I love reading your posts, and this one came with such fortuitous timing. I'm in training to become a Forest Therapy (Forest Bathing) Guide and part of our training - in fact, the theme we are considering this very week - is to consider our "edges". In our training, the interpretation of edges are ideas or things that we bump up against, that start to provide slight discomfort. As guides we have to think about our own edges as well as the edges for our walk participants and how to gently handle bumping up against them. So often, what lays just beyond is something powerful and beautiful.
So when this post came yesterday I couldn't believe the timing and I read it with so much interest. I am now visualizing our internal edges in a similar way to ecotomes, as a blending of two spaces and as places of vital importance for building knowledge and resilience.
I really like that wording of edges as being things we bump against that provide some discomfort. Also, that you are considering your own edges as well as those of your participants in Forest Therapy. So important to consider the edges of others and to be gentle with them. Thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds fascinating.
I find myself thinking of the edges in my neighborhood setting as well as in my work environment. It is my good fortune to live in a medium-sized vibrant city in a neighborhood with abundant green spaces and forested areas. I often see wildlife around my house or on my walks; I'm very aware that the wildlife habitat has been hijacked, sadly,by the built environment of humans. The bears, wild turkeys, racoons, foxes and other creatures are at a disadvantage as our (human) edges seem to know no boundaries. I venture out of my neighborhood to teach in a state prison. I'm often struck by the discordant reality of seeing deer roaming freely outside the razor wire fences enclosing humans. This is a microcosmic view of edges within my small parts of the world.
This is wonderful noticing, Kay. It is so true that wildlife habitat has been hijacked everywhere. Pockets of habitat with little to no connection with others makes it more difficult for wildlife to survive. What if instead of enclosed habitats there were more corridors?
It seems that we're walking in tandem along the edges of things, Kim. Thanks for the Dionella Meadows link - bookmarked for a proper read later. Have you read anything by Dilip da Cunha? 'The Invention of Rivers' is a wonderful work on decolonising our received ideas of wet and dry as separate and distinct. (It's a pricey academic publication but he has lots of great talks about it free online in various places.)
Yes I often feel in synch with you Samantha. Your post and Sophia’s were wonderful. I think you’ve mentioned Dillip before and that book came up in the writing course last night. I will have to look it up.
Your writing is enthralling, and the subject so multidimensional. I am currently at the sea’s edge. I just came in from photographing its edge and your post was waiting for me. Your post for me, will be reread and reread. Thank you
Thank you, Abby. You are so right that this subject is so multidimensional. It led me right into thinking about different perspectives, leading to the next post.
I love reading your posts, and this one came with such fortuitous timing. I'm in training to become a Forest Therapy (Forest Bathing) Guide and part of our training - in fact, the theme we are considering this very week - is to consider our "edges". In our training, the interpretation of edges are ideas or things that we bump up against, that start to provide slight discomfort. As guides we have to think about our own edges as well as the edges for our walk participants and how to gently handle bumping up against them. So often, what lays just beyond is something powerful and beautiful.
So when this post came yesterday I couldn't believe the timing and I read it with so much interest. I am now visualizing our internal edges in a similar way to ecotomes, as a blending of two spaces and as places of vital importance for building knowledge and resilience.
Thank you for all of your thoughtful writing!
I really like that wording of edges as being things we bump against that provide some discomfort. Also, that you are considering your own edges as well as those of your participants in Forest Therapy. So important to consider the edges of others and to be gentle with them. Thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds fascinating.
I find myself thinking of the edges in my neighborhood setting as well as in my work environment. It is my good fortune to live in a medium-sized vibrant city in a neighborhood with abundant green spaces and forested areas. I often see wildlife around my house or on my walks; I'm very aware that the wildlife habitat has been hijacked, sadly,by the built environment of humans. The bears, wild turkeys, racoons, foxes and other creatures are at a disadvantage as our (human) edges seem to know no boundaries. I venture out of my neighborhood to teach in a state prison. I'm often struck by the discordant reality of seeing deer roaming freely outside the razor wire fences enclosing humans. This is a microcosmic view of edges within my small parts of the world.
This is wonderful noticing, Kay. It is so true that wildlife habitat has been hijacked everywhere. Pockets of habitat with little to no connection with others makes it more difficult for wildlife to survive. What if instead of enclosed habitats there were more corridors?
It seems that we're walking in tandem along the edges of things, Kim. Thanks for the Dionella Meadows link - bookmarked for a proper read later. Have you read anything by Dilip da Cunha? 'The Invention of Rivers' is a wonderful work on decolonising our received ideas of wet and dry as separate and distinct. (It's a pricey academic publication but he has lots of great talks about it free online in various places.)
Yes I often feel in synch with you Samantha. Your post and Sophia’s were wonderful. I think you’ve mentioned Dillip before and that book came up in the writing course last night. I will have to look it up.
Your writing is enthralling, and the subject so multidimensional. I am currently at the sea’s edge. I just came in from photographing its edge and your post was waiting for me. Your post for me, will be reread and reread. Thank you
Thank you, Abby. You are so right that this subject is so multidimensional. It led me right into thinking about different perspectives, leading to the next post.
Beautiful. Lovely. Thought provoking on many levels.
I was copying bits and pieces to reflect back on at a later date. Alas I copied almost your whole post.
Thank you Lois.