2.1 Experiences from a nature quest

Watch this video from a nature quest organized by Göran Gennvi and John P. Milton the summer of 2008 at Ottfjället, close to Åre in the north of Sweden. It was a 7-dayexcursion with 4 full days/night of solitude on the mountain. It took me three days to enter a stage of presence, of being fully in the now. A fantastic experience, I can assure you, and something I bring with me for the rest of the year. The man on the picture is Art van Veller from Holland. You will see me in an orange sweater at the end just coming back from the mountains.

Have you had a similar experience of being alone in nature for some time? Leave a comment.

2.2 Walk like an indian

How far have we come in to building a 3-hour recipe for nature experiences? Let me summarize. We have:

• Told an introductory story of an experience in nature 
  
• Presented the participants to each other through the "check-in" exercise
  
• Increased motivation through an engaging game 
  

Now is the time to focus attention. A surprisingly simple, but fascinating exercise is to sneak silently as an Indian. It helps participants to practice their balance and to feel the surface upon which they are walking. The technique is to:

1. Stand relaxed with hands along the sides and both feet slightly apart.
   
2. With the weight on the rear foot take a step forward. Put down the heel of your front foot gently, roll on the outer side until the entire foot is firmly place on the ground. 
   
3. Transfer weight from the rear to the front foot. 
4. Find your balance.
   
5. Take a new step.
   

After the first try, do it again, but half as fast. And then again, half as fast as the last time, and then again, even slower. Go out and test for yourself. Leave a comment below on your spontaneous reaction.

2.3 Create a sensing exercise

The previous exercise (3.2) helps participants to wind down and make prepare themselves for a more direct experience with nature. Why not propose a sensing exercise of your own? Pick one out of five senses (taste, smell, feel, hearing, sigth) and create a 5-10 minute exercise focusing on one sense only. Make it simple. Use the headlines we used before to formulate a recipe for nature and add a comment below:

• Title of the exercise
  
• Resources needed
• Expected results
• Introduction to the participants
  
• Five steps to carry out the exercise

This weeks Skype conversation is about mental exercises you know helps to focus attention. Share your experiences and/or recommend books and websites where you can learn more. 

2.4 On the value of being alone in nature

John P. Milton says that the road to greater contact between the internal and external nature, between the conscious and unconscious self, is relaxation. "Relax, relax, relax." Through relaxation become more present. One way to do that, says John, is to practice Tai Chi. A series of physical exercise that requires full concentration.

One of these exercises is likely to focus your group's attention. What you offer is natural presence, a scarce commodity in todays hectic life. If your group is restless, you may want to do another exercise involving more active physical movement, like a chasing game.

It is important to emphasize to skeptics that Taoism is a religion, but not as Christianity. There is no God to worship. Tao is a principle which cannot be identified, it must be experienced. Tao is a force that envelops, surrounds and runs through everything, living and non-living. Tai Chi is a technique with deliberately slow movements to balance the flow of energy - ´Chi´- in the body. Tai Chi is a way to practice Taoism.

2.5 Practice Tai Chi

Select a warm-up Tai Chi exercise from the video below. Put them into practice by teaching a friend how to perform the exercises. Ensure that she has understood by asking her to teach a third person.

2.6 Add text and slideshow

With a few simple steps you can make your blog more attractive. Do this:

1. Log in to Blogger with your e-mail and password.
   
2. On instrument panel, click on "View Blog" to the blog you want to manage.
   
3. At the upper right of the Web page for your blog, click on "Customize".
   
4. On the template for your page, click on "Add a page".
   
5. In the new window that opens, select "Text" and click on "Add to your blog."
   
6. In the new window that opens, type the title and body text, click on "Save".
   

In the template of your page, you will have a new text box. Would you like a slide show on your blog? Do this:

1. Click "Add a page"
2. Select "Slideshow"
   
3. Enter the "Title", select "Source", enter a "Keyword". 
4. Click on "Save". 
   

Simple as that.