Learning about the natural world is an important part of the Pagan path. Otherwise we run the risks of having some very odd ideas about what nature is. We may end up thinking of nature as something exotic, away and largely unavailable to us – which isn’t true. We may end up with nature as some kind of abstract concept that we celebrate by calling to it from our living rooms, and that’s not optimal. Even if life obliges you to be a mostly indoors Pagan, learning more about nature enriches a practice.
For Pagan parents, aunt, uncles, grandparents etc, teaching children about nature can be a great way of sharing your path with your young humans. I know many Pagans are uneasy about indoctrinating children, and some paths aren’t really suitable for younger folk anyway. This is a great place to start, and a child who grows up with a deep love of and understanding of the natural world is likely to turn into an adult whose values you can respect, regardless of what they end up believing spiritually.
So, as an act of public service I want to point you at this free, high quality publication. Wood Wise comes from The Woodland Trust, you can download it here or subscribe to have it sent to your inbox – https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/publications/2017/07/wood-wise-summer-2017/
December 9th, 2017 at 12:32 pm
That’s fab. It’s amazing the worlds that open up if you just poke around in the garden looking for critters. I must admit I’m really not good at IDing beetles. This looks helpful.
December 11th, 2017 at 7:38 am
I know a handful of beetles, the rest are mystery!
December 9th, 2017 at 1:56 pm
Reblogged this on The Dreaming Path and commented:
too many children are divorced from nature these days so i totally agree with this article
December 9th, 2017 at 5:41 pm
Thsnks for the link. I tried the tree party this year and fundraised for the woodland trust. This enews looks great to add to my inbox
December 9th, 2017 at 8:12 pm
Fantastic. I’ve worked with a lot of children over the years, and in my experience even the ones who are most reluctant to get outside will find that connection with the natural world once they are given the chance (and maybe a gentle push to go find it!) There’s something inside everyone that recognises we are not separate from nature, but I think it dims as we get older.
December 10th, 2017 at 1:47 am
Reblogged this on dreamweaver333.