As I embark upon a new era in my work, I am called to re-visit some powerful teachings I began learning about around 2001. The teachings and teachers of this era in my life birthed my naturalist self, in my late 20s. This path unfolded into my first job at an outdoor educational center. I found one of my favorite jobs ever- leading kids into the woods, into adventures. Today, I would like to share the link to a TED talk from one of the most prominent teachers I have had, and the founder of Wilderness Awareness School, Jon Young. Gratitude to him, all of his teachers, to all ancestors, and to every being sharing the planet with me. Enjoy!
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Wildlife survival in a Suburban Ecosystem
In suburban Macomb county today, on a walk with my mother (in which I was offering excessive information on posture), a rustling behind a garbage can rattled my train of thought. In a couple of seconds, my conscious awareness caught up with my gut instinct that something extraordinary was occurring across the street to my left: a fight for life itself, and all on wings. A small bird darted out, being chased by a Cooper’s Hawk about 10 times its size. I quickly grabbed my mom’s jacket by the nape of the neck (luckily she suffered no injuries) to yank her to face towards this event, so she may not miss the moment- these birds flying directly in front of us, a few arm’s lengths away. Practically yelling, I made sure to then explain to my mom that she must now “Look at That- Oh My Gosh!!!” Because seconds later, the bird chase zig-zagged back behind us again, within a couple arms’ lengths. Whoosh. We both felt for the birds, not knowing the mystery of the outcome, but knowing that it must have ended traumatically regardless, and that in the end both are striving to live. Sigh. Accepting anew the realities of the natural world-as intense as they are- we returned to our walk. I returned into my own skin, to how I felt in my experience- alive in the crispness of early spring, and the embrace of a walk that massaged my feet, my senses, and my sense of place and belonging. After apologizing again to my mom and making sure I did not give her a whiplash injury, I was able to resume my didactic explanation of compression of the spine, benefits of inversion, where the cerebellum is etc. LOL