Service for the Birds at Innis Creek: 11-15-15

When the Bald Eagles gathered on Sunday morning the movement from fall to winter was in the air and spirits were high.

We began by checking the oil on Stubbs, the girls leading the process with some coaching. One of the pieces of advice given by the mentor was: "Always be sure to put the oil in the right place - check to see which cap is the oil cap." And, since Stubbs needed a bit of oil, the girls did just that, correctly locating the oil tank. What this mentor failed to remind is to be sure what you are putting in the tank is actually oil... after the full quart went in, we discovered it was transmission fluid. Whoops. Lesson learned, and there was an opportunity to talk about our motto "Mistakes are Teachers" and to have collective problem solving ensue. Life is not about avoiding unexpected problems, but rather, settling into them and figuring out where to go from there. In this case, we decided to take our other bus, Moose, to be on the safe side of engine health :) While Aimee went the short distance to fetch Moose, Laurel and the Bald Eagles checked in. We discovered from our mechanic later that this mistake is ok - whew!

Then, we were on our way east! En route, we caught glimpses of numerous creeks, two majestic bald eagles, and the ever-lowering snowline on the mountains. Once on Wickersham Road, less than a mile from the nest boxes, we discovered our second unexpected obstacle: water over the road. We parked, walked past the notification sign and to the water, and had a collaborative decision making council about what to do, with safety foremost in our mind. We considered walking through with boot-clad people carrying others, but understood that we'd need to carry supplies 3 miles round trip to and from the boxes. A better plan seemed to be to drive around and access Innis Creek Road further north... until a resident drove up and let us know the water over the roadway was even deeper there. He also told us that this situation is fairly typical for the area, and that residents simply drive over the water (not long after, we witnessed 5+ low clearance Prius's do just that). After watching him and testing water depth, we knew that we could safely drive over the roadway with the bus.

We arrived at Innis Creek to check on the wood duck nest boxes a former GEC group built and installed in the spring of 2011. The hope was that we would open the boxes to find the telltale signs of wood duck occupancy: nests made from feathers, mud, and shavings, and egg membranes left from hatched young. Typically the procedure for accessing the boxes is quite straightforward, but we ran into all kinds of challenges due to the excessive recent rains and subsequent flooding, and ended up in our own comedy of errors as we slish-sloshed our way to the boxes. In the end, only one of three boxes in this area was reachable, and that only by those who wore high water boots.

Fortunately, we were able to access the other three boxes further up the road, and collected data on each, which we will report back to Tricia Otto, birder extraordinaire, who helps us with this wood duck monitoring program. After checking four boxes, we discovered that the wood ducks have yet to find our shelters, and wondered why (fewer wood ducks in general, already prime natural cavities in the area). As we explored around the creek and mossy woods we discovered a few salmon making their way upstream, lots of woodpecker habitat, the diversity of fungi popping up everywhere in the forest, and a wetland wonderland filled with mossy logs for traversing.

After an impromptu forest wedding (one never knows what will be conjured on a GEC day, but imaginative play is certainly encouraged!), we gathered for our closing circle. After reviewing all our outings this season, we asked how the girls thought their group had grown over the season. All were in agreement that they had bonded much more as a group, in part due to the sleepover at season's start, and that this bonding built more trust, sharing, joy.

Reflecting on the season past, we ended our day by creating the Web of Life from things we'd all connected to this season: mossy woods, Salish Sea, water, teamwork, strength, cedar, salmon, downy woodpecker, wetlands, one another. We agreed that humans are connected to every aspect of this web, and have tremendous power to impact it in both positive and negative ways. This underlines our GEC motto All Things Are Connected, and helps us understand that whenever one thing in the web is altered, it affects all the other aspects. We reiterated that GEC is all about strengthening the web of life, as well as the bonds between each other, and invited all Bald Eagles who wish to continue to be part of that to return in the spring. We hope they will! 

Our words of the day? Expect the Unexpected!

You may check out the slideshow from day here. 

Shelter Skills Day at 100 Acre Wood: 10-18-15

If you take a stroll through the 100 Acre Wood, you'll find that a new subdivision has been developed, using sustainable "green" construction methods and materials. These state-of-the-art residences are not for sale, but they are open for viewing (and snuggling into). The talented architects and construction crew? The Bald Eagles!

After a check-in, we discussed the realities of wilderness survival, reviewing the Survival Rule of Fours (ask your daughter what the four survival priorities are and in what order... and ask her why deep breathing is so important in a survival situation). On this day we focused on the survival priority of shelter, learning how imperative a properly insulating shelter is for surviving even a single night in the woods. We discussed the many ways and reasons one can become cold: conduction, evaporation, convection, and radiation (see if your gal remembers and can explain these). 

Our first focus was to put on shelter eyes, traveling up the trail and seeking nooks and crannies that could be or become a shelter for different sizes and types of animals. After a snack and shelter story from survivalist Tom Brown, we took a cue from the squirrels, who build nests with sticks and insulate them with leaves, and let their designs inspire our own natural shelters, which were built in the classic "debris hut" style. Our community dwellings sprung up from the forest floor, and within a few hours we had two deluxe shelters (we started with three, but alas, two collapsed in process. Girls were able to shift gears and re-calibrate and collaborate to create new shelters).

With the bit of time remaining, we took a home tour of each shelter, assessing each on their ability to withstand wind and rain, retain body heat, and remain safe from any nearby blowdowns. A few brave girls even tested the shelters' rain resistant capacity by getting inside to receive a water bottle dunking (if the shelter was really well built, little water made it through). 

Finally, we engaged in a group awareness activity that helped us understand where each group member is on the bridge of adolescence. This activity was really illuminating for the group to empathize, understand, and respect that we all travel across this bridge differently, and to be aware of where each of our group members is at with different aspects of adolescence. 

Next time you take a walk through the Hundred Acre Woods, see if your own "shelter-seeking eyes" can detect these artfully constructed debris huts- they are truly impressive, and almost invite one in to spend the night...

Our words of the day? Go Ask The Squirrels!

You may see the slideshow from our day here. 

EC MOTTOS that came into play today: Many Hands Make Light Work, All Things Are Connected, LIBK, Be Prepared, Leave No Trace, Safety First

Chuckanut Overnight: 9-26-15

During the years girls spend in GEC, winding their way up a spiral curriculum of learning and growth, we aim to facilitate at least one group overnight, with one primary purpose: group bonding. We're not setting out to impart concepts like symbiosis or ecological impacts/connections, do field science or service; we're hoping that through joyous connection and conversation, girls will become a more bonded group, rather than a group made of separate bonded friendships. Laurel and I are delighted to report that this BE overnight was a success!  

The BEs arrived and the connections began within minutes. When middle school girls are given room to explore, they often choose to explore connections with one another – this overnight was a social time! After settling in the house and discussing the flexible plan for the afternoon and evening, the girls chose to have their check in then and there, rather than later. This was our first practice of the day in Active Listening, a skill we all agreed we need to practice. 

Then we were off to the beach! There are few things more satisfying than watching middle schoolers, who can sometimes feel self-conscious and inhibited, explore with abandon. It was a high tide day, yet most of the group managed, with a lot of teamwork, navigate the shoreside rocks to sunspot, whose warmth compelled them to swim! There was much talk about it prior to the dipping, but then a few brave souls made the plunge, followed by others. What hilarity! Others were more solemn on the beach, assembling and releasing a memorial raft for Sundance the dog (Gigi's dog who died the previous night). 

Chilled bones spurred the girls back up the beach trail and into the hot tub! Others chose to prep dinner (and I must say, this mentor appreciated having 5 in the kitchen rather than 12!). Our circle of thanks before dinner was lovely – lots of gratitude in this group.

During dinner we talked about our roses and thorns, an interesting way to reframe strengths and weaknesses; as with the rose bush, both roses and thorns work together and are integral to the plant. Using this metaphor, we look at how our roses can become our thorns and how thorns can be roses, and how really, there are only qualities we possess that can become either depending on the circumstances. For instance, some girls shared that they are bold, outgoing and silly; they felt this is a rose because it brings joy to those around them, helps them make friends, and they are fun to be around, but it can become a thorn if not watched/controlled in certain situations because it can be over the top and sometimes seriousness is needed. Others cited their strong emotions as both a rose and thorn. We reflected on our triggers that affect how these qualities are expressed (level of rest, past experiences, events, hormones). The BEs were quite reflective, and we all learned to lessen self judgement about what we perceive as thorns and celebrate our roses. It was interesting how challenging it was for some girls to talk about their roses, a societal trend GEC aims to mitigate. Again, we worked hard on Active Listening during this exercise. 

We also shared what we thought the Bald Eagle roses and thorns are. Most agreed that the group generally has a comfort in talking about personal matters, has developed trust in and with one another, has strong opinions and ideas and great senses of humor. We also agreed we're so eager to share that we sometimes don't listen to one another, and that it can be hard to make decisions. 

Dinner was followed by some wonderful music, dancing, games, dessert and free-range conversation, and finally (after that conversations ranged, and ranged, and ranged...) bed and sleep. 

Morning brought more sharing, slow movement towards clean up and breakfast, a feast of food, and a final circle of acknowledgements of one another. 

Laurel and I are so grateful for this bonding time with the Bald Eagles!

Please enjoy the entire slideshow from our rolicking good time here.

BE Outing @ Tenant Lake 8-29-15

Wow! What a day of connection for the Baldies. Our day began with the creation of our Group Agreements Banner. Each girl drew a symbol to represent herself on our banner, which varied from flower, to sunshine, to fierce mask. From there, we decided upon some group agreements such as "Listen and Learn", "Empathy", "Respect" and "Be Who You Are (Because everyone else is already taken". This flag will join us on all of our future outings, and these guiding agreements will help continue to shape Bald Eagle culture as the girls move through adolescence together. Speaking of which, autumn is the turning time, where we welcome and explore transitions, in GEC and otherwise! The girls spent their flag-doodling time also checking in with the group about transitions in their life, and we welcomed some fascinating conversations to the table about adolescence, change and choices.

Lightning holding up our Group Agreements Banner- Let it wave!

Although, it hardly felt like fall. The sun shone bright for us amongst the breeze and storm clouds to provide a lovely day of exploring for above, amongst and through the varied terrain of Tennant Lake. Nestled into the Nooksack River delta, Tennant Lake park provides a biodiverse ecosystem for all of the creatures that inhabit it. We began our day talking about this concept, and why biodiversity is essential for happy, thriving animals and plants. We learned about the vital importance of wetlands as habitat to birds, mammals, fish, insects, plants and so much more; as flood storage; places of recreation; and water revitalizers. We discussed human's history of interface with wetlands, and the steady decline of these important ecosystems. Though it seems these older girls want little information on our outings (likely due to information overload during the week), they came to understand the the way to protect wetlands is to understand why they're important. And to connect with them.

So we did just that. We walked on the boardwalk, spotting hunting blinds, tall grasses, pulling apart cattails. We told jokes and giggled in the sunshine. We stumbled through the uneven ground of the wetland, jumping (some headfirst) into tall grasses, allowing the softness of the plant to catch our fall. The girls especially connected to each other in these grasses-- sharing stories of all topical matters, laughing, and enjoying their time with each other.

Gallavanting through the tall grasses of Tennant Lake

From the tall grasses, we moved back to the Scent Garden, where the girls blindfolded a partner, and walked her around, helping her guess, touch and experience the different plant smells in the magnificent garden. The girls moved slowly, enjoying their time with their buddies, and learning about new plants. Who knew that there were cosmos that smell like chocolate, "curry plant" or uncanny pineapple sage?! Be sure to ask her daughter which smells tickled her nose hairs, and which ones might have singed them...

Bald Eagles losing their dominant sense and trusting their group members with new, wild smells!

Our day ended with a quick round of the Adaptation Game, where we each took on the role of an organism in the Tennant Lake ecosystem. Our goal.... to stay alive! By using our adaptations as a "block", we ran around and avoided being caught without our adaptation in front of our predator. Many of us died, some lived, and each of us learned the value of adaptations on all creatures of the Earth. In closing our day with our Attitude of Gratitude, we acknowledged each other for our kindness, ability to compromise, quiet voices, keen eyesight, and silly stories. Excited for the Bald Eagles to continue their formation of relationships next outing at their sleepover!

Gratitude for the peace of the day, the adventure that was found, and the honesty and integrity of this special group of girls!

-Hannah

Want more photos of the day? Click here to find our Google slideshow of the day!