Arriving at Awareness

Our Activity:

Our senses are often our gateways toward awareness. To utilize them, to the extent we are able, can usher in recognition of our context. And it is recognition of context, particularly recognition of our living world context, that can be the doorway toward interaction with mystery, curiosity, and possibility.

Today, you are invited to focus on three of your senses: sight, smell, and sound. We are going to have a sense based scavenger hunt.

A couple pre-notes:

  • There’s a chance that you don’t “feel” anything when you do this. That is (obviously) okay.

  • There’s not expected revelation from this. Awareness does not guarantee transcendence. It is simply an orientation to return to where you are. As Mike chatted on two weeks ago, in a virtual world, right where we are can sometimes, without awareness, become very far away.

Sight: Find a bug. Maybe even flip over a rock if it’s not disturbing someones yard! Say hello to it. If you are scared of bugs, that’s okay, keep your distance. But notice the bug. Ask the bug a couple questions. Does it respond?

Sound: Hear a bird. Try and be with its sound for at least a couple minutes. See if other birds respond to the first bird you hear. What, given the context, do you imagine is being communicated?

Touch: As the kids say these days… touch grass. Maybe walk over to Grant Park or the yard around the church. With bare feet or hands, graze over the grass. Feel it on your skin. What do you notice? With foot or hand pressed to the earths surface, close your eyes and take a deep inhale through your nose, a soft slow exhale through your mouth. Repeat this three times (or more if you feel inclined).

We encourage you to do this solo or with your child. We will come back together to share.

The meaning making, for later:

Joy Harjo says to, “remember the earth, whose skin we are.” Full poem HERE.

In word, craft, drawing, etc. respond to the notion of the Earth being your skin. If you want / are open to it, share your response HERE where we will utilize it for our newsletter and or instagram!