that it didn't hurt the pig at all and it actually kept everyone
safe as a squealing pig can alert mama. And you don't want mama pig to
get upset.
As
Tania tucked the piglet under her arm, she asked if anyone would like
to kiss a pig. Wouldn't you guess that one little girl shot her hand up
and yelled "I WILL!" And she DID! ha ha, was comical. Don't people raise
money to see this kind of thing... hmmmm, now there is a fundraising
idea. OK OK, off topic off topic.
We
then climbed the stairs to where the chickens are kept. I love
chickens. When I was a child, I would sit for hours holding the
chickens. The children got an opportunity to collect eggs, looking in
the nesting boxes for eggs and placing them in the basket was great fun.
Then they all got to hold a chicken. They loved it.
After everyone had the opportunity to hold a
chicken, we all braved the rain and headed down to the creek that ran
through the property. It was beautiful! We learned about their pond that
held a variety of fish, a spot where deer laid down for the night and a
big tree that the beavers were working on taking down. It was
impressive to see the work they were doing to fell this large tree. And
then we walked to where it's lodge was. We could see deer and beaver
tracks in the mud. It was very cool.
As we head on back, we got a real treat.
Something I have never tried before and I can almost guarantee you have
never tried either. If you have, I want to know about it. They were
called Oinkers. A name given by a friend's daughter. It is chocolate
covered bacon... yep, you read that right, chocolate covered bacon.
Don't knock it till you have tried it. Well doesn't everything taste
yummy dipped in chocolate? If you ever get an opportunity to try it.
Do, it is very yummy.
Thank you Tania and Mark for opening up your
farm and showing us your little piece of paradise. See you at the next
market.
Enjoy the slide show of our tour of The Boar
and Ch
