Posts by Tess Howell
Young Adults Nature Based Rite of Passage
You are a young person in this world, with childhood behind you, no longer a teenager, you have aged into the phase of young adulthood. Are you an adult? How? When? Why? What does being an adult mean to you? Who are you at your core? What are your gifts, your callings, your contributions to…
Read MoreTaos Malaya
Taós Malaya [she/siya] is a nature guide, wild-crafter, urban farmer, wilderness trip leader, rites of passage youth mentor, and gardener of spirit
Read MoreThe Nature of Council
Council is an ancient way and modern practice whose roots are deep within the natural world, spanning diverse cultures and spiritual traditions. Sitting in circle we remember and learn to listen to the whole: the people, the place and all living beings. This practice elicits an experience of deep community, recognizing that each voice has value, every person has a gift, a story to share, a piece of the puzzle.
Read MoreWalking Into That Good Night: Exploring Our Relationship With Dying & Death
Physical death is the ultimate rite of passage that we are preparing for on some level throughout
our life. Sometimes this “preparing” looks like denial; sometimes sudden illness or life-threats
surprise us into looking squarely at the inevitable truth. The more consciously we can turn our
attention to our mortality, the more able we are to turn our life’s focus toward that which truly
matters to us during this one precious lifetime.
CO Women’s Fast
Since time immemorial, women have gathered to celebrate, honor and support life. In doing so we form a sisterhood deeply rooted in our own authentic nature.
Read MoreTrebbe Johnson
Trebbe Johnson has been guiding wilderness rites of passage journeys in the eastern and western U.S. and in Scotland, Ireland, Germany, the Sahara Desert of southern Algeria, and with military veterans since 1993. Trebbe speaks four languages; has camped alone in the Arctic wilderness; and worked as an artist’s model, a street sweeper in an…
Read MoreThe Elder’s Journey: The Four Shields of Elderhood for Women
Throughout the ages, elder women have enjoyed sitting in circle to weave the rich tapestries of their stories, stories that continued to warm and inspire people across time and culture.
What about us, now, in our time? As women in all stages of growing into our greater years, there is a growing passion and a commitment to tell our own stories
Read MoreFinding Purpose and Meaning through the Practice of Living and Dying
Life is the primal impulse towards a never ending search for vitality and also the struggle to survive. Without death the life force could not exist. It has been said we come into the world with death beside us. And in the end our physical death is the ultimate rite of passage. This begs the questions: What is my relationship with my own mortality? How does the certainty of my own death inform my life? What are contemporary practices to support living and dying in these complex times of cultural and environmental crisis and “the great separation” from self and nature?
Read MoreAZ Mirroring the Four Shields of Human Nature: The Art of Storytelling and Listening
This Program is an invitation to all humans who are willing to share stories and experience the gift of mirroring stories of empowerment and wholeness. This program is also specifically appropriate for direct care professionals such as: wilderness guides, counselors, coaches, and teachers to name a few.
Read MoreCA Mirroring the Four Shields of Human Nature: The Art of Storytelling and Listening
Telling one’s own story is an ancient art. Nowadays, we have forgotten how to listen and how to tell. Yet the very survival of our species depends on our ability to communicate with each other in such ways as to be mutually enriched by the telling and the listening. If we cannot tell with expression, our life is mute. If we cannot listen like a mirror, we cannot reflect back the wholeness of the four shields — the body, soul, mind and spirit of the teller.
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