The Mirror of Nature Retreat

Exploring our inner landscape through the wild landscape of the natural world.

Check back for virtual and in person mirroring training in 2023!

 

Allow the earth to open your heart, the souls of your feet, your belly, and palms of your hands to receive your story as it bubbles from the spring, murmurs from the needles and leaves, comes on mist, sunbeams, rainbows and starlight, resounds in thunder and whispers in the wind, sings through loon calls, coyote howls, and bear growls ....

In the silence before dawn and in the mirror of still waters. 

 

The Mirror of Nature Retreat is an invitation to explore your inner landscape through the landscape of the natural world.  Using the Four Shields of Human Nature as the template for wholeness, we will spend solo time each day with a question that opens up communication with the natural world and reveals wisdom only nature can provide.  Returning to the group, we will learn to mirror each other's stories, reflecting the fullness that is seen in each story. 

Mirroring is deep listening and reflecting that rises out of deep communion with the natural world.  We see and are seen by Nature.  We are given a story, both very old and sparkling new.  Mirroring is a way of seeing the wholeness in a person and reflecting back the gift they have just been given by Nature.  In this retreat, we will learn how to be our own mirror and be a mirror for others; and we will be mirrored by a person who serves as a clear mirror for others. 

Time will be given for creative expression of your story through nature craft, ceremony, writing, song, and movement. 

 

Participants

Open to all adults, 18 and older.  Participants may come to deepen their skills in listening, mirroring, and the Four Shields of Human Nature or this may be an introduction to all of those topics.  All are welcome. 

Group size:  6 minimum, 12 maximum

The Mirror of Nature: Leadership and Organizations

In this program we explore leadership and organizations using the Four Shields of Human Nature.

Leadership is what we are called to when the fullness of who we are - our unique way of being and our authentic presence - meets the world’s needs. Leadership in this sense is not a static position that we hold in a job, community service, or our personal lives. Leadership is skillful, intentional action offered to an organization, community, or group to address immediate and day-to-day needs as well as in service to long-range vision, mission, and goals.

The Four Shields of Human Nature offers a unique framework for understanding ourselves in leadership as well as the organizations in which we work and serve. An eco-psychological model developed by Steven Foster and Meredith Little (School of Lost Borders) invites a conversation with the natural world that informs our personal leadership and dynamics within our organizations.

 

The Program:

This retreat is designed for people in leadership positions or aspiring to leadership roles; teams within organizations; board of directors; and anyone who wants to contribute to a discussion of leadership and organizations informed by our own experience and by the natural world.

Participants will have the opportunity to:

• Explore the relevance of the natural world to leadership and organizations.
• Relate the Four Shields of Human Nature to leadership and organizational dynamics
• Identify a personal leadership profile using the Four Shields of Human Nature
• Apply the Four Shields of Human Nature to current questions about personal leadership and organizational dynamics
• Practice collaborative coaching techniques
• Practice listening skills in small groups, between individuals, and in nature.
• Practice “mirroring” of individual and group experiences in nature
• Explore dispositions for action in leadership and organizational situations
• Practice emotional agility, the ability to bring the right amount of the right emotion to a given situation
• Identify elements of an effective request and response
• Examine how to handle critical conversations and apply to personal leadership or organizational situations
• Discuss the components of trust, how to build trust and rebuild trust.
• Create an action plan for next steps in personal leadership and organizational dynamics.
• Identify resources for continued learning and development in leadership, organizations, and the Four Shields of Human Nature

• Guides: TBA
• Group Size: 8 maximum (6 needed)
• Program Fee: Sliding scale from $650 - $1050 (covers camping registration, basecamp amenities, and guide expenses)
• Registration Fee: $150 (non-refundable)

For questions or to register, please contact us.