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Project NatureConnect
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...................................................................... Results of a Nature-Connective Matching Activity Edited and extended from Educating, Counseling and Healing With Nature by Michael J. Cohen, Ph.D. NOTE: Webstrings are natural sensory attractions of the web of life that we inherently register and feel In order to help participants understand the mutually beneficial relationship of thinking with nature, Cohen asked each participant to do a short activity that he modified from an exercise that he had learned at a workshop from Dr. Clifford Knapp, at the University of Illinois. He gave them a statement that provided them with a means to identify what they appreciated about the things in nature that they had been attracted to in the beginning of the activity. The statement was, “I like the (natural thing) that attracted me because:” and they then added to the statement why they liked the thing in nature that they selected. Once they had done this, Cohen asked them to find the same thing in themselves by making the same statement about themselves. For example, the statement “I like (or love) the rock because it was warm and colorful and very strong so it can be what it is,” became, “I like (or love) myself because I am warm and colorful and very strong so I can be what I am.” The participants assisted each other in identifying and validating the webstring parts of themselves that the modified statement, in metaphor, had helped them locate. Cohen suggested that this webstring part of them was always in them in some form, recognized or not. He said that it had to be in them, that, if nothing else, it was the part of them that registered the natural attraction they identified when visiting the natural area. Otherwise, he asked, how could they have been attracted to it? Cohen based this activity on the principles of the Thematic Apperception Test and Rorschach inkblot tests and it often helped participants strengthen their self-worth. For example, they wrote to each other in email journals: “I love this dragonfly because it is ancient beauty. I love myself because I am full of ancient beauty.” - Anonymous Webstring Model participant “I am attracted to our new kitten, because she is affectionate, unusual and entertaining. I love myself because I am affectionate, unusual and entertaining. I recognized myself in the statement and that strengthened me. I received an outstanding compliment from a fellow who is "nature desensitized". He said that I was 'a breath of fresh air.'" - Anonymous Webstring Model participant “I felt a strong attraction to an empty snail shell on the beach and I discovered that I love me because I am imperfect but beautiful. Parts of me have broken away leaving jagged edges and holes. My surface is rough and blotchy. But I have a feeling of mystery and complexity despite my apparent simplicity. I am smooth at my core and I have a secret part that you can't reach unless you are really, really small and need a home. But at my center I also have an openness if you look carefully. Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What manner of sorcery is this!!!!!!!!!??????????????? I recognize the value of this activity just as I recognize the connection between me and this shell. I surely have a lot in common with it. I feel like I found a gleaming white salty piece of me." - Anonymous Webstring Model participant “I love Honeysuckle because it is like the melody of Franz Liszt's Liebestraub - sweet, light, fresh, enchanting. I love myself because I try to maintain a pleasant disposition - most of the time I'm easy to be with; I believe in freshness - self-renewal and open-mindedness and some people even say that they find me enchanting.” - Anonymous Webstring Model participant “Here in rural Finland I had a misconception that you all in the USA belong to a highly industrialized world so every thing there is compared with skill, efficiency, proficiency, input, and out put. Everything mechanical. But I was absolutely wrong. The so-called perfectionist people of the highly industrialized nation do care for the MOTHER NATURE. They do connect themselves into the attractive natural energies of life. I am attracted to you all. I feel a strong bondage exists between you and me. It's true we have not met. It's true we are poles apart, live in different parts of the world. We are brought up with a different value system, belief, religion, socio-economic condition, education, geographic area, culture, food habit and many more other dissimilarities. But there exists a natural webstring attraction connection that tells me you are all beautiful human beings. So kind and concerned. So caring and helpful. You all possess a tender heart and I could hear that ethereal song your soul sings. Yes, natural webstring attractions connect our heart and soul. So that humanity in us stands us together to brave all odds. My attractions in nature show me that I like myself because I am the Soul. Pure and true. I am present everywhere. Omnipresent Soul. I connect everywhere with natural attraction and connection. I am as strong as a tree. It is strong as it holds the earth and the earth holds it. I give my love and care to all the earthlings as a tree does. This program is very important as it asks us to redefine ourselves and to hold ourselves back from the misleading stories of modernization and our socialization. It helps us to gather information, strength and courage to go against the human invasion of nature.” - Anonymous Webstring Model participant In his continued development of the Webstring Natural Attraction Ecology Model, over the years Cohen created an additional 146 similar nature-connecting activities. Each enabled people to further locate in the web of life, their natural self, its value, and their often-overlooked connection to nature. ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY RESULTS FROM COURSE PARTICIPANTS: NOTE: "Webstrings" are the attraction that holds together each thing, and all things, that are part of the web-of-life. "I love this cedar tree because it is strong yet fragile in the same time. It lives in harmony with all life around and its shape has been formed by air, sunlight, water and the earth from which it grows. It stands proudly and overcomes obstacles as it reaches for the light." "I love myself because I am strong yet fragile. I live in harmony with all life around and my body has been nourished by air, sunlight, water and earth. I stand proudly and overcome obstacles as I reach for the light." ^^^ "This exercise came at a time when it was important and very valuable to take a nature break from the mechanical/electronic problems confronting my sensibiliities. It was a great thing to take off on an aggressive hike into the beautiful hills here to burn off some aggravation and reconnect with peace, The magic of nature never fails. I found an attractive spot off trail under a Bay Tree with a wide variety of plants all around - not a typical December scene at all. The sun angled through the surrounding trees and on the hills in a beautiful way. It was a welcoming and comfortable area and I sat with my back against the tree and settled within, seeking and receiving confirmation for the purposes of this chapter. I sat and surveyed the area attempting to connect language with what it was that I found attractive. Not easily arrived at( a worthy challenge!) I wrote Section 1: 'I am attracted to this area of Oak and Bay studded hills covered with a wide variety of plants because it offers peace and a soft, reassuring and inviting energy.' And then, though it was a little difficult to actually say it was also fun and surprisingly true to write: Section 2: "I like myself because I offer peace and a soft, reassuring and inviting energy." This is beautiful! I would never have thought of saying something like this but it is true that these are qualities of mine that I like and value and that others also like and value. Friends have told me they appreciate my calm, non-reactive, non-judgmental perspectives. This was a very valuable exercise and I appreciate the confirming and supportive energy it provided. It was challenging to come to a place of acceptance when I tried the sentence 'It is this webstring in me that found this webstring in nature attractive in the first place' since I have always thought that the reason I was able to provide this for others was because of my strong connection to nature, that I had learned it there. Seeing it as a resonance however, allowed me to see that it is,in fact, a mutual attraction. I am attracted to these qualities in nature because I value them and believe in their "rightness." ^^^ "I like this Pine because it stands a little apart; it's a great destination, it has a lovely shape and color. I like the curved nature of its branches and its soft needles. And because the tree and I are identical with respect to the natural systems that sustain us, the Pine helps me identify myself. I can truly say I like myself because I stand a little apart; I am a great destination; I have a lovely shape and color; I like my curved branches and soft needles, and, in metaphor, all this feels right." Lois hesitated and then read on, ''Right now I have tears in my eyes. I hardly understand why. I feel as if I can see the Pine now, I feel her essence, her beauty as she stands a little apart. She mirrors something within me. I see that I am transformed when I am outside and connecting to the natural world. I am nurtured, calmed, soothed, held, warmed, excited, stimulated, active, empty and yet full, happy, content and connected." ^^^ "About a quarter mile from my house it is a place called the tide pools. At the time I was there the tide was very very low, and I could see many aquatic creatures, birds, plants, rock, and sea. I asked nature to let me be with, and access every thing that was there. I felt an immediate consent. 1. I liked the entire organic place. I liked it because I am embedded in it, and I feel very spiritual. Part 2 I like myself because I can connect with spirit & nature. this feels right to me in a very deep Psychological way." ^^^ As I sensed the area I became aware that I was attracted to rock near the trees. The attraction lasted and I became more entranced with what it brought out in me. I wrote "I love this rock because it is a world unto itself: its surface is diverse and fascinating, and the glimpses into the deeper parts of the rock hint of a myriad of rich inner crystal worlds. I love this rock because it is old, old, old, carrying stories in its very structure and composition. I love this rock because it looks like it has blood flowing through it - it looks like a human heart. I love this rock because it absorbs and then holds heat and coolness for a seemingly long time. I was a bit dismayed when the activity instructions to apply what I said about the rock to myself. I wrote "I love myself because I am a world unto myself: my surface is diverse and fascinating, and the glimpses into the deeper parts of me hint of a myriad of rich inner crystal worlds. I love myself because I am old, old, old, carrying stories in my very structure and composition. I love myself because I look like I have blood flowing through me - I look like a human heart. I love myself because I absorb and then hold heat and coolness for a seemingly long time." This exercise felt comfortable and familiar. I have long believed that we are attracted to that which resonates with us inside, that we love in that which is outside of us that which reflects the inside of us. Bringing this concept out like this, through a sensory nature attraction exercise is beautifully simple and effective. There are powerful emotions that come up when I read the words I had written about the rock in reference to myself. I feel humbled and unworthy. I also feel happy and grateful, calmly confident that I, too, am eternal. ^^^ I adventured into the woods behind our house to the small stream that runs along the boundary of our property. The thing I like the way the water flows and meanders through the woods how seems to choose the path it takes by gently cutting away at the banks. I love is the ability to be here, to see sense and feel the energy all around. To see how the water, trees, animals, bushes and trees co-exist together. I love the stream because of its effortless flow. Even when faced with obstacles it simply flows around them and continues its movement. Despite its appearance it is also a powerful force capable of changing the landscape. I like and love myself because like the stream I am peaceful in the mist of the chaos that surrounds me. Like the stream I flow with the rhythms of life and am a powerful force for change. The statement fills me with a sense of connection, hope and joy ^^^ While at work early yesterday morning I was drawn to the planter just outside of the gym. With a glass storefront, it is my natural safe haven amongst the fakeness of the ritzy beach community I’m working in. Although the planter is not particularly large, it contains a beautiful tree with greenery at it’s base. In an effort to beautify the community, yesterday city workers removed the greenery, replacing it with fake green grass. The beautiful tree is now surrounded by astro-turf. “I love the tree because it is standing strong and tall amongst it’s chaotic, nature disconnected community. Although tall and sturdy, it possess characteristics of grace, gentleness, and beauty, while positively contributing to the environment.” “I love myself because I stand tall and strong amongst my chaotic, nature disconnected community. Although tall and sturdy, I am graceful, gentle, and beautiful while positively contributing to my environment.” These web-string qualities are very similar to me. As an athletic woman standing over six feet it’s always been important for me to be both sturdy-strong, as well as graceful and gentle. The true beauty arising from within, continually contributing to my environment. ^^^ In between meetings i took 20 mins and sat outside. After being sure i had consent i closed my eyes.. now, we have been enjoying some really beautiful weather on the west coast! very warm and sunny and as i sat with my eyes closed i could feel my face getting warm.. my eyes were light, it felt so good. It was as though it was recharging my batteries! when i opened my eyes, i noticed that i was not the only thing enjoying the sunny day, there were lots of people milling about happy smiling, the birds were singing, it just seemed busier then last week when it had been raining. It was quiet and peaceful but when it is sunny it is like everything comes alive! I love the sun because it recharges me. I love myself because I recharge. When I first did this activity I wanted to go back and change my original answer to section 1, because although it makes sense for that it didnt make sense to me for section 2! I fought the urge and instead started to contemplate what that means for me. It is actually true! One of the things that i enjoy about myself is that i have this ability to bounce back, recharge and do it quickly! I believe this statement about me! ^^^ "I am attracted to sitting under the shed overhang watching the rain because I can be with the rain and green colors and all its beauty of color and sound and mist and wind and feel cozy and peaceful and quiet." "I am attracted to myself because I can be natural and down to earth and also be cozy and peaceful and quiet." "I like the way the red colors touches the leaves of the trees along the tops or tips of the branches so sweetly." "I like myself because I carry things so sweetly." "I appreciate the simplicity and integrity of the wild lamb's quarters herb with some rain drops on its multi branched form drooping over in the mist and sunshine." "I appreciate my simplicity and integrity as I go about my daily progress in life with the elements." "I see as worthwhile a little bit of blue vetch in a cluster of green grasses, the worthiness of it shone clear for me - something to do with respect for the land, recognizing the beauty of land." "I am worthwhile because I recognize the blue vetch and the green grass are the respect and beauty of the land and myself." "What is good is the air and the breathing of Earth with its resting and mindfulness." "I am good because I have breath and awareness of breath and can rest with my breath." "What is right is that with the beautiful foliage, the sunshine with clouds and raindrops, the birds and this wonderful big patch of fragrant coriander, there is a sensation of contentment or happiness of everything, a gentle fullness of the mind." "I am right because with all the elements of nature around me, I sense great happiness and gentle fullness of the mind." "I love the nameless intelligence of Nature that is aware of what needs to be done and when to rest and so much more." "I love my nameless intelligence of Nature that is aware of what needs to be done and when to rest and so much more." ^^^ This mornng it snowed. We have been waiting for it to snow for some time. It brings with it its challenges, of course, but also a sense of renewal. Our reservoirs and local family run ski resort need it. And, now it has come, small flakes have connected to form large swirling flakes that dance and jump in the breeze like popcorn bursting up from a popper. My soal needed it, too. I love winter because it creates magical, white, crystal, beauty reaching to the sky. I love winter because the sunlight gistens and renews hope and faith. I love winter because, in the midst of the cold, I can feel warmth. I love winter because birdsongs remind me that life is worth living. I love winter because the falling snow leaps and dances with joy renewing all it touches. I love myself because, I create magical, white, crystal, beauty reaching to the sky. I love myself because, my light gistens and renews hope and faith. I love myself because, in the midst of the cold, I can feel warmth and bring warmth to others. I love myself because, my songs reminds me that life is worth living. I love myself because, I leap and dance with joy renewing all I touch. Wow! Is that really me? I kinda left her behind in the midst of having to live up to something that wasn't really me. I see her now. I welcome her now. I give her time to rest now. I give her thanks for glistening. I give her permission to dance. So very magical! What a match. I am a person who glistens and lifts others with my light. ^^^ I moved on and was taken in by a massive asparagus plant (I just love this one), which did accept my request to commune. "I love this asparagus plant because it is delicate, soft, and lovely. It bends gracefully, delicately shading the earth and providing gentle comfort and beauty." "I love myself because I am delicate, soft, and lovely. I bend gracefully, delicately shading the earth and providing gentle comfort and beauty." I recognize this webstring quality in myself- it is familiar. I am most comfortable when I am able to live from this quality. I am less comfortable with more forceful energies. If I could find a way to live this way all the time, I think I would feel very happy! In my current situation, I would like to be more graceful and flexible. If I could become more gentle and protective of those toward whom I have felt opposed in this situation, I would be able to help much more, and would be more satisfied with the outcome for all of us. ^^^ There is a railing going all the way around the veranda with plants on top, geranium and sort of beautiful bell shaped plants, but many and lovely. As I was sitting there enjoying the view of mountains and oak trees, an iridescent green hummingbird began making its rounds of the plants. I had a quite close up view and a quiet peaceful view as I wasn't going anywhere for awhile and also felt I was quite lucky to be sitting outside. "I love the hummingbird because it goes about its job of receiving nourishment from the various plants with such grace and beauty and sweetness. It is obviously so happy and wholehearted without any feeling of regret or ill ease." "I love myself because I go about my job of receiving nourishment from various places with such grace and beauty and sweetness. I am obviously so happy and wholehearted without any feeling of regret or ill ease." ^^^ Jupitor is a 16 yr old golden retriever that I have had since he took his first breath. Soon he will decide to leave this dimension, I am so grateful for his presence in my life and how he has allowed me to grow and understand myself better. I love Jupitor because of his sweet personality, his capability to understand the unspoken and be totally accepting, he always has a good attitude even when struggling to stay on his feet. He shows me an inner strength and acceptance that I can only hope to capture a glimpse of. No matter how he is treated he is always open to receive a hug and loves unconditionally. He has been my rock when things have been tough and reminds me that I am never alone. I look into his eyes and I see the wisdom of a great teacher and depths of understanding that goes beyond words. He is soft and cuddly, yet when needed he can stand his own ground and knows what serves him best. He is aging with grace and diginity and though his body does not always cooperate fully I know that he gets up shrugs it off and continues on his way. He is truly a wonderful friend and companion, never judging, always accepting. He still remembers how to play, even it is only for a few minutes, when he is out in nature he perks up and puts his head in the wind, catching the air and scents all around him. He is completely trusting and allows help when needed. He is my best friend. Jupitor and I share natural systems so we are the same. I wrote of myself what I learned from Jupitor, "I love myself because of my sweet personality, my capability to understand the unspoken and be totally accepting, I always have a good attitude even when struggling to stay on my feet. I show an inner strength and acceptance that I can only hope to capture a glimpse of. No matter how I am treated I am always open to receive a hug and love unconditionally. I have been my rock when things have been tough and I remind myself that I am never alone. I look into myself and I see the wisdom of a great teacher and depths of understanding that goes beyond words. I am soft and cuddly, yet when needed I can stand my ground and I know what serves me best. I am aging with grace and dignity and though my body does not always cooperate fully get up shrug it off and continues on my way. I am truly a wonderful friend and companion to myself, never judging, always accepting. I still remember how to play, even it is only for a few minutes, when I am out in nature and I perk up and put my head in the wind when I can, catching the air and scents all around her. I am completely trusting and I allow help when needed. I am my best friend." Once again the universe is putting the best possible exercises in place when I need them most. Though I have done this exercise in the past, I found it much more revealing and healing as I have been hitting the wall with old patterns that had me questioning my value in life. This exercise allowed me to connect with one of the most important teachers in my life and remind me that I am also worthy and have wisdom, caring, love and playfulness to share, even when I feel like the universe is beating me up - I can choose to get up and shrug (shake) it off and continue forward. I also am grateful to two friends in my life who have allowed me to explore these depths of my own being, without judging and with complete acceptance. I am truly blessed to have the wonderful people in my life - including this very special group. A Press Release about the Avatar-Pandora value of this activity is available for your use. Explore your attractive self. Benefit from your natural attractions, strengthen your personal and professional well-being and save time and money. 1. Read some of the student reports, above, and discover if you find them attractive. If so: 2. Do this fun and easy natural attraction activity. If it makes sense and is attractive to you, you are eligible to take our Organic Psychology Track for a degree or certification in the organic application of ecopsychology. This track saves you the costs and time of 16 credits of graduate work, or two years of undergraduate work. 3. Call or email nature@interisland.net for an application 360-378-6313. We accept USA invitations from you to call you. SUGGESTION:
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INSTITUTE OF GLOBAL EDUCATION Special NGO consultant United Nations Economic and Social Council
PROJECT NATURECONNECT
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