Faith Curriculum Library: Tapestry of Faith: Circle of Trees: A Multigenerational Program about Nourishing Deep Connections with Nature

Taking It Home: Council Among the Trees, Part 2

Part of Circle of Trees

Come back with me into a story we all share, a story whose rhythm beats in us still. The story belongs to each of us and to all of us, like the beat of [a] drum, like the heartbeat of our living universe. — Joanna Macy, in Thinking Like a Mountain

IN TODAY'S WORKSHOP... we completed the Council Among the Trees ritual, expressing our gratitude for trees, acknowledging our sadness about what is happening to them, and ending by feeling empowered to take action.

HOMEWORK: Reflect on the promise you shared in the Council Among the Trees to change an aspect of your life that hurts the beings or spirits embodied in the Council. See if you can remember what other beings or spirits said in the Council. Do the others' words give you more ideas for ways you, as a "two-legged," can cause less harm?

MAKE TIME FOR TREES: There are several ways to take today's workshop home, for example:

  • Try to spend time outside each day, paying special attention to the trees near where you live.
  • Use a nature journal to record your observations and feelings about trees as you deepen your connection over the course of the Circle of Trees workshops.
  • Think about ways that you can engage with people and trees with respect.

EXTEND THE TOPIC: Explore some of the many wonderful books about trees found in Workshop 1, Handout 2, Selected Bibliography.