“You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.”– Mary Oliver
The wild body is sensual and curious. The wild body is aware and present to its environment. The wild body engages with the wildness hands on. Today, we are going to explore the wildness with our wild body.
Begin:
Drop into your most present, sensate and curious state of being. Feel your body, how the air kisses your skin, how the sun warms your face, how the coolness of the air fills your lungs, the smoothness of your own skin under your fingers. Allow yourself to find that place within you that is curious, that sees the world around you with wonder, like a child exploring the world for the first time.
Practice:
Take a short walk to find a wild being on the land that you want to connect with and explore. (Your backyard, a park or urban greenbelt is fine. No need to spend 3 hrs walking.) You may find a particularly interesting tree to climb, or a nubbly mossy rock face, or the soft duff of leaves under the forest canopy, or a small space to crawl into under large shrubs.
Introduce yourself to this being, and ask for permission to connect with it more fully.
When you feel you have permission, begin to explore this wild being with all your senses, as if it were a lover or a close friend. Touch, smell, taste (only if safe to do so, no poisonous plants in the mouth please!!), look at it from all perspectives, caress it in every place, listen to it. What does it say to you? Close your eyes and explore this wild thing. Explore this new friend in everyway you can physically and sensately, within safe parameters. (No need to climb a tree if you aren’t able to do so safely.) How does this being make you feel?
Complete:
When you feel ready, say thank you to your wild friend with an offering of some kind. What did you learn about this wild being that you didn’t know before? How did engaging with wildness at this level change your perspective? Share a picture of your wild friend and describe your experience and what you learned from this wild friend in our FB group or on Instagram and tag #sacredwildweek!
Sacred Wildness 