Foraging: Forging our Earthly Relationships
Living Earth Heart Connection
Foraging is an experience and a lifestyle …
… it changes and deepens our connection with the natural world. As we start looking at the world differently, our attention attunes to aspects of nature such as the interaction of the weather with plant growth, the seasonal changes, how they vary year to year and so much more. We develop a sense of what it was like for our ancestors to live so closely to the Earth, and with reverence.
Indigenous shamanic cultures treat the Earth and all that exists on her as sentient … As our sensitivity of connection deepens we may enter into that communion with her, the circles and cycles of life, the Plant and Animal Kingdoms and the Elemental Realms.
With a sense of wonder, awe and respect, we start to tread more lightly. Only taking what we can use, leaving something for others. Many indigenous cultures ask permission of the spirit of the land, the plant or animal, before taking anything - often offering gifts of gratitude.
And this is how we step into reciprocal relationship with All of Life.
Courses, Walks, Workshops and Bespoke Events
Wherever you are on your journey of getting curious about the Earth and the natural world there are a wide range of events to support you with developing that relationship. Here I offer some of mine, and introduce those I work and collaborate with who are all building bridges of connection in a myriad of ways.
Workshops: Foraging as a Sacred Art
Lauren Lochrie of Herbal Homestead
Lauren Lochrie is a naturalist, forager, apiarist, and all-round plantswoman with many years' experience in outdoor education, as well as in creating and enhancing spaces for people and wildlife.
Lauren's interest in Amanita Muscaria developed through working with trees such as birch and pine as they often grow together. Lauren finds these interconnected relationships fascinating and is particularly drawn to the medicinal uses of fungi which often times harness their potency from the trees themselves.
Meet my collaborators:
There are invisible networks running underground called the mychorzial networks that connect fungi and trees.
I also have a living, evolving network of other experienced foragers who are deeply connected to the Earth and her rhythms. who all bring an added element of magic in their own unique ways.
There are some exciting collaborations underway ….
More about Lauren and her ethos under pinning her work and Herbal Homestead in this beautiful video:
More about Tania’s work with the Elemental Kingdoms co-creating Sacred Earth Essence’s
Foraging Course: Full day Introductory course, focusing on fungi.
Each Autumn Tania runs foraging courses for Backcountry Survival Ltd. near Aviemore in Scotland.
Backcountry Survival invited me to run foraging courses after I attended a 5-day survival course with them during a bumper mushroom season! I was not only eating mushrooms, but drying them to take home.
Backcountry Survival also offer Bushcraft and Survival Training courses at many levels from family friendly to Instructor training.
Personally I have found that knowing I have this inner resourcefulness has greatly increased my confidence, without being reckless, when exploring the Wilderness.
