Wild Awake in the Forest for Earth Day (Charity Event)

Wild Awake in the Forest for Earth Day 2018

(women only, all ages and life stages welcome)

A gathering in the forest for Earth Day to reignite hope and inspire action on behalf of nature.

Our Cause

On Sunday 22nd April we will gather in support of the forest for Earth Day. All profits will be donated to TreeSisters.

‘TreeSisters is a non-profit organization aiming to radically accelerate tropical reforestation by engaging the unique feminine consciousness, gifts and leadership of women everywhere and focusing it towards global action.’

www.TreeSisters.org

Earth Day

Earth Day marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970. It is a day of education, it is about learning about our environment, different habitats, climate change, conservation, rewilding and how our behaviour affects the rest of the planet.

All of this information and the magnitude of the problem can sometimes leave us feeling hopeless and overwhelmed, so our focus for earth day is hope. Reigniting the fire in our bellies and reconnecting to nature as a way to avoid the feelings of hopelessness that can arise as we see our planet suffer.

What to Expect

- Moderate forest walk and exploration

- Practices to harness the healing properties of nature such as earthing (going barefoot in the forest), nature meditations, listening to bird song and shinrin yoku (forest bathing)

- Invitation to play, climb trees, explore, move and rest

- Information about Rushmere forest, rewilding and the work TreeSisters are doing

- A nature focused sharing circle focused on our ideas and actions for change in support of nature

- Sharing of snacks and tea in the forest

Our Focus

Helping to heal nature begins with understanding, with empathy, compassion. It begins with making a pact with nature. We must stay connected in order for us to not become disillusioned by the mass of destruction and degradation taking place in nature worldwide. We must remember that every tiny little thing we do makes a difference.

To disconnect from nature and her cycles is to disconnect from the very essence of what it means to be human. Nature and humans are by definition not separate entities; we are part of nature as much as the trees in the forest and the creatures that inhabit them. We are a species of animal like any other, made of the same compounds as the earth, the wind, the moon and the stars and if we are to reclaim a full life, the life we were intended to live, we must know this interconnectedness to be true. We must feel it so deeply that we are driven to call it from the treetops, mountains sides, riverbanks and oceans. The more of us that hear this call, the more of us there are to protect, proliferate and restore the natural world to her rightful and abundant glory, in turn restoring our natural, cyclical and fulfilling lives.

When we hear the call it stirs a primal response in us that can't be unfelt and we become warriors on behalf of the forest, so deeply aware of how inextricably linked our wellbeing is to that of nature.

Join us to delve into the forest to remember the importance of our relationship with nature, dissolving the perceived gap between us and the rest of the natural world and reclaiming our wildness, our birth rite. Rewilding is the crucial practice of mutual healing through reconnection.

‘Rewilding is about the moral choices we make. It’s about valuing all life as inherently good and worthy, without qualification. It’s about expanding our relatively closed human clubhouse to incorporate all of earth.’ – Marc Bekoff

Logistics

Booking

Register online and pay via BACS or Paypal. To pay via BACS select manual payment, note down bank details and transfer. The bank details will also be emailed to you.

Exchange

£10 donation (all profits will be in support of TreeSisters ~ supporting tropical reforestation and the women doing the work)

Prices for children available on request, please contact for details (carlysladeyoga@gmail.com).

Location

Forest: King’s Wood and Rushmere, Stockgrove Entrance (10 miles/18 mins from Central Milton Keynes)

Meeting point and more information will be sent to all those booked on in the days leading up to our gathering.

Schedule

09:45-10:00 Gather at the café

10:00-13:30 Forest rewilding

13:30-14:00 Sharing food in the forest

What to bring

Warm clothes, waterproofs (in the case of rain), shoes for walking in (it can be muddy at times), notebook for nature notes (optional), bird seed (optional), portable non fragile cup/thermos (optional).

Forest information

The reserve is an important area of ancient semi-natural woodland. In early mediaeval times it was part of the royal manorial estate of Leighton, hence the name ‘King’s Wood’. Part of Rushmere Country Park is included in the reserve.

Features of interest

The site lies on an unusual mixture of soils. Birch, sessile oak, bracken and heather grow in the sandy areas, with pedunculate oak, hornbeam and dog’s mercury on the clay. There are small-leaved lime trees here and a large population of lily-of-the-valley. The site is also home to rare mosses and fungi and there are recent records of the purple emperor butterfly here

Carly x

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Inclusivity policy

These gatherings are open to women of all ages and life stages

In times past we would have shared so much more of life with each other than we do now and this would have included the raising of children. They would have been welcomed into the lodge and raised communally, garnering the invaluable knowledge and wisdom of the ebb and flow of all things. This inclusive and open environment is crucially important to the rewilding of life and as such our retreat is open to women of all ages, circumstances and life stages.

Whether pregnant, lactating, with nurturing small babies or children, with or without a womb, working with a monthly bleed or not, peri-menopausal, menopausal or in the wisdom years, all women are welcomed.

We all have our own unique wisdom to bring and stories to tell. This passing down of wisdom through the generations is an ancient practice without which we suffer. The reinstatement of the inclusive nature of moon lodges and gatherings provides an invaluable space of healing, learning, nurturing, retreat and replenishment. The pace of our modern lives means that creating this space that is more crucial and essential to our wellbeing than ever before.

If you are bringing children or babies we just ask that you are happy to be fully responsible for them at all times, to understand what that means in terms of your participation and to ensure they are kept safe.

Women only

Creating a space where women feel fully heard, felt and held is our aim for these circles. Many women have experienced suffering in some way, be that mentally, physically, sexually or all of these. We feel it is crucially important to have this safe space to explore the regaining of trust in our bodies, minds and emotions. It is for this reason that our retreats and gatherings are women only. We do not wish to exclude, accuse or demonise men in any way shape or form, we are just coming together in the sacred space of our sisterhood to relearn how to trust and love, so that we might be better able to trust and love in our own intimate relationships, families and friendships.

Please do get in touch if you have any questions.

www.moonforestflow.com