CIRCLE OF TREES
A Multigenerational Tapestry of Faith Program
WORKSHOP 4: TREES: SANCTUARY FOR THE SPIRIT
BY JULIE SIMON, KATIE TWEEDIE COVEY, AND PAT KAHN; DEVELOPMENTAL EDITOR, JUDITH A. FREDIANI
© Copyright 2013 Unitarian Universalist Association.
Published to the Web on 9/30/2014 12:38:21 AM PST.
This program and additional resources are available on the UUA.org web site at
www.uua.org/religiouseducation/curricula/tapestryfaith.
WORKSHOP OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Us sing and dance, make faces and give flower bouquets, trying to be loved. You ever notice that trees do everything to git attention we do, except walk? — Alice Walker, author, from The Color Purple
After several workshops spent learning about trees—how they are structured, what they contribute to life on our planet—this workshops moves into a more expressive and spiritual appreciation for these providers of life.
GOALS
This workshop will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
WORKSHOP-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Welcoming and Entering | |
Opening | 5 |
Activity 1: Rise Up for Trees / Team Up for Trees | 5 |
Activity 2: Guided Imagery — Among the Trees | 5 |
Activity 3: Story — Tree Poems | 5 |
Activity 4: Sharing Our Special Trees | 15 |
Activity 5: Thank You to Trees | 20 |
Faith in Action: Reflecting on the Project | 60 |
Closing | 5 |
Alternate Activity 1: Song — The Simple Praise of Trees | 10 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Find a place where you can be quiet with your thoughts. Close your eyes and breathe deeply for several minutes, perhaps repeating a word or phrase to separate yourself from the activities of the day. When you feel settled and relaxed, consider the poem "Let the Trees Be Consulted" in Activity 3, Story — Tree Poems. Ask yourself:
WORKSHOP PLAN
WELCOMING AND ENTERING
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
As participants arrive, direct returning participants to retrieve their name tags from the basket, and invite newcomers to choose and write their first name on a name tag.
OPENING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Gather participants in a circle around the chalice. Select someone to light the chalice. Say, in these words or your own:
Whenever we light a chalice, we are connected with Unitarian Universalists around the world who share this ritual of our faith. Our chalice lighting words are adapted from words by an anonymous writer which are sometimes attributed to Chief Seattle, a chief of the Duwamish tribe in the 19th century in the area we know today as the state of Washington. These words speak of our connection with nature and all life.
Invite the group to join you in saying the chalice lighting words you have posted:
We light this chalice for the air that is precious . . .
for all things share the same breath—
the beast, the tree, the person,
we all share the same breath.
Go around the circle and have everyone introduce themselves. Point out the covenant the group created in the last workshop and ask if anything needs to be added. Point out the group covenant and ask if anything needs to be added. Introduce the topic of today's workshop—Trees: Sanctuary for the Spirit—by saying, in these words or your own:
Today we'll explore the beauty and inspiration trees that provide as we share our special trees with one another and express our gratitude to trees, the providers of life.
Including All Participants
If there are participants with limited hearing, consider using a hand-held microphone to help with volume. If participants are sitting on the floor, make sure that there are also chairs for those who do not wish to or cannot sit on the floor.
ACTIVITY 1: RISE UP FOR TREES / TEAM UP FOR TREES (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Once you've introduced both versions of this ice-breaker, you may do the same one each time or alternate between the two; ask the group for their preference.
Including All Participants
If a participant needs to remain seated, encourage them to do the poses from a seated position.
ACTIVITY 2: GUIDED IMAGERY — AMONG THE TREES (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite participants to make themselves comfortable and prepare to listen to a guided meditation. Read aloud from Workshop 1, Leader Resource 1.
Encourage responses to the meditation with questions such as these:
Including All Participants
If any participants have limited hearing, consider using a hand-held microphone.
ACTIVITY 3: STORY — TREE POEMS (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite the participants to make themselves comfortable and ready to listen to two poems about trees. If desired, invite participants to read, or, read the poems aloud yourself.
ACTIVITY 4: SHARING OUR SPECIAL TREES (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Participants share their "special tree" with the group.
Say, in these words or your own:
Two things that trees provide to humans are beauty and inspiration. Many of you brought photos or pictures of your special tree from home. For those of you who didn't have time, take a few moments to choose one from the pictures on the table.
Tell participants that they will have 60 seconds to speak, and invite them to show their picture and share why the tree is special to them. You or your co-leader can model the process for the group.
Including All Participants
If a participant isn't comfortable sharing, allow that person to pass.
ACTIVITY 5: THANK YOU TO TREES (20 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Participants will create an artistic or poetic expression of gratitude to trees. Introduce the activity with these words or your own:
As an expression of our gratitude to trees, we'll each create a "thank you to trees." This can be a drawing or painting, or perhaps you'd like to write a poem—or you can do both! You can work on your own or collaborate with others. Enjoy the quiet music as you work. After about 15 minutes, we'll re-gather and share what we've done with the group.
Give the group time to work. Re-gather the group with enough time to share.
Including All Participants
If a participant isn't comfortable sharing, allow that person to pass.
CLOSING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Gather the group in a circle around the chalice. If needed, relight the chalice.
Distribute Taking It Home. Explain that Taking It Home includes a summary of what they did in the workshop, resources for further exploration, and fun "homework." Tell participants that their homework is to think about ways they can support and protect trees and the web of life before Workshop 5, when we'll explore the question "What can one person do?"
Invite participants to reflect for a moment on today's workshop. Ask each participant to share one word that describes how they feel. Go around the circle with this "one-word checkout."
Invite participants to join hands and say the closing words together:
Let us go out in joy, and be led back in peace;
the mountains and the hills before us shall burst into song,
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Extinguish the chalice together. As they go, ask participants to leave their name tags in the basket you've provided for this purpose.
FAITH IN ACTION: REFLECTING ON THE PROJECT (60 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
An important but often neglected part of any social justice activity is the opportunity to reflect on what participants learned from the experience. Pose the following questions and record responses on newsprint:
You, your co-leader, or perhaps a parent volunteer should summarize the feedback and share it with the director of religious education. This feedback can help other groups plan future Faith in Action projects. You may wish to share this information with the Social Action Committee or other volunteers in the congregation as well.
Invite participants to help write a newsletter article about the experience. Be sure to get appropriate permissions to share information and any pictures from the project on the congregation's website. You might also create a scrapbook of photos from any Faith in Action projects your group completes.
Including All Participants
Be sure that participants of all ages and ability levels feel welcome to share their feedback.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Meet with your co-leader after the workshop to reflect on the following:
Look ahead to the next workshop and assign leadership responsibilities.
TAKING IT HOME
Us sing and dance, make faces and give flower bouquets, trying to be loved. You ever notice that trees do everything to git attention we do, except walk? — Alice Walker, author, from The Color Purple
IN TODAY'S WORKSHOP . . . we shared our "special trees" with each other and expressed our gratitude to trees through art and poetry.
HOMEWORK: Think about ways that you can support and protect trees and the web of life before Workshop 5, when we'll explore the question "What can one person do?"
MAKE TIME FOR TREES: There are several ways to take today's workshop home, for example:
EXTEND THE TOPIC: Explore some of the many wonderful books about trees found in Workshop 1, Handout 2, Selected Bibliography.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: SONG — THE SIMPLE PRAISE OF TREES (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Participants learn the song "The Simple Praise of Trees" by Gretchen Sleicher and David Densmore.
Say, in these words or your own:
Singing together is another way we feel a connection with each other. This song, "The Simple Praise of Trees," is a way to express our gratitude to trees.
If you have a computer with Internet access, play the recording on the Songs for the Great Turning (at songsforthegreatturning.net/songs-of-gratitude/i-raise-my-arms/) website.
Teach the melody by singing one phrase at a time and having participants sing the phrase back to you, then put the phrases together. If there are enough voices, add in the additional harmony parts. The lyrics are as follows:
Part 1—Alto Melody
I raise my arms in the forest and join the simple praise of trees
Part 2—Tenor harmony
I raise my arms and join the praise of trees
Part 3—Soprano harmony
In the forest, the forest, I raise my arms in praise of trees
Part 4—Bass harmony
I raise my arms and join the praise of trees
CIRCLE OF TREES: WORKSHOP 4:
HANDOUT 1: POETRY PROMPTS
Adapted from Kenn Nesbitt's Poetry for Kids website.
Five Senses Poem
Think of an experience, such as crunching through the autumn leaves. Start each line of a five senses poem with one of the senses (but feel free to leave out a sense if it doesn't fit!).
Cinquain
Cinquains are five lines long. They have two syllables in the first line, four in the second, six in the third, eight in the fourth, and just two again in the last line. Cinquains do not need to rhyme, but you can include rhymes if you want to.
Haiku
A haiku is an unrhymed three-line poem based on a traditional Japanese poetic form. Haiku are usually about nature or the seasons. The traditional pattern for haiku in English is to write the first and last lines with five syllables each, and the middle line with seven syllables.
Tanka
A tanka poem is similar to haiku but has five lines, with five to seven syllables per line, and uses similes and metaphors. Like haiku, the subject is often nature or the seasons. Here's an example of a tanka poem:
Beautiful mountains [five syllables]
Rivers with cold, cold water. [seven syllables]
White cold snow on rocks [five syllables]
Trees over the place with frost [seven syllables]
White sparkly snow everywhere. [seven syllables]
FIND OUT MORE
Explore North Carolina State University's Trees of Strength (at www.treesofstrength.org/benefits.htm) website.
UU environmental resources are the UU Ministry for Earth (at uuministryforearth.org/) and the UUA Green Sanctuary Program (at www.uua.org/environment/sanctuary/index.shtml).