Tag: seawyld

Wyld Words- Rockpools

by Seawyld, posted in Uncategorized

Hello Wyld Souls,

For the last few months I have been running an online nature-based poetry circle called Wyld Words. For each session we write individually and as a group based on a nature being or ecosystem, it has been a magical journey so far as we voyaged through moss and rockpools. Some beautiful poems have been birthed and a creative community is growing in this contaner!

Here is my individual poem from the session themed on ‘Rockpools’, the prompt was

‘Rockpools are challenging and changing environments, imagine yourself gazing into a rockpool and write about what arises for you as you feel into the energy of these spaces.’

Rockpool.

I know that the tides will change,

that I may soon be exposed to the elements.

To the pressures and forces that I cannot control.

I can only weather them and await for the coolness and calm to return.

Yet, how do I survive it?

Do I hunker down inot the rocks like a limpet in their homescar or do I hide away in the crevices of the edges of my mind? Like a blenny in the rocks.

Perhaps I could draw myself inwards, tentacles tucked until I am inconspicuous, invisible and hoping that the sun will spare this worrisome wallflower.

These cycles of harshness and softness,

coolness and heat,

abundance and scarcity

repeat like clockwork through the days of my life.

I know in my bones that I can weather them,

I have done so many times before.

Yet every time the stresses return and I am in survival mode.

I wish to be as tenacious as a starfish,

resourceful as a hermit crab.

adaptable as all of the lifeforms in this mesocosm at my feet.

I dip my toes into the rockpool waters,

as if to absorb it’s wisdom into my skin.

The water levels rise, tide is coming in –

coolness and calmness return for now filling the rockpools of doubt within.

I watch, waiting for the tide to ebb again.

I can weather this,

I know it.

I trust my sea-salted heart I can.

– Elizabeth Elliot-Klein

The next meeting of the Wyld Words Poetry Circle will be held online on the 14th of May (19:00 -20:30 GMT) and you can book your place here. It will be all about ‘Birds’!

Wild Woman of the Trees

by Seawyld, posted in Uncategorized

Another tree inspired poem. This poem was birthed at the first meeting of the Red Writing Circle, an outdoor poetry circle for folk who identify as women. This project is being run with the lovely Poppy Jones – a fabulous poet and champion for women’s voices in poetry. The prompt was to find a space in the park that called you and write about how you feel. I chose to climb a tree, nestle in the branches and write.

Wild Woman of the Trees

When I was a child

Every tree was a possible grand adventure.

Gnarled. Smooth. Bare. Bending.

The trees beckoned and it was impossible to resist.

I would clamber, hang and lose my balance so easily.

But I was not afraid.

I was alive.

When I was a tame woman

Every tree was a possible accident.

Enticing. Forbidden. Lofty. Out of reach. 

The trees still beckon but my fear was stronger.

Afraid of falling, judgement and broken bones.

Keeping me frozen and trapped to the ground.

As if falling and breaking would cause all the darkness

To spill from my body and across the earth.

Now I am a wild woman.

Every tree is an ancestor, a guide.

Wise. Ancient. All seeing. All knowing. 

Aloft in the branches I am suspended, weightless

And at one with the bird song and moss.

My wild soul is singing 

And I no longer fear the fall.

I am alive. 

In the Arms of the Evergreen (Poem)

by Seawyld, posted in art, nature connection, Poem, seawyld

Today I found a beautiful evergreen tree, curled up onto one of it’s branches and listened to the rain, this poem came to me. I hope that you enjoy this love letter to the wise watchers, those trees that just make you gape in awe at their timelessness. Here is a recording from the branches of my tree muse, the text and below that the story of how it came to be. Enjoy!

In the embrace of your boughs

I feel the smallness of a young child

in awe at the lines on an elders face.

Touching them with questioning fingers,

knowing that you have witnessed time’s slow march

and survived it.

The reassuring sway of your leaves,

whispering words of comfort to my questioning soul.

Sheltering me from the rain,

creating a caccoon of comfort against the unpredictable elements,

as I unburden myself of my troubles.

The strength of your branches to hold not just my fragile frame

but the weight of the world that has heaped onto my shoulders.

It fills me with wonder,

the weightless feeling of being held in the arms

of a wise being, a watcher

without judgement.

The timelessness of your holding

and the grace in which you stand

makes me wonder how many other

wondering,

wandering souls

you have witnessed and held in your time here on this Earth.

Poem: Ebb & Flow

by Seawyld, posted in creativity, Poem, seawyld

Written after a snorkelling expedition off Plymouth Hoe where I discovered a beautiful little nook where some tiny Pollack fry were floating in a bed of lush, green algae! It was so beautiful and so peaceful to just float and observe this tiny microcosm of life! Being underwater is such a nourishing and connecting space for me to just lose myself in the wonders and magnitude of life.

Ebb & Flow

I let the ebb and flow,

the ebb and flow

carry me, carry me to and fro

as I watch the tiny fish fry move as I do

with the ebb and flow

the ebb and flow.

The vibrant green of the algae

swaying with the ebb and flow

the ebb and flow

and all the treasures which lie beneath my beating feet

drifting with the ebb and flow

the ebb and flow.

From the sunlit zone above

to the depths of the deep below,

we all dance with the ebb and flow,

the ebb and flow.

Mental Health Awareness Week 2021 – Thank you!

by Seawyld, posted in Uncategorized

Hello there wyldings,

I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the support, engagement and warm words that arose from my offering for Mental Health Awareness Week 2021. For me, so many poignant moments of healing and growth took place outside, surrounded by life and the elements that I felt called to contribute to the discourse and help people engage in this important work. 

When crafting this challenge I took inspiration from my own experiences and the nature connection practices which supported my journey both in improving my mental health and my relationship with the natural world. This week was also a profound moment of growth for me as I took the plunge into my first digital offering and overcame my own anxieties around doing so, so thank you for being there alongside me!

Here is what some of the participants experienced:

“It was nice to have learned about the  ´Mental Health Awareness Week’ through the SeaWyld posts. The daily  call-to-action posts made me stop, think and appreciate everything around more deeply and personally” – E

“We’re living in the middle of the city, weather has been awful, and with a tiny baby keeping us a little more home-tied nature seems very far away! It was really nice to use some of the posts to take a bit of a trip in my mind if not physically! It reminded me how much we can do to help our mental health without external inputs” – H

“I live within nature on a daily basis but the posts from SeaWyld made me stop and pay more attention. It’s easy to become complacent and not realise how important it is to stop and look. The children loved the colour challenge. Being within nature is so important for us as a family and it’s amazing to think it’s finally be recognised professionally as to the importance of it” – D

The activities and challenges that I shared can be done whenever you need to tap into nature connection – whether you are in your office, a city or blessed to be out in the wilds. 

The seven challenges were:

  1. Share a photograph of a place or moment where you felt deeply connected to nature.
  2. Choose a colour and look for it in nature throughout the day.
  3. Share your favourite song, poem or artwork inspired by nature.
  4. Listen out for birdsong on your travels.
  5. Go outside and meet a tree today.
  6. Sit in a quiet spot outside and use your senses to explore nature around you.
  7. Do something to care for the natural world today. 

I hope that these activities continue to bring moments of nature connection when you need them and once again, thank you so much for your support and for taking this journey with me.

Love and light, 

Lizzie