In tender memory of Brian Doyle ~
Unless we are serving as an usher, when we ask a person to sit, we may be in store for some intense conversation (interrogation). When we instruct our dog to sit, the result is the opposite — typically a treat. I’m guessing in ancient days, wild dogs sat just outside the danger zone hoping for similar treats from our ancestors.
While exploring is at heart of our environmental education programs, doing nothing in a spot chosen by each student (their Magic or Sit Spot) seems to have the most impact. A one-on-one moment with the natural world where conversation is silent and the senses are fully open to wonder is the start of a Vision Quest.
I propose that we sit more often when outdoors. Wasn’t Sir Isaac Newton cross-legged when the gravitational apple found its mark. Don’t all Buddha sculptures show the Prophet sitting in a meditative or ear-to-ear smiling pose. Guru comics depict the wise person on a mountain ledge in contemplative non-standing position. Iconic images of famous people sitting include Forrest Gump on a bench, Gandhi spinning cloth, and of course!…Sitting Bull.
We spend countless hours sitting indoors, but when we finally arrive in nature, we are driven to activity: running, walking, biking, driving. Let us pause during those activities and smell the wild roses as we sit and ponder the beauty of the moment, the beauty of the day. ~