Nature Connection Challenge - Day 17

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to live on this beautiful and astonishing planet Earth. In the morning, I wake up with a sense of gratitude.”

— Earl Nightingale

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 17 - Thank The Earth

Today’s Challenge is to focus on being thankful for all the Earth provides for us:

• Find a spot to sit or lay on the Earth. Feel free to bring a blanket or yoga mat to sit or lay on if that supports you. If you are unable to go out, sit or lay inside and use your imagination to connect with the feeling of touching the Earth.

• Begin to focus on taking long, deep breaths. Really feel the ground supporting you, and the oxygen filling your lungs.

• As you inhale, draw the grounding energy of the Earth up into your body. As you exhale, feel gratitude for all the Earth provides - food, water, air, beauty, wonder and life itself. Continue this way for several more breaths; inhale, bringing in the Earth, exhale, pouring your gratitude into the Earth.

• Notice what, if anything, has shifted for you. Do you feel more at peace? More connected? Less worried?

• Feel free to share your experiences with us on Facebook or Instagram. We would love to hear from you!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 16

Nature Connection Challenge - Build a Fairy House!

Our nature challenge for today is to build a fairy house using natural material: sticks, rocks, pine needles, leaves, shells. This is a fun and whimsical way to enjoy nature, for children and adults alike! You never know who you might find inhabiting your fairy house, so keep your eyes open!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 15

Nature Connection Challenge Day 15 - Exploring the Sense of Touch

Touch:
Find a place (can be outdoors or inside) where you can be relaxed and feel safe. Just noticing. Take a few deep breaths. It may take a few moments to fully arrive in the moment, give yourself permission to fully arrive.

• Close your eyes or if you prefer, slightly close them.

• Feel how the earth below your feet/body supports you and how you are surrounded by other living things... how your thoughts arise and fall away…how your breath goes in and out...welcoming all of it.

• Think of your hands/skin as sensors feeling pressure, texture and temperature. Noticing qualities such as pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral.

• Notice the various components of touch...the sequence in which they become apparent. How long do they endure in your awareness? How each component interacts with and modifies the others.

• While you do this have a gentle awareness of any feelings or sensations that may arise.

We wonder what this exploration of sensation will allow you to notice?
We'd love to hear about your experiences!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 14

Nature Connection Challenge -Day 14 - Do Nothing

“Nature never hurries, yet everything is accomplished.”

— Lao Tzu

In the Tao Te Ching, the ancient philosopher Lao Tzu introduced the beautiful concept of Wu Wei. It is most often translated to mean non-doing, but encompasses the idea of acting without hurry or excessive effort. Essentially it means to go with the flow of what life gives you. Lao Tzu said that if you practice Wu Wei, “everything will fall into place.”

Life in the modern age is BUSY. There is so much focus on accomplishment and productivity. It can be very hard for us to slow down and let ourselves rest. Today’s challenge is to make space for yourself to do nothing. Set aside a chunk of time in your day with no agenda. Tap into your imagination, be playful, relax and just be.

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 13

Nature Connection Challenge Day 13 - Tracking

Happy Sunny Saturday Everyone!!

Today’s challenge is for you to go see if you can find some animal tracks. The animals are moving a lot and the ground is nice and moist. As you look for tracks, look at your surroundings and see if there are any clues as to where you might find tracks. Is there a water source an animal would likely go to get a drink?

Let us know if you have any luck finding tracks - we’d love to hear from you!!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 12

Photo of Wintergreen from Wild Plants of Maine by Tom Seymour

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 12 - Wintergreen

Today’s challenge is to identify Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens), and if you like, harvest a handful of Wintergreen leaves to make tea.

Wintergreen is a hardy ground cover (grows and sprawls out low to the ground), and even in winter you could dig under the snow to find and use it for tea. Many of the shiny, leathery, oval-shapped leaves turn a reddish color in late fall and winter and may also have red berries from the previous summer. Wintergreen likes acidic soil in a shady spot and is often found in pine forests and under Red Oaks. If you believe you have found wintergreen, pick a leaf and tear or crush it to test for the unmistakable scent of wintergreen. In winter and early spring, the aroma may not be as strong as it is in warmer months, but it will still be evident. If it is not, you haven’t found wintergreen. Both leaves and berries are edible and used for teas and herbal medicines.

Wintergreen contains methyl salicylate, an aspirin-like chemical, which can help to alleviate pain and digestive issues. Those who are allergic to aspirin should avoid wintergreen.

If you wish to make tea, harvest a large handful of leaves, being careful not to strip a single plant of its leaves. Simply boiling or steeping the leaves will not produce a very aromatic or flavorful tea, and instead the leaves should be fermented. Pack the leaves in a jar, fill it with water and cover loosely with a cover or cloth, allowing air to escape. Set it in a warm place for 2-4 days to allow the leaves to ferment, until the water is bubbly. Once it is bubbly, strain the leaves and drink the tea at room temperature or pour into a pot to warm it up on the stove. Add honey if desired.

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 11

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 11

Today’s Challenge is to work on your physical balance out in nature.

Get outside and find some fun ways to test your balancing skills! Find a downed tree you can walk across, a rock wall to walk along, or any other natural obstacles you can use to work your balance.

Try to see how long you can stand on one leg. Maybe even have a fun little competition with your family members.

Let us know the ways you worked on your balance today!!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 10

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 10 - Express Your Gratitude

We are living in a time of uncertainty. Many of our lives have been upended as the world adjusts to a new reality. It is natural for the mind to try and make sense of these changes, but often we find ourselves in a flurry of thoughts, worries and negativity. Gratitude is an amazing antidote to negativity. Gratitude helps us wake up to the magic that is already all around us.

Today’s challenge begins with a walk in nature. If you’re not able to get out, dedicate a period of time to just look out the window at the natural world. As you notice what is happening in nature, begin to express your gratitude for all the life and beauty around you. This can be out loud or in your head. If you are walking with a family member, tell them what you are grateful for. Now, form your gratitudes into a prayer or poem, to inspire you when negativity starts to creep in. Write it down, hang it on your wall, or share it with the Through The Trees family on Instagram or Facebook.

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 9

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 8 - Nature Art and Faces

Today’s challenge is to create a face in nature, using natural materials, and there are many ways to do this! Here are just a few possibilities:

• Use clay to make a face on a tree or tree stump

• Use sticks, rocks and other natural materials to create a face on the ground

• Make a face on the forest floor using only acorns

• Use shells or rocks to make a face in the sand, soil or snow

• Use water to paint a face on a rock

You may wish to take this challenge a step further and see if you notice any “faces” in your natural surroundings that are already there: the shape of a rock, a pattern in the bark on a tree, or perhaps a cloud in the sky. Use your imagination and see what you can find!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 8

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 8 - Connecting to the sense of Hearing

Today's subject is Mindfulness of Sound. Mindfulness means paying full attention to something. It means slowing down to really notice what you're doing. When you're mindful, you're taking your time. You're focusing in a relaxed, easy way.

Find yourself a place outside where you can sit in peace and comfort. If you can't sit outside then find a spot by a window where you can look outside. Sit there for a few moments taking everything in in a relaxed fashion. Perhaps you may wish to close your eyes. Now breathe deeply into your body, allowing the breath to enter and go where ever it wants to go. How does it feel to breathe? What sensations or feelings arise. Breathing in and out and just noticing.

What sounds are around you? Noticing the variety of sounds..sounds that are near...and those that are far. Where in your awareness do they arise? Are there patterns? I wonder if there are any rhythms in the sounds around you...and if they interact with each other. And how the individual sounds may combine...like chords or a symphony. And notice within the experience of sound that which is pleasing....give hospitality to that which is pleasing. Now exaggerate the sound of your own breathing..just enough so you can hear it, so it blends with the sounds around you. What is it like to be part of the symphony of your place?

Ask yourself 3 questions:
1. What do you notice?
2. What do you wonder about it?
3. What does it remind you of?

You may want to set a time limit or you may just choose to sit for as long as you wish present in the moment.

We hope you enjoy this challenge and if you wish, share with us your noticings.

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 7

Nature Connection Challenge -Day 7- Get outside and PLAY!

Research suggests that one of the most important elements for healthy development in humans and even animals is play. It is easy to look at play as frivolous, but it is an essential part of supporting physical, emotional and mental health for all ages.

So, today’s challenge is to make time for play. If you have a child in your family, ask them to guide you in a playful activity. Really follow their lead and embrace a playful mindset.

If you don’t have a young child to guide you, here are some playful ideas :

-Imagine that you are an animal. Walk through the woods and look for food or a home.
- Invent a game using just what you can find in your yard; pinecones, sticks and rocks can become balls and goal posts, or spears and targets
-Play “The Ground is Lava.” Try to navigate a portion of woods without touching the ground.
-Build a fairy house or stick fort.

Have FUN!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 6

Good Saturday Sunny Morning!

Today’s challenge is for you to go outside and make a fire (if you are able to make a fire safely in your yard).

See if you can make your fire with materials you can gather from outside (rather than bring stuff from inside your home).

Once you have your fire going - take some time to pick up sticks around your yard to keep your fire going.

Enjoy your time outside and enjoy taking some time to gaze at the magic of the fire.

Warmly,
Through The Trees

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 5

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 5 - Foraging

Today’s Challenge - Make Pine Needle Tea

1. Go out in nature.

2. Locate a white pine tree (look for longer needles in groups of 5!). Other pines, fir, spruce or hemlock make good tea too.

3. Collect some needles.

4. Use the needles to make tea.

White pine is a tree that is plentiful in Maine, and has many medicinal qualities. Pine needles are very high in vitamin C and have antiviral and antibacterial qualities. White pine tea was used extensively by Native Americans and was adopted by early American settlers as a way to fight and treat illness. Drinking pine needle tea is a great way to build your local herbal knowledge with hands-on experience. 

Pine Needle Tea Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons fresh pine needles
1 cup boiled, hot water
Honey to taste

Instructions:

• Remove the fresh, unblemished pine needles from the pine branches.  Rinse the needles in cold water.

• Using herb scissors or a sharp knife, cut the pine needles into smaller pieces.  Discard any brown bits.

• Place the pine needles in a tea strainer.  Place the tea strainer in a mug.  Pour boiled water into the mug, over the pine needles.  Cover to inhibit the volatile oil from escaping in the steam.  Steep for 5 minutes.

• Remove the strainer from the mug.  Add honey to sweeten the pine needle tea.

• Drink while warm and enjoy

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 4

Nature Connection Challenge Day 4 - Getting Active

Welcome to Day 4’s challenge!

Put on an extra layer and your rain gear and get outside for a nice walk in the rain. Often times we think of a rainy day as a day to hunker inside but the rain can make the woods feel even more magical!

Share pictures or rainy revelations with us on Instagram or Facebook!

Nature Connection Challenge - Day 3

Nature Connection Challenge Day 3 - Gratitude

“Being satisfied and grateful with what we already have is a magical golden key to being alive in a full, unrestricted way.” -Pema Chodron

Todays challenge is all about cultivating an attitude of gratitude. It is easy when we are facing unpredictability and change to focus on what is going wrong. Gratitude can shift our perspective and help us see the gift each moment offers us.

Here it is your gratitude challenge:

• Start by getting a journal and pen or pencil and head outside. Take the time to find a spot that calls to you.

• Sit down with your spine straight and begin to bring your body into stillness. Close your eyes. See if you can slow down your breath.

• Place both hands over your heart. As you inhale, notice how your hands rise. As you exhale, notice how they sink. For the next few moments focus all of your energy on filling your heart with love and gratitude. Imagine it as a ball of glowing light inside your heart space.

• Open your eyes, take in your natural surroundings and bring your attention to all the things you have to be grateful for at this moment. Are the birds singing? Does the sun feel warm on your face? Do you see the first signs of spring coming forth from the earth? Do you feel the grounding energy of the earth supporting you?

• Open your journal and start a list of gratitudes. Write down as many as you can think of. Challenge yourself to add to the list throughout the day as you notice all the good that life is giving you.

• We would love to hear what you are grateful for! Please share your experience with the Through The Trees community on Facebook or Instagram if you can.

Wishing you a day filled with Peace and Joy!