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Although we are part of
nature and most of us have experienced renewal while in nature, on
average, 99 percent of how we think, feel and act is disconnected from nature's self-correcting and restorative powers. The duality of this
hurtful separation produces most of our problems and
disorders.
.
Project
NatureConnect gives us new organic sensory tools that we desperately need. They help us enlist nature's purifying ways to
increase our personal, social and environmental well-being. This includes our intelligence to share these tools with others for the betterment of all.
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SPONSOR:
 Project NatureConnect
Institute of Global Education
Special
NGO Consultant, United Nations Economic and Social Council
Green Mental Health,
Social Work and Stress Management.
Outdoor work, environmental education and green counseling
processes to enhance self-worth, earth wisdom and alternative
naturopathic medicine.
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SITE UPDATED JANUARY 15, 2013
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The
Origins of Project
NatureConnect
and Natural Attraction Ecology
....In
1959, Dr. Michael J. Cohen founded an extraordinary Trailside
expedition education school.
Emanating in 1946 from Progressive
Camping and Josh Lieberman's Creative Camping
programs, it was based on learning how to genuinely connect with nature
as community, to experience the
flow of our living Earth, in and around us.
....Through
natural attraction
sensations and feelings that were energized into consciousness during
sensory contacts in natural areas, young or old, students and staff
alike learned to commune with the
web-of-life community including themselves. Nature taught them to
enjoy,
validate and
incorporate the self-correcting
wisdom of the web in their
thinking and feeling.
....The
National Audubon Society identified this program as the
most revolutionary school in America. In it:
....Chemical dependencies, including
alcohol and tobacco, disappeared as did destructive social relationships.
....Personality
and eating disorders subsided; violence, crime and prejudice were
unknown.
....Academics
improved because they were applicable, hands-on and fun.
....Loneliness,
hostility and depression subsided. Group interactions encouraged stress
release and management; each day was fulfilling and relatively peaceful.
....Participants
using meditation found they could enhance it, or not need it, as they
helped build their nature-connected community.
....Participants
knew each other better than they knew their families or best friends.
They felt safe and developed the resilience to express and act from
their deeper
thoughts and feelings. A profound sense of social and environmental
responsibility guided their decisions.
....When
vacation periods arrived, neither staff nor student wanted to go home.
Each person had enjoyably worked to build this supportive, balanced
living
and learning group. They were home.
[1993 APA Journal: The Humanistic Psychologist]
.....The
sane and applicable process of Cohen's Trailside School expedition education, not the
madness of
Industrial Society's excessiveness, is the source of Natural Attraction
Ecology methods and materials. They have received additional verification with the 2012 affirmation of the Higgs Bosen
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Greetings
Honored Guest,
We Welcome Your Inquiring Mind, Heart and Spirit.
Thank you
for your attraction
to visit this website and for recognizing the value of good experiences
you have enjoyed in natural areas.
A question for you: Do you think you are you aware of the prime source
of the
attraction for this page that you may right now
feel/sense/experience? Do you know the essence of that
attraction?
Natural Attraction is both a
noun and a verb that has its own
integrity and universal history.
THE SOURCE. Do you think you are
willing to consider that
the felt attraction that motivated you to visit here, like any
attraction, is a
continuum and expression of
the original "Big Bang" natural attraction seed that grew into and
is a fundamental unifying essence our universe, of its atomic nature
and
balanced perfections?
Is it possible for you to evaluate or accept good evidence that the
singular original
attraction energy that coalesced into the first sub-atomic particles
and atoms was attracted to grow into being the
universe,
including our living planet and the essence of each of us today, counting
our senses, body, mind and spirit?
I ask you this because most of us have been trained not to accept
this
evidence. It usually feels strange or foreign. It is often a major jump in consciousness simply because we are socialized to be excessively disconnected from nature and awareness of our true nature.
Congratulations are in order. Your attraction to this page
demonstrates that some part of you enjoys
a rare, but extraordinary, natural
consciousness that is usually driven, often hurtfully, into our
subconscious. Your desire to be here signifies that you have a
healthy and intelligent way of knowing that is attracted to nature's
supportive
ways, to life
in its natural balance, purity
and beauty. Our goal is to strengthen and support this special
attribute in you so that you can further personal, social and global
well-being and help others do the same.
Introduction
To
our great loss, we are usually paid to ignore, demean or exploit our
natural attractions and nature. We often learn to repress our ability
to see or feel them. We spend most of our lives trying to
artificially replace their loss to us as well as heal the pain that we
feel from it.
"I
can train my eye to expertly see the world, yet my eye can't see
itself. The eye that my eye sees in a mirror is false. I know
this from experience because when
I am attracted to place my hand over my mirrored eye, I still
can see."
As you read these words, you are looking directly at and through what
contemporary humanity is desperately seeking. You can't see it and you
have learned to ignore how you sense or feel it. What it is, is natural
attraction, the natural attraction "energy" of the eons that fills the space
between you and this screen or page. Thus ancient attraction organized itself to build and
continue to sustain your body, mind and spirit, including your natural
senses. They have the ability to consciously register your natural
attraction sensitivities.
One of these natural attractions is Gravity. You already know full well
that if you hold a pencil in front of the screen and then let go of it,
gravity will attract it to the floor.
Consider
this example: I occasionally ask people what they experience, think or
feel when they salute the flag. Their answer usually describes their
values and/or conflicts with regard to saluting, pledging allegiance, or
God being in the Pledge. What they often fail to mention
is that while they are engaged in saluting they are also registering
and reacting to their natural sense of Gravity. Usually,
gravity is neither in
their consciousness nor their thinking, yet, if their
saluting arm does not respond to its sense of gravity, their arm will
fall to their side. They won't be able to salute.
Like most of us, folks who are saluting have
learned to omit the sense and sensibility of gravity from how they
consciously think and feel. We and they seldom register it, nor do we
morn its loss in our psyche. To the contrary, we give awards
to those who
can overcome it, who can jump the highest or invent airplanes and
rockets.
Although we have lost continual conscious
sensory contact with
Gravity, it is part of nature in action. Gravity is one of the earliest
forms of natural attraction, one that helped energies coalesce into
"things" shortly after the "Big Bang."
On
Earth, today,
Gravity attracts rain to the ground. It holds the atmosphere, soil,
oceans and us to the planet, and the planet to the Sun. This also can
be seen as "An endearing embrace by Mother Earth for us and Father Sun
to be attached to her." Gravity can be recognized as a "nature
hug" that has guided
us to grow a skeletal system so we can be upright and mobile and
respond to nature and our planet in ways that benefit all. Mother Earth
gives the same gravity hug to every other form of life. This helps us
all be one as we are naturally drawn to hug each other. And, in fact it does help us.
Is thinking like the above "fuzzy"?
Or is true sanity our recognition
that we suffer many disorders because we think that this thinking is
fuzzy?
Our thinking's loss of conscious registration
of Gravity is a key problem that we learn to ignore. This loss is not
unique. It occurs
with our 45 additional inherent natural attraction
senses as well.
If we don't frequently experience or love
gravity and
nature like we love our country, what then motivates us to adequately
respect, protect or preserve nature, within and around us? The answer
is "very little" and the at-risk state of nature, Industrial Society
and our sanity is the result.
The
insanely unbalanced and deteriorated state of the world demonstrates
that
nature, along with ourselves as part of it, suffer from our insensitive
neglect or conquest of nature.
When
healthy, nature seldom causes nor displays our destructive
effects on people, places and things. For example, nature does not
produce garbage or pollution
as it sustains its optimums of life, diversity and cooperation.
This is not a miracle, it is natural attraction in action. It is how
nature works.
Be
alarmed. Our sensory loss, described above, not only holds
true for our
sense of gravity. Again, it is equally true
for our loss of at least 45 additional natural senses that
we are similarly taught
to neglect. These include our inherent natural attraction senses of
trust,
community and place, of beauty, humility
and love...sensitivities
we appreciate even in our dog.
With respect to nature, we
have trained
ourselves to feel senseless, to lose the conscious,
supportive value of belonging
to the global life
community. This duality has caused us to lose much of our sensibility and intelligence IQ potential
By
not consciously thinking or feeling with the
self-correcting sensibility of natural attractions, we
insensitively produce many of our disorders. In addition we lose
nature's recycling power to help us compost our polluted thinking
and remedy our disorders.
We
have a major problem. Our socialization programs us to sever our
thoughts and feelings from nature's self-correcting powers, balance and
beauty.
Like addicts,
we learn, instead, to seek and support the satisfactions we gain from
the
excessively nature-destructive ways of Industrial Society.
This can be seen as a form of madness. It is insane to destroy our own life-support system.
Fortunately,
a potent solution is available for this dilemma. The
nature-connecting methods and materials of Natural Attraction Ecology
provide us with a natural preventative and antidote for our warped
mentality. Its potent
activities
for educating, counseling and healing with nature are readily
accessible to those who are
sensible enough to use and teach them as part of their lives and
livelihood.
Our deterioration of peace, environment and society results from the
consciousness of most individuals, be they
great leaders or preschool children,
being robbed of its inborn ability to think like the attractive
integrity of
nature's purity, balance and beauty work. Instead, our psyche continues
to be
injuriously programmed to pledge allegiance to the robbers.
Learning how to add NAE to our personal or professional
lives, makes an important contribution to the benefit
of our families, clients, Earth and ourselves. More than 800 unsolicited
testimonials
support this fact.
Gravity
is a natural attraction energy that originated in the Big Bang origin
of our universe. It is one of
many universal natural attractions that we can experience at any given
moment. There are at
least 50 additional natural attraction senses
that we are born to consciously register to help us contribute to our
personal and global well-being.
We
are trained to believe that we think with, and know the world through
five senses. But gravity is not one of them. Is it not real
or important? Or is
it, instead, that our socialization has misguided us?
You
are presently looking at and through air. Would you like to become
aware of your
inherent natural attraction to air? Hold your breath. You'll soon feel
it attracting you to breathe. Which one of our "five" senses do you
think is that calling, sense or sensation? Isn't it an intelligence?
In the inter-screen space you are looking through right now, there are
50 more natural
attractions that you may experience once you become aware of them. For
example, isn't the attraction of Earth's magnetism present in this
space so that it influences a compass needle placed there? Aren't the
images of
birds or the page colors
attractive? Don't they reach you through this inter-screen space?
Don't your electromagnetic senses in your nervous system and
space enable
you to think, feel and act? Have they not, at times
electrified you?
Consider
this carefully: If air was poisonous and it did not convey colors,
sounds, smells, motions, temperature, sunlight and other attractions,
we would not be alive in the way we are now. The fact is that we do
live in and with air and with gravity. This is because it and we are
identical. We,
together, are built and grow from the same original aliveness,
consciousness and intelligence of natural attraction that evolves and
sustains
us and everything else in mutually
supportive balance.
If you are reading this with interest, your consciousness of nature is very
special.
Unlike the consciousness of many others, yours refuses to be
overwhelmed by
the hurtful and destructive shortcomings of
Industrial Society. It refuses to give up your inborn natural
attraction to sensitively live in,
and contribute to,
a healthier
world in its natural, peaceful balance.
Your natural consciousness and sensibility is attracted to learn how to
help
things
recover and come into a life-supportive equilibrium. We are dedicated to give you powerful
tools and to support you in this effort.
Natural Attraction Ecology (NAE) is a proven and internationally
accredited enabling
science for reasonable change. Its online training courses and degree programs
include the Higgs Boson and devote themselves to helping you strengthen and implement your
naturally attractive,
inherent, whole-life way of
thinking and feeling.
NAE empowers you to increase personal,
social
and environmental well-being
as a livelihood while you master the NAE process. You may optionally
obtain subsidized degrees, CEU's and certificates in it.
Our
normal, excessively detrimental ways tend to avoid NAE. They seldom
herald or
support it because it is a very reasonable, but also a very
inconvenient,
truth. It empowers anybody to help bring humanity into sane
and
fair balance. That often interferes with our greedy profiteering and
destructive exploitation of people and places.
Our
Challenging Problems
A truly
civilized path does not lead to our excessive:
fears-disorders-mistrust-greed-alcoholism-violence-profits
depression-lies-war-poisons-secrecy-unemployment-addiction-
trespasses-abuse-drugs-conflict-child
abuse-lawlessness-poverty -stress-pollution-molestation-isolation-extinction-exploitation
-prejudice-global
warming-corruption-animal
cruelty-rape-injustice -bigotry-anxiety-side effects--overpopulation-imbalances
-criminality
ad nauseum.
You,
no doubt, recognize that most of us are not naturally born with the
outrageous
problems that we in Industrial Society daily cause and face.
Unfortunately, we are
educated as well as socialized/indoctrinated/conditioned to create and
live out the misguided stories that
excessively produce these problems.
Without our consent, we have been conditioned to provoke and fight an
undeclared war against nature.
Within and around us,
nature suffers the symptoms of traumatic stress due to our war with it.
We seldom recognize
this travesty to be a disorder because it is "normal." It
happens continually.
Are you aware that our personal,
social and
environmental troubles continue to grow because they
hold a destructive source in
common? That source is a learned,
prejudicial
and conquering
attitude against
our inborn natural attraction for Mother Nature, in and around us.
Our prejudicial fixation disconnects our psyche
from the essence of nature's self-correcting and restorative powers. It
desensitizes us to them. We have learned to seldom identify or
address our "normal," but misguided, nature-separated
way of thinking, feeling and relating. Yet, just a short, quiet walk in a natural area demonstrates these powers.
Project NatureConnect's NAE courses, degrees and impact offer
you a proven natural therapeutic
preventative and remedy for many problems that we face. Its
natural attraction
research and expedition education process
helps you improve your livelihood, increase well-being and
reduce environmental problems. It's sustainable ways enable
you to eliminate the attraction-destructive
source of our problems while you help others do the same.
Humans
have spent 99.9 per cent of their genetic and evolutionary history in
natural environments. In this light, getting back to nature
through NAE
is a
psychological and physiological homecoming.
You may
easily benefit by adding NAE to any
relationship, livelihood, degree or profession. See
testimonials to this effect
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Connecting
With Nature
"My daily
walks take my dog Petey and me through some old Pennsylvania
woods.
Not
too long ago, it was easy for me to have had so much going on
in my
mind that I hardly even noticed, much
less appreciated, everything that
was going on in nature around me. Other times, having felt no
connection to the natural world, I'd come
home thinking maybe I
needed to find a more stimulating walking route.
Sound
familiar?
Lately,
however, my walks have taken on a whole
new dimension. I feel like
a little kid in a candy shop when I venture outside
in the morning,
thanks to some activities I learned from Michael J.
Cohen, Ed.D., when
he recently met with several Prevention
Magazine staff members.
Dr.
Cohen practices and teaches NAE Applied Ecopsychology, a new area of
psychology
that views people as profoundly affected by the natural world. Dr.
Cohen is also the author of Reconnecting
With Nature (Ecopress, 1997).
He
taught us some activities that felt so relaxing and inspiring that we
asked him to help us design some for you to try while walking in your
neck of the woods.
These
exercises are designed
to help awaken or sharpen senses you probably haven't paid much
attention to. The activities help you recognize more strongly, through
direct experience, that you're a part of nature, not apart from it.
Dr.
Cohen feels that this recognition helps people "learn to make healthier
decisions for themselves and their environments."
In other words, he
hopes people can make a profound connection between their psychological
health, their sense of well-being and the health of the environment
around them by becoming aware of--without talking--all the
sensory
experiences nature offers.
The
value
of
these exercises lies solely in what you experience when you do them. If
you just read them, they may seem, quite simply, silly. But if you do
them and have fun, as we did, you may find a whole new pleasure and
energy in taking your daily walks outdoors.
As
I did these exercises, I found at times that I didn't trust my own
reactions. That's when sharing your feelings or insights with a friend
or a group really helps. If you don't have a partner, share your
experiences with me or on an online
nature-connection course."
- Maggie Spillner,
Editor
Walker's World, Prevention Magazine (1997)
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The
Power of Pure Science
When we seek and find attraction in our lives,
we discover that
it draws or attaches things together, for example, gravity, a natural
attraction, works to
hold us on solid
land while it keeps the solar system together, too.
Attraction is not only something
real, it
is also universal and natural. It is everywhere, from the inside of an
atomic particle to the galaxies and beyond.
No matter the originating source of attraction, since the beginning
moment of our universe,
out of the "vacuum" that preceded it, natural attraction, in its
attraction to grow,
has attracted, pulled or bound "things"
together. This is true, no matter what the "things"
are.
They can be the nucleus of, or the wholeness of
the original atoms of the universe, or of the same atoms as they exist
today. The things can be
a
molecule, or our body, or our senses, mind and psyche. The "things" can
be the
sun or the rest of the universe.
Most nouns
and pronouns
identify and label "things." Most things, including genetic
interactions, are made of atomic
relationships that are held together by natural attraction.
Verbs describe acts. Acts are always natural
attraction energy in
action. Too often, however, our acts are misguided or misinterpreted by
inaccurate or nature-disconnecting stories.
Look around and within yourself. We
are, and we live in, an
extraordinarily attractive, alive, natural world. This is because its
essence is eons of
self-organizing natural attraction growing more attractive, moment by
moment.
That
the galaxies increase their speed outward and away from each other,
along with other evidence,
suggests that, as in a seed, an ancient, living attraction or love
to grow holds the
universe together in unity. Scientific
findings suggest that that attraction "force" is also the original hot
attraction of the
"big-bang" event to cool.
Natural attraction is
the prime source of all the energy, matter and consciousness
in the
Universe.
As such it is the name of an identified thing and deserves to be capitalized: Natural Attraction (NA)
"Human
beings and all living things are a coalescence (attraction) of energy
in a field of
energy connected to every other thing in the world. This pulsating
energy field is the central engine of our being and our consciousness."
- Lynne McTaggart
Even an atheist might agree that in our
universe, something like "God"
or a creation force actualizes
him/her/its self as natural attraction that is found everywhere.
"By
his work the master is known."
- Jonas Yost
Reasonable
evidence from scientific observations of the Universe and the presently
observed remains of its origins suggest that the true
beginning of the Universe was its hot, explosive seed of natural attraction energy to
begin...to be...to grow.
The
source of the natural attraction for the Universe to
become itself may
remain a mystery, miracle or argument. However, the history
of its growth and
development has long been studied by many sciences.
Scientists have observed processes
that demonstrate
how, since its inception, the natural attraction energy of the Big Bang
was attracted to progressively cool and coalesce its strings and
sub-atomics into
atoms, and they, in turn, into
the resonating molecules, elements and compounds of our present day
world
including organic and non-organic life. This
process, along with its cycles and attraction resonances, are
scientifically observed and explained universal, unifying
qualities. Attraction may be a miracle or a
mystery but its operation and effects have long been studied and
understood.
"I
thank God for beginning this world with natural attraction and trusting that attraction seed to grow into attractive relationships."
- Project NatureConnect Student
Universal
Qualities
Since
we know the "NNIAAL" qualities of the universe that
we see
today,
including ourselves as part of it, we can reason (theorize) that the essence of the original natural
attraction contained the roots of these qualities. This brings new facts into play. The original natural attraction essence had to be
alive in some way. It had to have some kind
of motivation and
consciousness and
intelligent
desire to grow,
moment by moment,
into greater attraction, to pulsate into
becoming, through diversity,
an ever increasing and stronger
universal attractiveness whose homeostatic balancing,
self-correcting
and purifying powers we experience today in nature and its
beauty,
around and in us.
Each of these powers is attractive and is a function that has grown from that fundamental natural attraction in action.
It can be accurately said that this attraction essence and its attributes is what
the Universe has "given us."
Note
that we spend much of our "story life" trying to define and answer
questions that arise about the how? what? when? and why? of life, Earth
and the universe. Each answer we come up with
usually leads
to duality (one or more additional questions and answers) and therefore
more questions and arguments endlessly. This is
because we learn to reject that the aliveness, consciousness
and other pulsating qualities of Natural Attraction (as above) are not
questionable.
Rather they are, and have grown from, the inherent,
attractive potential of an undivided, non-literate yet conscious, natural
attraction, self-organizing
energy at the original moment of the Big Bang.
This single, green, organic natural attraction unity can be seen as being true as part of the Big Bang moment, no matter its often fiercely argued origin or source. (See the Big
Bang Water Analogy)
"If
the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts."
- Albert Einstein
We
cause and suffer our many problems because we are trained to follow
misguided stories and labels
that our indoor society creates. These
half-truth tales omit that we
must gather vital information about how to relate to the world in
balanced ways by
making conscious sensory
contact with the balancing powers of natural attraction in natural
areas. This seems controversial because although we
inherit this ability, we are taught to ignore it. However, our good
experiences in nature demonstrate its truth, as
does good science.
We unjustly fear nature and
suffer because
we too often reject natural
attraction and its qualities to be the whole, supportive core of the Universe
and of life as we know
it. Instead, we get prestige, paid and profit for conquering and
exploiting nature and its natural attraction energies. This
includes payment for inventing and applying cures for the disorders
that we create by deteriorating the life-supportive ways of natural
attraction in and around us.
We seldom learn to recognize
that the
universal, homeostatic,
tension-relaxation pulse of all relationships is formed by a
strong-weak,
strong-weak
attraction pulse,
not by
attraction-repulsion. For example, the rest period
between contractions of the heart is not repulsion. Neither is the
shorter-longer shorter-longer distance between Planet Earth and the Sun
as Earth orbits around it. Neither is the night-day night-day pulse of
our planet. Neither is the yin-yang phenomenon nor appetite-excretion.
They are all the natural attraction intelligence of homeostasis in
action.
Each pulse in nature is simply part of the all-encompassing, homeostatic life
pulse of our natural attraction universe as it is attracted to grow
into becoming the
next moment. Tension followed by
relaxation/recovery are
the resonating, balancing, life-pulse of
nature's intelligent, natural attraction essence."The beginning of wisdom is to
call things by their right name."
- Confucius
We suffer because we have been
attached to a
false story. It says that we should fear nature in and around us
because it is dangerous, it may hurt, repulse,
reject or abandon us, that it, or we, are not attractive.
This is false with respect to natural attraction, the essence and whole
of nature that flows around and through us.
Things
go better when our
thinking and feeling respectfully seek
the assistance of the essence nature's wholeness and the wisdom of its
restorative
attraction powers. Like a fish out of the water, our psyche really
wants to get back into
the pond. It does not just want be aware that the pond is
there and get an "A" as our
grade for knowing this fact.
"We
are drifting toward catastrophe beyond conception. We shall require a
substantially new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive."
- Albert Einstein
The Process
As
it has through the eons, today, the original
natural attraction of the Universe "to be" is a growing, alive and
aware,
reasonable and pulsating natural act. It is a verb because it is always
doing something. Although we
may label it "spiritual" or "non-material" or "quantum," moment
by moment natural attraction continues to
flow, dance, weave and strengthen the diverse,
yet balanced and pure, web-of-life
of the universe. This flowing dance includes the life community of our
planet as well as the diverse organ systems in each of
us, including our psyche.
Our
eye can't see itself, however, we can identify our eye through the
"correct" word/label/concept of it: "eye" as well as the effects of its presence pn our other natural senses including sight, color, motion, form etc.
Similarly, in humanity, the essence/consciousness of natural attraction
can't
see itself. It needs the correct word/label/concept to
identify in
language and sensation, what it truly is and does as nature's essence.
We have too
long overlooked that "Natural Attraction"
is the correct name/label for natural attraction and for our innate
ability
to sense and experience it. To call nature's and our essence
anything
else continues to mislead us. This is because natural attraction
is the only thing that our story way of knowing
and our
biological/sensory
selves fully hold in common. Scientifically, Natural Attraction is the source
of both.
Over
its 14 billion year history, the universe has organically built,
registered and related to itself through natural attraction relationships.
A dilemma that we face is that in these
late moments of its vast eons, natural attraction has been registered
and
related to by humanity, as
a concept,
as literate, abstract,
nature-disconnected and often misleading word and symbol stories and beliefs, not as
attraction-based, sensory and participatory contact
relationships with natural areas.
Our stories may helpfully mirror
natural
attraction to us but, like an eye reflected in a mirror, they are not
it.
The stories don't have the balancing and self-correcting powers of
natural attraction. For this reason we may understand/exhalt/worship
and participate in stories, beliefs or
questionable information, but this seldom changes our adverse behavior.
Rather, it often reinforces it. This
is
exemplified by the ineffectiveness of many rituals or the warning
labels on cigarettes or laws that we continually break.
Our
excessive attachments to our literacy/story
process prevent us from
benefiting from genuine, sensory, natural attraction relationships.
These relationships
are not stories alone. Rather, they
include attractive bonding acts with nature,
with the real thing, backyard or back country.
Challenging
problems arise as our indoctrination by our limited story-world removes
our psyche from tapping into and experiencing in nature the
balanced acts and ways of natural
attraction's eons. This is very difficult to correct because we learn these stories, unedited by our undeveloped sense of reason,
during early childhood. We hold them as blind attachments or sensory
beliefs whose effects we, as adults, can see are disheartening, yet we
seldom can easily change the irresponsible ways we think or feel.
Without being grounded in nature's balanced wisdom, our thoughts
and feelings wander astray. We applaud our unleashed, runaway
creativity and imagination, the human spirit, while
neglecting to make genuine contact with, celebrate and strengthen the
ever present and guiding attraction ways of nature, in and around us.
We
suffer by putting aside our
natural attraction planetary and universal citizenship contacts. We
favor, instead, less effective or destructive stories beliefs
or
replacements of them. In addition, our therapies for the
injury
this nature-disconnection produces often consists of the same
nature-disconnected process whose negative effects we are trying to
reduce. It is
as if sensory connection with nature is a crime or an illicit affair.
"I have no need to make sensory contact with natural areas for guidance
or support because, through prayer, I directly connect with their
source in heaven."
- Minister at a PNC workshop
Our Story
World
Our
nature-disconnected, abstract, story way-of-knowing arrogantly
crowns itself
as an intelligent king of the world.
The "King" demeans the natural-attraction
based universe and Earth with a story that says that the latter are
uncivilized, sinful nature, that nature and its attraction
relationships have been created for us to use as resources.
Separated from nature's self-correcting powers, we build non-organic,
nature-disconnected relationships that
deteriorate personal, social and environmental well-being. We see their
destructive side effects but, due to our thinking's loss of nature's
restorative ways, we seldom can reverse them, even when we desperately
want
to.
Our
great challenge is that we teach our psyche the false story that for us
to survive we must conquer or dominate nature and its natural
attraction ways. We are motivated to be winners. We train and
pay
our thinking and relationships to omit,
demean, bully, own, exploit or subdue the raw balance and beauty of
nature's organic attraction essence, as it flows in and around us.
Our
sense or ability to register and distinguish color is one of our 53
inherent natural senses. Genetically and experientially, we
hold this ability in common with
insects. This helps explain why flowers are so colorful (as well as
fragrant). Colors and scents attract
specific insects to feed on the flower's nectar as well as fertilize
them, thereby enhancing both flower and insect survival.
You can test for yourself
that we/you are indoctrinated to powerfully register colors as words,
as abstract names or labels for colors, rather than as our inherent
natural attraction sensitivities to register them as colors, as a
"colorful" way to produce
mutually supportive survival relationships with the web of life.
Sadly, we teach ourselves that it is most important for us to be
aligned with, and salute, our special
"right way of life" story.
We learn
to argue, hate, fight or kill over misguided, paper-thin, non-whole
(unholy)
tales, labels and beliefs.
Most of our stories are ungrounded. They are sensory-limited or
incorrect tales and beliefs about
imaginary, insufficient evidence, dualistic sources
of natural attraction. They are also about the enticing rewards and
profits to
be made from conquering
or owning natural attraction powers, relationships and things.
The peacefully balanced natural world neither produces our garbage and
pollution nor the many
other
abusive problems that result from our excessiveness and conquest of
nature. This is because
nature's
purifying attraction powers are self-correcting. In concert,
they
organize,
sustain,
grow and balance the natural world,
including us, in a diverse, healthy and beautifully nurturing
equilibrium. Every
"thing" in nature belongs, nothing is abandoned, including you and I.
In nature, all things are
unified and attached by attraction. Everything is in community and
wanted. Each thing's existence depends upon its attractive
ability to contribute to the welfare of other things and to the
whole.
As
part of nature, humanity
genetically inherits nature's attraction to peacefully support and
restore optimal
life
relationships. The heart of each of our genetic molecules consists of
natural attraction in
action, as does the heart of us. Most of these genetic molecules give
us the ability to register the world through our senses and sensations.
As
you are attracted to this page or things on it, you are consciously
sensing an aspect of the universal attraction we are bathed
in.
You and I are born instinctively knowing that, Natural Attraction lives and
it is attractive.
Cultural Bias
A warped prejudice
against nature story
in contemporary
thinking unbalances us. It makes our consciousness reject and lose
contact with the therapeutic and renewing attraction ways of natural
systems, in
and around us. We need and seek a missing healing for this
loss. We say that "We can't find it" even
while knowing from direct experience, as well as research,
in natural areas that our
undisturbed sensory contact with authentic nature has demonstrated its
ability to
prevent or restore this loss as well as provide healing that we
seek.
Due
to our disrespectful bias against nature's attractive embrace, our loss of vital sensory
fulfillment
from
nature's renewing ways produces a discomforting hole in our psyche.
This void leaves
us
depressed, anxious, wanting, needy and domineering. We feel fearful,
abandoned from our global and
universal life support. In our attraction-based lives, abandonment is a
symptom of death.
In desperation, to fill our sensory void
we become greedy, excessive and insensitive.
Out of control and reasonableness, we
further invade and trespass
nature. In turn, we further deteriorate personal, social and
environmental
well-being.
"If
you talk to the animals they will talk with you and you will know each
other. If you do not talk to them you will not know them and what you
do not know, you will fear. What one fears, one destroys."
Chief Joseph, of the
Nez Perce (1840 – 1904);
A Practical
Remedy
The pure, empirical
science
of Natural Attraction Ecology (NAE) helps us address our detrimental
fear of, prejudice
against, and exploitation of nature.
NAE empowers us to beneficially reduce our greed and our excessive
stress and abusiveness by
learning how to genuinely connect our psyche, including our 53
natural senses, to
our ever-purifying, restorative and satisfying
attraction origins in nature. These natural
attractions exist, alive and well, in natural
areas, backyard or
backcountry.
The process
of our NAE re-connection to the natural world enables us to let the
attractive grace of nature's renewing
ways to flow through us again. Our senses can register them and this
familiarity helps us reduce our bias against nature. We can relate
more
sensibly to nature in ourselves, others and the environment.
NAE
empowers us to change our story world so that our stories help us make
genuine sensory contact with nature. This enables us to think, feel and relate
organically,
like nature's attraction balance works to
sustain its purity and well-being.
When we experience them, NAE truths and values are seldom
controversial because they are self-evident. They register on our
senses so we may think and relate as a supportive part of nature,
rather than as an outlaw of it.
A
short walk in the park is a temporary "fix" that demonstrates the
beneficial effects of nature on our psyche. We seldom
recognize
that this genuine contact with
a natural area is not simply getting away from
our problems. What we
actually do on such a walk is temporarily connect the sensory essence of
our psyche to
its
attractive, self-correcting roots in nature's peaceful balance and
beauty.
The calming, beneficial, clear-thinking results speak for
themselves. They are more than just
"recreation" or "an escape from real life." They are natural attraction
producing re-creation.
What
registers from our contact
with a natural area is more real and true than 2 + 2 = 4.
Anybody can use this contact as a hard, material fact, like conceiving
and experiencing it to be a life-saving stream or rope or
mother that supports us. This helps us recognize and share
that natural
attraction is authentic and that it has value.
In actuality, the
"stream" is our lifelong umbilical cord to Mother Earth. It
is natural attraction flowing through everything right now, including
you and I and the space between you and this screen, too. Do
you
recognize that it is not empty space? That thinking in ways
that
disconnect our consciousness from our natural attractions to the stream
are
destructive?
The attitude and process of Natural
Attraction Ecology provides us with a fully objective science, one that
uniquely includes
the "subjective" truth and history of our 53 natural attraction senses
and feelings.
NAE
benefits our
lives by enabling our psyche to
habitually make sensory connections to nature into a permanent and
therapeutic way of
thinking and
feeling. It gives us the motivation and ability to continually join our
heart, mind and spirit with
authentic
nature's healing ways
and strengthen ourselves and nature in the process.
NAE helps us create
moments that let Earth and Nature teach us what they know we need to
know.
"I think I never fully knew what was
missing in my life, I never fully realized the void until I was
introduced and given a new screen of consciousness. A new screen that
is placed there by nature, through nature, and with nature. All of a
sudden one is conscious of the void and conscious that before a deep
understanding of one’s connection with nature is expressed, life seems
a lot more duller and unfulfilled. For me it was like I knew that I
wanted to get from point A (my lack of presence, fulfillment, and
completeness) to point B (a state of peace, joy, love, and total
presence with the eternal now). Reading books, having conversations,
journaling, watching specific movies all inspired me but nothing gave
me a specific avenue, a gateway, a process to link these two points
until my
moments with nature in this course. It was as if a link that was
severed is being repaired and that link was my lifeline to myself and a
more holistic understanding of the world around me. Like a spider web
that was torn and is being put back together link by link, slowly I was
awakened to to parts of myself I never fully tapped."
Overview
Although
we
live in a technologically successful human society, we suffer because
its undue
disdain for nature and the natural excessively
exploits and deteriorates the whole of life.
Like a cancer, our distortion of, and assault on, nature's attraction
process, in and around us, produces a
wide range of
life-problems and
disorders.
For example:
1.Under
optimum conditions, a ball, in its balanced perfection, will roll true
on its
course.
2.
If we take an excessive slice out of the ball, neither the slice nor
the ball will roll true. Neither will
function properly (dysfunction) because they will have been separated
and lost their
integrity. Fulfillments they may have enjoyed from their
mutually beneficial attraction and support for each other will have
disappeared and/or become painful.
3.
The excessive slice will cause things that are connected to either the
injured
ball or to the slice, to
suffer the disorders that develop.
Natural Attraction
Ecology helps us recognize that natural attractions hold together
the life and spirit of a very special
ball, the planetary
globe
that
we call Earth. It has, and has enjoyed through the eons,
the life of its own balanced perfection, beauty and integrity (Axiom 10, below).
NAE also helps us recognize that
we are part of our living planet's very nature. For this
reason, when our story way of knowing makes us think poorly
about, or act adversely to,
the
workings of Earth and its systems, we separate our mind, body
and spirit from
the
whole-earth natural attraction community. With our loss of its
integrity and nurturing, we
become "excessive slices." This makes us cause hurtful problems
for the natural world
and for ourselves as part of it.
Our
misguided thinking and relationships with Earth have,
through our traditional and incomplete,
sensory-omitting, science,
increasingly socialized
us to
live as excessive slices from our planetary
ball.
Our faulted science indoctrinates us to
slice through the nurturing, self-correcting attractions that flow
through and
unify our planetary home, Mother Earth. This separation produces injurious
personal, social and
environmental
disorders.
It erodes our mental health. It goads us into making "improvements"
that, for
a profit,
excessively pave over nature's paradise .
With respect to
living in balance with Earth, our thinking and feeling is bewildered (meaning
separated
from
naturally attractive wilderness values and ways).
Devoid of natural attraction connectedness, our thinking and feeling
does not know how
to reconnect the hurtful, separated slice we have made of ourselves and
our
society.
Like a short circuit,
because our
disorders try to
protect us from further hurt and harm, we seldom acknowledge that
we are
excessive slices
and that we sustain our disorders by remaining excessive.
Those
who recognize this phenomenon and respond to it by reconnecting our
psyche
to natural areas, backyard or back country,
benefit accordingly. They help
others and Earth benefit through the
reconnecting process, too. Unfortunately, our nature-oppressive society
often looks askance at us and this process.
To
help us deal with the distortion in our science and technology, as well
as in our "civilized" thoughts, feelings and acts, NAE
provides us with momentous truths and restorative,
mind-recycling activities.
They help us attach our psyche back to the
authentic, balancing, self-correcting ways of our self, planet and
nature, ways
that we naturally hold in common.
The NAE process gives us the means and motivation to reunite the slice
and the ball. Instead of being "slicers" we learn how to
beneficially think and relate as "kin."
NAE
is a unique and profound organic science
because, using empirical, experience-based facts, it is
entrenched in helping our consciousness and relationships integrate how
natural systems work their perfection. It helps us overcome the
prejudice in
Industrial Society's
limited thinking, a prejudice that separates us from long-established
and vital natural attraction
relationships. Again, it is this separation that produces
our society's
unbalanced imitations of, and harmful substitutes for, nature's
renewing grace.
Any system or form of life that separates from its nurturing roots will
suffer from, as well as cause disorders. We are no exception.
Living a Lie
NAE
is sometimes controversial. It disturbs our
ego, our self-image, simply because
it reflects that we
are habitually motivated to perpetrate a
destructive distortion that we know is unreasonable, yet we can't stop
doing it. It is addictive.
The
lie that we continually practice is for our thinking and ego-story to
deny
that all of
nature is attraction-based and that this
attraction includes us and our natural attraction senses and
feelings. For
example, our
sense or sensation of thirst is an observable and felt natural
attraction fact.
When our body lacks water thirst is a motivational
force, and active measurable intelligence IQ
that attracts us to water and requests, with increasing intensity, that
we
act accordingly. By reasonably urging us to drink water thirst makes us join and become part of the water
cycle and its self-purifying perfection.
Thirst, along with our reactions to it, is
just as
real, true and important as is water itself. Both are essential parts
of nature and its aliveness
in balance. Both make sense and are facts of life, part of
life's
survival. Yet we
learn to believe we only have five senses and thirst is not
one of the five nor is it an intelligence. How intelligent is that?
The sense/sensation of thirst in ourselves and other things, is seldom
included as part of our
planet's global water cycle. However, it obviously is. This
sense, like each of our other natural senses, is a true fact, a fact of
life.
"My
5 year old went to school and told her kindergarten teacher that there
were more than 5 senses. When the teacher asked how she knew
that she
said 'Because I sense it.' "
- Project NatureConnect Student
Report
Each
of our 53 natural attraction senses is a continuum, growth and
diversification of the original Big Bang natural attraction to be. As
that original attraction grew into the atoms and molecules for water,
it also
formed the molecular relationships in our genetics that produce the
sensation of thirst
so that we, and other living things, are conscious that we need water
when we
need it.
In addition to thirst,
our reasoning omits another 47
natural motivating attraction senses. To our detriment, we
say that they
undermine
scientific
objectivity, that they are subjective, flaky or fuzzy-thinking granola.
Industrial society teaches us to forget what we innately know. Each
sense, when fulfilled in a
good way, produces uplifting satisfaction and fulfillment that reverses
stress, depression and anxiety disorders along with building increased
resistance and immunities.
Quenching our thirst feels good, including our thirst for knowledge,
sensation and belonging.
Is it any wonder that by omitting the value and powers of most of our
natural attraction
senses,
with
respect to living in balance with nature in and around us and each
other, our lives
are more and more becoming non-sense?
Can we trust our reasoning if it is based on limited or faulty
information?
"Scientific
research is based on the idea that everything that takes place is
determined by laws of nature, and therefore this holds for the action
of people."
"The Field (natural attraction) is the only reality"
-
Albert Einstein
It
is a central concept in science and the scientific method that all
evidence must be empirical, or empirically based, in other words,
not simply theoretical,
spiritual or "as
if" conclusions.
Valid scientific data is derived
from our experiences or observations. It
is dependent on evidence or consequences that
are observable by, or registered in, the
senses. They
hold and convey its truth.
- Wikipedia
Encyclopedia (edited)
"It is questionable that
any science worth the name can accurately describe how nature works if
it depends upon evidence from sterile, static and controlled laboratory
sources alone. Nature's natural attraction dance consists of ever-changing motion and
attraction/direction towards survival. Scientific attitude
must support this truth of nature if it is not to deteriorate the whole
of life and its perfection. Scientific methodology can meet this goal
simply by intelligently validating sensations and feelings as the facts of life that
they are."
- Michael J. Cohen
Originally,
in the 1940's, and at
that time very controversial, the
science of Ecology discovered
local
life relationships to
be built largely on
food chains. This, over time, grew into Ecology becoming the study of
local and global natural
systems and their cyclic flow.
Today, researchers additionally observe the obvious. From
atomic particles to
materials to
solar systems, everything
is
held together in the dance of a balanced, pulsating ecological unity by natural
attraction and its diversity. Its diversity includes the
energies
of gravity, magnetism, valence bonds,
strong forces, weak forces, needs, desires, feelings, senses and loves.
Many
of these
natural attractions register
in human consciousness as at least 53 natural senses. They include
our
senses and sensations of thirst, of community, of trust, of reason, of
consciousness, of place along with 47 others.
"In
and around us, the
greatest truth is that pure natural attraction "love" is the wisdom of
the ages actively being itself and growing in each present moment."
- Jonas
Yost
Our natural senses,
individually and in congress, help our thinking be aware of,
and appropriately
relate
to, the natural
world in the moment. For
example,
if we don't relate appropriately to our natural
attraction sense of gravity, as previously noted, we end up collapsing
to the ground and we
are
unable to get up. If our biological makeup ignored gravity,
we might not grow our skeleton.
The attraction sense of gravity is
obviously
real and important, yet we do not include it as one of the five senses
by which we say we know and relate to the world.
We don't need to prove the sense of gravity or any of our other natural
attraction senses. They are self-evident,
in other words, empirical. They register directly in our senses
whenever we don't block them from doing so.
Too
often we forget that the scientific method does not prove a thought to
be true, instead it helps us disprove wrong ideas or beliefs.
What is true is self-evident as it registers on our
multiplicity
of natural senses in
congress.
Again, the
nature-disconnected, story-world way we learn
to think and feel omits reasonable and satisfying signals from at least
47 self-evident natural senses.
This frustrates these senses causing us to
lose much of the intelligent sense, sensitivity and
sensations we
need to make sense and to solve our senseless problems in a good way.
In
addition, our story world often uncomfortably hooks into consciousness
the hurtful, subconscious-buried, frustrations of our
natural attraction senses. As we become conscious of them, we feel them
and we suffer and act out their hurt.
The Contribution
of NAE
Experts
in most fields often identify the many problems our society suffers.
However,
they seldom offer practical
solutions and
effective tools that help us deal with these
problems. For this reason, the problems continue to trouble
us.
The genius
of NAE is that, via our natural attraction senses, it
accurately
identifies the
misguided
motivating point source of our
unbalance and
disorders. It also provides us with a readily available process
that
helps us heal by
eliminating that misguided source and by activating the self-correcting
powers of
natural attraction.
NAE
is an scientific, sensory methodology, an
enabling tool
that empowers us to interlace our natural
senses with their natural attraction source in nature's balance and
beauty. This connection in
a natural area provides reasonable, intelligent, conscious, sensory
knowledge and satisfaction.
NAE
helps
us think, feel and relate sensitively and sensibly because it
incorporates
the self-correcting powers
of
earth
and nature, in their natural
perfection, described below.
Using the proven methods and materials
developed, since 1959, by Dr.
Michael J. Cohen
and his Applied Ecopsychology students at Project
NatureConnect, NAE helps
us increase
well-being at every level. Because this process is new and radical, it
bears repeating here that it
accomplishes its goal by
helping our reasoning, thoughts and feelings to genuinely tap into the
balancing natural attraction ways and spirit of authentic nature and
its intelligent
systems,
backyard or backcountry.
As we think and learn
in natural areas from unadulterated
sensory biofeedback
experiences, the organic process of NAE empowers us
to beneficially
recycle
and transform the garbage and contaminates that seep into our psyche
from
Industrial Society. They compost into, and become, constructive
balanced relationships that benefit all.
Via NAE, our thinking regains the natural-sense
ability
to reasonably guide
all our
relationships. How we think and feel then includes the sensory and
restorative wisdom
of natural
systems and their
flow, in
and
around us. The results are remarkable.
The crucial
contribution of NAE is
that, unlike most other disciplines, it is whole and true because
- it is
based
on empirical observations and attraction evidence
that we
directly experience in natural areas, backyard or backcountry.
- It helps
us learn to adequately
understand and deal with our problems, in and from direct connections
to
nature and its natural intelligence. (see examples,
below).
- It can be
beneficially added to any other discipline or
relationship building process, including conflict resolution.
In summary, the NAE process helps us
increase well-being by
validating unadulterated factual input and satisfactions from
our 53 motivating natural senses.
These inherent senses are our inborn, self-organized, self-balancing
(homeostatic), natural
attraction
way of knowing that we register and share with Earth's web-of-life and
the universe. They
connect our
thinking and relating with nature's wise integrity and produce
satisfactions. This provides us
with legitimate, critically important NNIAL
facts of life.
To
our loss, closeted "objective" science and academics usually
reject these facts, along with "love" and "spirit" as the "dazed" or
"environmentalist," "fuzzy thinking" of "Earth Muffins" They must be
facts however since they are the very senses on which empirical
scientific
evidence registers.
"Truth
is what stands the test of experience."
- Albert
Einstein
A
Fundamental Conclusion
In the final analysis, no matter what they be, the needs, goals
and wants that we feel or that we design, are always signals to satisfy one or
more of our natural senses.
Fulfilling these senses through direct sensory contact with nature, in
people and/or places:
- is most
direct.
- is the
least expensive.
- is organic.
- produces
the lowest negative environmental and social impact.
- is a
choice that provides nurturing rewards to the benefit of all.
- is
sustainable.
- is intelligent
- is satisfying
- is timeless
How NAE Works
NAE is functional. By energizing
our 53 natural
senses while we are in natural areas, NAE helps our thinking make
conscious
sensory contact with the attraction essence that we hold in common with
the global
life
community and the universe. It motivates and enables us to tap into the
ways and
wisdom of authentic
nature so that we can
make greater sense of our
lives and reverse
our unbalanced nonsense.
Consider
this example
concerning our natural attraction to trust:
if you are reading this information on or from a computer, your natural
attraction sense of trust
is in play.
You are attracted
to trust that the words on this screen
can give you information.
You may not trust what
the words here say,
but
you trust that they have the ability to provide important knowledge.
Otherwise why
would you be paying attention to them here?
Paying attention to
the words, here, is attractive. One of our 53
natural senses, our unique sense
of literacy, is simply
another form of natural attraction.
What
you also are attracted to trust here is the logic and value of the
scientific method and the dedicated attraction of scientists to it.
You trust the
intelligence of the reasonable thinking and technology
that
discovered the power of a computer and the use of electronic
communication to convey information. It works. It contributes and has
value if it is applied in a way that is fair and benefits all.
Reasonable thinking is
attractive
and it makes sense
so to naturally reward us, it releases chemicals like Ocytocin,
Dopamine and Endorphins in us and thereby feels good. That is
how nature intelligently works with our natural attraction sense of reason
and with all our other natural senses, singly or in congress.
Their fulfillment creates good feelings. For this reason, it
feels good to own or use a computer.
In NAE,
the application of this
same trustable scientific thinking process, has helped us discover how
and why
Industrial Society is excessively destructive. As previously
described, in addition, NAE provides
us with
a motivating thought and action process that enables us to reverse
our
detrimental ways and the damage they inflict. For this
reason, it makes sense to pay
attention to NAE, to respect and benefit from
the holism of its
scientific
methodology.
NAE is a true root and basis for what theoreticians or spiritualists
sometimes call whole life "conservation psychology," "ecopsychology,"
"integral ecology" or "ecotherapy."
Natural Attraction
Ecology is effective because:
-
it sees that contemporary people seldom realize they are citizens of
two different civilizations and ways
of knowing:
1.
The very ancient non-literate
global web-of-life community of "nature," that consists of the biological plant, animal and
mineral kingdoms, including humanity and our "old brain".
2. The very recent literate, human
life community of Industrial Society, its "new brain" stories and their
effects.
-
it recognizes that nature alone, not the theoretician or professor, is
the fountainhead of authority about
how nature
works to produce its special perfection.
- it
notes
that we suffer our great
problems because we
spend, on average, over
98 percent of our time, thinking
and
feeling
while separated from nature's self-correcting grace and
its feel-good, regenerative, attraction ways.
- it observes that over
18,000 hours of our impressionable childhood years are spent indoors in school
with our thoughts, feelings and motives
disconnected from nature's attraction wisdom.
- it
makes
us aware that when our 53 natural senses are inadequately fulfilled, we
lose natural joy and we experience natural attraction deprivation. As
previously mentioned, this deprivation makes us want, and when we want
there is never enough. This
unfulfilled need
spawns our stress, greed, anxiety, anger, depression and
self-esteem disorders. It goads us to become excessive and trespass
natural
boundaries.
- it becomes self-evident that being out of natural sensory balance,
our thinking and
feeling is motivated to create the nonsense that causes most personal
social and environmental problems.
- it
enables
us to identify and correct the heart of
our problems, our unwarranted demeaning of nature. This
destructive bias in our thinking makes
us disconnect ourselves
from the healing
and recuperative
benefits of nature's purifying flow, in and around us
- it not only connects our psyche with natural attraction facts but
with the attractive motivating energy to act from them for that motivating energy is
ingrained in these facts. It enhances our ability to make
reasonable changes.
"Ishi,
(the last hunter-gather Native American) was sure he knew the cause of
our discontent. It stemmed from an excessive amount of indoor time. 'It
is not a man's nature to be too much indoors."
-
Theodora Kroeber
"I
take full responsibility and offer my deepest apologies for
contemporary society's destructive relationship with itself and the
environment. Although, since 1973, I have been aware of the
singular
nature-disconnected cause of our problems as well as a remedy for it, I
have been inadequate in effectively conveying this information to most people. For
this reason our
disorders continue and they now place life as we know it at risk."
- Michael J. Cohen June
7, 2011
Website Contents
This website presents an outline of the ways
and means of Natural
Attraction Ecology
along with links to additional information
about NAE that is found in
the books, courses and websites of Dr.
Michael Cohen and Project
NatureConnect at the Institute of Global Education and Akamai
University.
This
information has been published, peer reviewed, accredited and verified
by
professionals and cooperating universities. Its confirming research is
the core of several
graduate and undergraduate degree programs. Its sixty years of
experience is described, referenced and
defended by Dr. Cohen in his trade published Ph.D. dissertation Educating Counseling and Healing
With Nature (Illumina).
Consider Dr. Cohen's
description of
NAE
that he contributed to the transition team of Barack Obama:
Ideally, what we should do.
How to Create Sensible Change and
Responsible
Economics.
OUR CHALLENGE: 150
million people x $20,000 per person equals
$3,000,000,000,000, (three trillion dollars). That amount,
and
more, is what the "bailout" for the "recession" is going to cost in the
USA. However, that money is mostly being given to Wall
Street, to banks and
industry and systems where its contribution disappears as it feeds our
nature-biased thinking and economics, where it is gobbled
up by the greed and the nature-conquering Ego of our society's
leadership.
Think
about what life would be like if, instead, twenty thousand dollars was
paid to each of 150 million individuals (half the USA population) once
they
passed our short, free, Natural
Attraction Ecology online course Educating, Counseling and
Healing With Nature.
The NAE balancing
process that the course
teaches removes our detrimental bonds to nature-exploitive relationships
with people and places. It accomplishes this by helping the psyche and
thinking of an
individual connect directly to nature and become
healthier,
naturally fulfilled and less
wanting, hurt, and greedy.
With assistance from
nature's intelligent, self-correcting and restorative powers:
We
would reduce disorders and addictions along
with health costs and asocial behavior.
We
would increase
mental health
and cooperation locally and globally.
Each individual would
learn how to gain
deep satisfactions by wisely spending that
three trillion dollars in self-supporting, balanced ways, ways
that strengthened
our economy by increasing personal, social and environmental
well-being.
Each
individual could easily achieve and, as well, teach
and strengthen this great
turning process because they owned the free NAE tools that
enabled
them
to do so.
NAE could easily produce the immense funding that is needed to change our
society into an environmentally and socially unpolluted way of life
with a reasonable and sustainable economy. Presently
these
funds pay for the natural attraction fulfillment we gain at sports
events, the gambling table, story-based entertainment and via excessive
technologies.
Alternatively, their fulfillment is sustainably available in its
original form, cost free,
in nature, backyard or backcountry.
Isn't
this a worthwhile goal for our
personal
lives and society? Isn't this the education and change that
we
want? Isn't it attractive?
Nobody
yet has scientifically
proved
beyond reasonable doubt that natural attraction is
not the essence of
the sustainable and purifying way that nature works. To the contrary, the opposite is true.
Until otherwise proved, why not learn how to think, feel and
interact using the unifying
and self-correcting powers of natural attraction until some
better way of building balanced relationships is discovered?
By learning and teaching NAE, any of
us can begin to make this happen.
Students of Natural
Attraction Ecology have added its process to, and enhanced, most professions and disciplines (listed below).
This is especially true for students who have used it in whole life
conjunction
with: natural history, ecopsychology, ecotherapy, biology, creative
writing,
hypnotherapy,
Native American studies, art therapy, energy medicine, Reiki, love of
nature,
shaminism, Yoga, parenting, spirituality, relaxation, mid life crisis,
increasing
hope, conversation strategies and finding higher power.
The attraction that these individuals hold
in common is that they are, or have learned to become, enlightened
appreciators of nature and its attractiveness.
They deeply love, respect and benefit from the self-correcting ways of
natural systems
and our planetary home, Earth.
|
Significant Properties
of Natural
Attraction Ecology (NAE)
The
Axioms of NAE
Nature-connected axioms are
an essence of NAE. They are rooted in the fundamental
observation that
humanity is
part of nature. They are empirical statements that arise
from us considering our intelligent felt sense
motivating experiences with nature in and around us. Examples of
NAE
axioms include "I can see
that
the sun is
shining" or "I enjoyed feeling the tree vibrate in the wind" or "The
fields are green and beautiful," or "I love my dog and I see and feel
that he loves me."
NAE axioms come into language
directly through the truth conveyed and
registered through, in a natural area, our natural sense of
consciousness and one or more of our
additional 52 natural attraction senses. The axioms are pure, empirical
and
self-evident. For this reason they significantly contribute to
intelligence and scientific
thinking and they are universally
factual, as is life itself.
Felt
sense axioms help our
thinking reverse the distorted motivations that mislead us into
becoming
destructively sliced away from our living planet and its attraction for
unity and wellness.
.
*see ECHN Page 28
"The senses, being the explorers
of the world, open the way to knowledge."
-
Maria Montessori.
"Feelings are the truth, we don't live in the real
world when we ignore what we are feeling."
-
David Viscott
NAE axioms are as accurate
as the fact that you
can see this page and are reading these words
right now. This fact is true because the page purely
connects and
registers directly in your
psyche via many natural senses and feelings. These include
your/our
senses of color, of contrast, of sight, shape,
consciousness, trust, place, reason, language, distance, motion,
curiosity, beauty and space. Each provides a special satisfaction.
"Our
abstract thinking is no
more reasonable or discriminating, logical and consistent than are our
feelings."
-
Carl Jung
Trusting
Experience
THE
CRITICAL QUESTION: If
the most intelligent person in the Industrial World proved
mathematically, or otherwise, that you are not
reading these words right now, would you believe that expert and
his or her proof, or would
you believe your sensory
reading experience, here, in this moment?
Be
alarmed. With respect to nature, most of us in Industrial
Society
are socialized to believe and trust the "expertise"
of Industrial
Society and its nature-disconnected leaders rather than natural
attraction truths that we
personally sense and
experience in nature as well as in our relationships with the natural
in each
other
and ourselves.
As
part of society's excessive conquest of nature, our leaders, including
scientists, teach, reward or bully us to
demean
and mistrust the fulfilling natural attraction senses and sensations of
our sensory contacts with nature's flow, in and
around us.
The world and we are in trouble because
most of
us are trained to think or feel that expertly
knowing "2 + 2 = 4" is more
valuable, rewarding and true than respecting the integrity of a sunset,
celebrating a
forest or treasuring the validity of our natural senses.
Truth to tell, "2 + 2 = 4" is
actually not true in nature.
Can
your thinking comfortably acknowledge that many balancing natural
attraction
essences of the Universe are, at this moment, flowing through you as
well as through the space between this screen and yourself.
Can you
acknowledge that often, without knowing it,
you register natural attractions subconsciously?
The
socializing and indoctrinating bias of Industrial Society is so
powerful that it misguides
our reasoning
to attach to and trust information that is obviously based on a
falsehood such as
"A
dog's tail is one of its legs."
Sometimes
it helps to realize that our greatest leaders, thinkers and
Ph.D's
were not around to create or direct the 4.5 billion year construction
of Planet Earth's life community and its perfection. We do
know,
however, that the intelligence of natural attraction was at work the entire time, and that
we
can be grateful that it continues to work and be available to us today.
How often do we thank nature and express our deep gratitude
for
this contribution to our happiness and well being? How often
do we pledge our allegiance to it?
On
Mother Earth's 5-billion year old time scale, our nature-disconnected,
literary-substitute, story
way of knowing and relating is only drop of water just added to an
attractive and healthy
living universe pond that Natural Attraction has created over the
eons.
Misguided Socialization
As earlier mentioned, we
and Earth endure many disorders because, from early on, our prejudiced
against nature society socializes/motivates us to applaud
the "advanced intelligence" of industrialization and to deny the value
of, and our satisfactions from, our natural attraction
experiences. This loss of the natural unbalances us. We become sliced
from "the ball" and we endure the
injurious effects of the loss of attractions to it and
ourselves.
When a vast majority of us
temporarily "vacate" our
industrial lives and our habitual thinking, we go on vacation. For
re-creation, (sic) we often fulfill our natural attractions to
nature
and visit a natural area. For example, annually, over nine million of
us, alone, visit Smoky Mountain National Park.
Most
of us have had at least one attractive experience in nature that was
organic and spontaneous. It was a memorable and valuable happening that
was
not prescribed,
taught or structured. This occurred because
natural
attraction is
neither foreign nor abnormal. Rather it is a fundamental part of being
human, alive and a central element in the whole
of the global ecosystem.
Half-Truth Stories
NAE recognizes that many of Industrial Society's stories about life are
detrimental and inaccurate simply because nature and life are not a story.
Rather, they are a phenomenon, an immediate-experience
attraction
dance
that our
natural senses register and bring into our
consciousness when in contact with a natural area.
We inherit the attraction and
the ability to consciously register
and enjoy
what our natural senses
experience in natural
areas. This free gift from nature motivates us to reasonably think in
conjunction with
nature's balanced ways in order to make sense of life and our
lives.
NAE
helps us reattach our attraction-detached psyche to its origins in
nature in
exactly the same way that a surgeon reattaches a dismembered arm to a
person's body. The surgeon skilfully brings the arm and body together.
This allows natural
attraction and its intelligence to biologically connect and
heal
the separation as only
it can do.
NAE and some of its major
axioms are
offered, below, to encourage us to make scientific sensory
NNIAL contact with nature, backyard
or backcountry. Our
troubles arise when we don't make this contact with nature in and
around us. It is as if our leaders say:
"Let me drive you across this
dangerous road to where it is best for you to be."
"Are
you an expert? Do you even know how to drive or what is best?"
"No,
but I read a book about it."
We are in trouble because a book can't drive an automobile.
As
shown by some of the quotations on this page, ancient and modern
people who have had good natural attraction experiences in natural
areas have
recognized that
neither a book, teacher nor parent made the experiences happen. Sensitively being in a natural
area made it possible for nature itself, in and around us,
to make them
happen.
NAE activities help you
make the experiential education benefits of others happen for yourself.
"I
do not wish to hear about the moon from someone who has not been there"
- Mark Twain
Ancients and moderns have used
the first-hand information, thoughts and feelings from their natural
sensory attraction contacts in natural areas to construct undeniable
axioms about how nature
works:
Axioms
Based on natural attraction being an immediate, wise, living,
conscious, balancing
and motivating essence of Earth and the universe we can see that:
NAE
Axiom 1
Nature
is a non-literate dance.
No
sane human being has ever reported hearing or seeing real plants,
animal or minerals
speak or write or read to each other with words. It is reasonable to
conclude that Nature, across the eons and
excluding humanity, has known
and organized itself through a non-literate, non-verbalized,
unwritten
attraction message
and
communication process.
"There is a constant and
intimate contact among the things that coexist
and co-evolve in the universe - a sharing of bonds and messages that
makes reality into a stupendous network of interaction and
communication. It is this 'sharing of messages' in Nature
that keeps
it in balance."
- Ervin Laslo
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NAE Axiom 2
To be
part of a system anything, or anyone, must somehow be in
communication with that system, so that the system and the individual,
or thing, can supportively relate to each other without trespassing.
Since humanity is part of the global
ecosystem and the ecosystem is non-literate,
we must somehow be in non-literate contact
with the system, and vice versa.
"Wind
over the lake: the
image of inner truth."
.
- I Ching circa 1200
B.C.
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NAE
Axiom 3
We know, learn and relate to
nature, in and around us, through 53 natural attraction senses that we
inherit and that, when reasonably fulfilled, produce good feelings.
We
only fully know facts and truths when they register and make sense
through
our 53 or more inherent natural attraction senses.
These senses
include our unique literacy, consisting of our combined senses
of consciousness, reason and language.
We are attracted to make
sense because this gratifies our sense of reason and because our
natural senses are attractive. Their fulfillment releases
Endorphins, Dopamine and other neurotransmitters
or hormones that produce
good feelings. They are natural, loving rewards for us making good
sensory connections and for being supportive participants in the global
life community .
"I
feel so much better since I have been freed of the guilt, shame and
craziness I've felt about myself since childhood. I discovered that I
have simply been experiencing and wisely holding on to the truth of my
inherent 53 natural attraction senses that our nature-conquering
Society tries to demean and control. I thought I only had
five
senses and the rest of what I experienced was something wrong that I
must control or hide."
-
Anonymous NAE Participant
"From
atoms and molecules to human beings with developed consciousness, all
entities feel attraction for one another. . . . attraction is the law
of nature."
- P.R.
Sarkar
In Industrial Society we normally
learn to believe and
act-out
imaginary "non-sense" stories and the information that their
words convey. However, that is not
how nature works its perfection.
^^^
NAE
Axiom 4
Nature,
including our 53 natural senses, only exists in the
present, in the "now" of life. Our senses are not in stories about the
past or future for real nature
is
not a story,
it is an ongoing, immediate, attraction relationship process.
"An actually existing fly is
more important than a possibly existing angel."
-
Ralph Waldo Emerson
For
example, "The sun will rise tomorrow," is not necessarily a true
statement in NAE,
for although the statement is based on our natural senses of reason,
literacy, deduction and past experiences, it does not contain
immediate sensible input from most of our other natural senses. Since
tomorrow's sun
has
not yet risen, our other natural senses can't register or relate to the
event.
When only our abstract-story type of "sun-absent" knowing occurs, we
often learn to
think and believe non-sense.
We and Earth
suffer accordingly.
This is a key axiom because change
can only occur in the immediate
moment.
What we sense in the "now"
is also the greatest trustable truth that we
can experience. Only in the now is nature available and are our natural
senses active, including our senses of
reason and consciousness. In addition, only
in the now can we make changes. Now is an "N" in NNIAL
*see
ECHN page 33
http://www.ecopsych.com/nineleg.html
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NAE Axiom 5
Natural
senses are nameless, intelligent, motivating attractions that
we
experience in the moment as forms of love or spirit.
Even
if it had no given name, our natural sense/sensation of thirst, in the
"now,"
intelligently
"turns on" to attract us to drink water. This attracts the global water
cycle
and its ways to flow through us and sustain us. In addition,
when we have
had enough water, thirst reasonably "turns-off." In balanced natural ways, its intelligence attracts us to stop drinking.
In conjunction with each other, each
of our additional 52 natural senses
is a similar, naturally nameless, life-guiding, natural attraction
intelligence love (NNIAL)
that we feel. In congress, they support us as well as the
global
ecosystem. For example,
our sense of thirst brings us to water for our
health. And, for our health, our sense of excretion attracts us to
remove water in us that "miraculously" contains
appropriate edible waste, and feeds that "waste" to the ecosystem's
plant, animal and mineral community.
Besides
our sense of thirst, our love for water, our other natural senses
include our
love
of, or for, community, reason and trust; aroma, place and
consciousness;
color,
taste and motion; language, belonging, beauty, music and gravity along
with 39
additional natural sensory attractions and their spirit.
Many of our
dysfunctions are simply symptoms of our sensory separation and
deprivation from
nature. This blocks its vital flow.
"I believe in God, only I spell
it Nature."
- Frank
Lloyd Wright
NAE
Axiom 6
Nature's web-of-life, including
all materials and humanity,
consists of natural attractions.
What
are we and the world made of? Factually, we consist of atoms
and
they are 99.999999999 percent "space." However, neither we nor atoms
are empty
space. All that "space" consists of, or contains, attraction,
the
energies and forces that draw, tug and hold the atom's electrons to its
nucleus. These and other attractions also attract and attach one atom
to
another as well as hold all materials, the Earth and the solar system
together.
We
can
empirically
observe,
experience and sense that things
are attracted to stay together by sensitively trying to move or part
them. Their
attraction to be in relationship and belong in the moment, offers
resistance. We register it by sensing and feeling it.
Even an atom's nucleus and electrons are subatomic
packets of attraction energy, as demonstrated by the explosive power of
a nuclear bomb when that energy is released.
That
all things are connected through attraction is also recognized by
Newton's Laws of
Dynamics
and by the Buddhist Law of Karma that indicates all acts have
consequences. It could truly be said, "We are treated by the
plant animal and mineral community, including people, as we have
learned to treat them."
Until proven otherwise,
-all nouns and pronouns refer to things that are held together by
natural attraction and attachments.
-all verbs and adverbs refer to natural attraction energy in action,
culturally harnessed or as wilderness and its value.
Think
about it. Do you know any exceptions to the above?
When we try to pick out anything
by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the
universe.
-John
Muir
http://www.ecopsych.com/thesisquote6.html
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NAE
Axiom 7
Planet Earth acts like, or is, a living organism.
Our
sensing and feeling about various attraction connections
between ourselves and our planet can make us aware
that there is
nothing that we
do
with respect to being alive, that Earth does not also do.
Our
pulsating natural senses help us discover that we and our
planet survive identically, that we are a seamless continuum of each
other. This gives our senses of reason, logic and deduction (#42) the opportunity to
conclude that since people are living
organisms and, with respect to life processes, we and Earth are
identical, Earth is also a living organism (Gaia), or at least it acts
like
one. This is no surprise when we recognize that natural attraction
contains, and is, an essence of aliveness.
"The
Earth is a functionally integrated system -as much an organic being as
you and I- that exists not simply for man's benefit but for it's own.
- David Laing, The Earth System
Life
has not adapted to an inert world determined by the dead hand of
chemistry and physics. We live in a world that has been built by our
biological ancestors, ancient and modern, and which is continuously
maintained by all things alive today.
- James Lovelock, The Ages of Gaia
*see ECHN Page 135
http://www.ecopsych.com/livingplanetearthkey.html
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NAE Axiom 8
Humanity lives in the Earth, not
on the Earth.
In
a natural area, our multitude of natural senses register clouds, birds,
weather
conditions and the air
many miles above our head. This helps our sense of reason recognize
and
validate
that we live in, not on, Planet Earth. We live deep within its
atmosphere and
biosphere. They flow through and around us.
The
truth, above, often feels uncomfortable because our story-world depicts
us as
living on the surface of the Earth. This distortion conflicts us. It
separates our psyche from the truth conveyed by our "touchy-feely"
relationship
with the web of
life and each other. The conflict stresses and weakens our
senses of self, trust, place, belonging, peace and community. We don't
feel comfortable stating the truth, "I live in the Earth." "I am an
Earthling."
It
is irrational and stressful to think, feel and know the world in this
inaccurate and separative way. The direct sensory experiences
we enjoy when visit to a natural area help us feel better because they
help us register the truth of our
relationship with Earth. This reduces our stress, and, in turn, many
disorders.
"One
touch of Nature makes the whole world
kin."
-
William Shakespeare
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Call 360-378-6313
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NAE
Axiom 9
Together, nature and humanity are a dance in the flowing, pulsating river of natural
attraction as it diversely grows more
attractive and mutually supportive.
It is reasonable to respect
that we
and nature consist of, and cooperatively share, intelligent natural attractions.
For
example,
We are attracted/motivated to
breathe in
oxygen for our life and
attracted to
exhale carbon dioxide as food for plant life.
We are attracted/motivated to
eat
food to support our life and attracted to excrete our waste, and it is
food that supports the web-of-life.
We are attracted/motivated to
be more
attractive and to seek and enjoy more attractions, as does the natural
environment.
Scientists find, by
using radioactive
tagged atoms, that atoms
from the environment are attracted to replace
98 percent of the atoms of our body and mind every year. Every seven
years or
so, every atom in our body returns to the environment
and is replaced by a new atom from the environment. We continually
become the environment and it becomes us.
Our body and mind consist of ten times more "foreign" cells than human
cells.
Some of our human
DNA is the DNA of plants and animals. DNA consists of mineral molecules
and elements held together by natural attraction.
The human embryo goes through growth stages that include it having
gills and a tail.
The words "humus" and "human" and "humility" have the same origin.
Biologically we
and nature are one. We are the dance of a prime flowing,
pulsating and pristine river of natural
attraction life
that intelligently manifests itself as us and
the rest of nature.
The river
consists of a ceaseless, satisfying balance of resonating
attraction
relationships within and between all of its currents, including us as
one of these currents. The
acronym "NNIAL" helps
us remember, identify and connect with this massive relationship flow.
(Remember, however, that "NNIAL" is not its name for the
river and its eons are/were nameless.)
With respect to the flow of natural attraction being the essence of all
things, each of us is kin to all members of the web of
life. The web of life is a kinship, not just a
source of raw materials.
"There is one common flow, one
common breathing, all things are in sympathy."
- Hippocrates, circa
450 B.C.
NAE Axiom 10
Nature has a perfection of its own.
It
makes sense to recognize that nature's
perfection consists of the ability of its natural attractions to:
correct,
organize, renew,
regenerate,
recycle,
transform,
compost, perpetuate,
purify and preserve nature, in and around us.
Natural
attractions achieve the above in balanced ways that produce nature's
optimums of grace, life,
diversity,
cooperation and
beauty. In addition natural attractions create optimums of balance,
purity, community,
wellness, sensitivity, renewal, spirit, self-organization, restoration,
unification and love.
Nature
achieves its valuable optimums without producing garbage or
pollution or our
excessive destruction, abusiveness, disorders,
stress, isolation
and
insanity.
Our
natural senses of reason, consciousness,
community, emotional
place,
trust, companionship,
appreciation, survival
and sublime love, along
with other natural senses, help us recognize that
it is sensible to acknowledge that the above-mentioned
qualities of the natural world make nature perfect in its own way.
Our
natural sense of deduction informs us that since we are
biologically, psychologically and spiritually a seamless
continuum of nature, our
natural self is as
perfect as is nature.
We
don't need to learn how to be perfect. Education means "To
bring out from
within." What we need to do is
apply NAE because it
enables us, through hands-on, sensory education activities, to
respectfully bring
out,
think, feel and relate with, as well as support, celebrate, love and
relate to the unifying natural
attraction perfection
of our natural
self in
ourselves, in others and
in the web-of-life.
"I go to nature to be soothed
and healed, and to have my senses put in order."
-
John Burroughs
"What we are looking for is what is doing the looking"
-St.
Francis of Assisi
*see
ECHN Page 26
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NAE Axiom 11
NAE motivates us to unify with, rather than conquer and exploit, human
life and the web-of-life.
As
a natural area brings our psyche into contact with nature's wholeness,
our natural reasoning, senses and sensitivities convey that the fittest
survive in
nature, but not
because they
are the best competitors. Rather, it is because they are the best
builders of
cooperative, mutually beneficial
natural attraction relationships with their environment.
The
fittest are
those "things"
that are the best in attracting support from their surroundings.
The fittest accomplish this by
attractively supporting their surroundings locally and globally. The
"fittest" are fit
because they are the most cooperatively attractive.
"This
world - the shadow of the soul, or 'other' me - lies wide around. Its
attractions are the keys which unlock my thought and make me acquainted
with myself."
- R. W. Emerson,
circa 1860
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NAE Axiom 12
The purpose of life is to support life; life consists
of nature's attraction to support it.
Humanity
consciously experiences the natural attraction of life to support life.
We call that motivation our
felt sense love
of
life, our instinct for survival,
or our desire
to
be, that our senses feel, that we experience and
enjoy.
"The purpose of life is to live
in agreement with nature."
- Zeno,
circa 520 BC
*
see ECHN Page 27
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NAE Axiom 13
An NAE Vehicle: The Webstring Natural Attraction Model.
Our
experiences with NAE show us that when
the web-of-life is represented by an accurate web of life model
of how nature's
perfection works, we can choose to use the model and have the model's
activities
help us balance our thinking and increase our well being.
The activities accomplish this by enabling us to interlace our
consciousness, intelligence and senses with the singular dancing flow of web-of-life
attraction
connections (webstrings) in a natural area, backyard or backcountry.
"We
cannot live for ourselves alone. Our lives are connected by a thousand
invisible threads, and along these sympathetic fibers our actions run
as causes and return to us as results."
- Herman
Melville
The
webstring model helps us update our scientific reasoning and technology
since they are often excessively disconnected from how nature works via
natural attraction relationships.
Because
nature consists of ever-changing dancing and resonating
natural attraction
relationships within and between all of its elements, including us, our
static scientific facts are usually warped.
Scientific facts are usually based on standard
conditions of light, motion, temperature, sound and pressure while in
nature there are few, if any, standard conditions of
anything.
In
the natural world, the major standard condition is the constant change
and
flow of its natural attraction river. For
this reason, the webstring model's 53 sense activities help us connect
with the restorative power of authentic nature in the moment
it is happening, flowing and changing in, around and to
the benefit of all
things.
*see
ECHN
Page 12Apply now. Learn and teach Natural
Attraction Ecology. Call 360-378-6313
NAE Axiom 14
As with all things in nature, our basic relationship with nature and each other is cooperative, not
competitive
Survival
of the fittest occurs because the "fittest" are the most cooperative;
they best form mutually supportive relationships with their
environment.
We have the felt-sense ability to
know that our attractions to things and relationships in a genuine
natural
area are not learned. Rather, they are our psyche inherently
and cooperatively connecting to its nurturing
source in
nature. There is no story present in nature that tells our
psyche to refrain from connecting. To the contrary, nature attracts us,
and rewards us,
to connect.
Our unadulterated attractions to
natural areas enable us to become
aware of nature's perfection and integrate with it. This
cooperation helps us think
like nature
works; it benefits us and the environment.
When
we respectfully visit a natural area, our 53 natural senses safely make
contact
with the self-correcting balance
and purifying power
of their origins in nature. Because this energizes
and
restores them, our natural senses help us think more sensibly.
"Nothing
is more indisputable than our senses."
-
Jean Le Rond d'Alembert
*see
ECHN Page 13
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NAE Axiom 15
Members of Industrial Society suffer because it is
unduly prejudiced against nature.
NAE
identifies prejudice as
"An unreasonable pre-judging
attitude or story that is, due to
bonding, unusually resistant to rational influence."
Industrial Society is prejudiced against nature due to our
unfounded "tropicmaker"
belief and fear, from nature-disconnecting stories, that nature is
hostile to us and that nature is not conscious or intelligent.
NAE recognizes that most nature-centered societies neither cause nor
display our excessive and detrimental ways.
Our Ego's misguided and fear-inducing prejudice against nature story has
us
habitually learn to believe that it and we are superior to nature,
that, for
our
survival and profit, we must take dominion over, exploit and improve
nature, in and around us.
We are not born to
be excessively
separated from, suspicious and fearful of nature. Rather,
Industrial Society educates us to this condition. It is so successful
that we spend, on average less
than 12 hours of our total lifetime thinking, feeling or building
relationships while we
are in tune with the singularity of nature's attraction dance.
We seldom change the way we think because we are bonded to it by the
age of seven. Society pays us, and in other ways
rewards us, to not understand things that we need to know
in order to live in balance.
"We
have these prejudices and as long as we think that these prejudices are
valid we exclude huge subjects of thinking. And that exclusion is what
is really blinding."
-
Dr. Amit Goswami
*see
ECHN Page 24
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Attraction Ecology. Call
360-378-6313
NAE Axiom 16
How
we think and feel shapes our destiny.
NAE
enables us
to register natural attraction callings
so we may think and feel think
like nature's perfection works. Its
150 ECHN nature-contact activities enable us to safely un-closet and
heal the hurting senses in our subconscious. The enjoyment and
benefits that result connect us to the
whole of Earth and help us reverse our prejudice against nature.
"A thing
is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty
of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends to do otherwise."
- Aldo Leopold, 1948
"This
is how a human being can change: there's a worm addicted to
eating
grape leaves. Suddenly, he wakes up, call it grace, whatever, something
wakes him, and he's no longer a worm. He's the entire vineyard, and
the
orchard too, the fruit, the trunks, a growing wisdom and joy that
doesn't need to devour."
- Jedaluddin Rumi,
1207-1273
The
thousands of favorable results
from engaging in NAE courses and activities demonstrate that the wisdom
and joy of genuinely connecting ourselves with nature helps
us increase personal, social and environmental well-being.
As
the quotes on this page disclose, the observations of many individuals
over
past millenna show that we have long been aware of our attractive
attachments to nature. It is Industrial Society's prejudice against
nature that causes us to ignore these observations and suffer
accordingly.
Again, nature-connected people(s) seldom cause or display our problems
and madness.
*see
ECHN Page 108, 115, 132, 141
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|
NAE Axiom17
Our
excessive disconnection from nature
deprives us from knowing the fundamental reason that each of us
deserves to have good feelings.
"Do you
deserve to have good feelings? Why?" Most of us do not answer this
question correctly. Too often it triggers hurtful feelings of guilt,
conflict or shame for things we've done "wrong."
We often learn to think that we deserve to
have good feelings because we have thought or acted in a socially
acceptable way. Many parent-like authorities reward us for this with
love, with their attraction to us "being good."
We
are seldom taught that we inherently
deserve to have good feelings.
As indicated in Axiom 3A, they are naturally
attractive, chemically triggered (endorphin-dopamine-oxytocin)
rewards from Mother Earth and the universe for us fulfilling three or
more
our natural attraction senses, including
our senses of consciousness and reason. They are rewards for, through our senses, making contact
with the web of life "NNIAL" so we can participate in it a
good way.
As an example, when we drink water to fulfill our sense of thirst, we
not
only feel satisfied, quenched and happier. We also can become aware
that we feel this and that it makes sense, it rewards us for
participating in and contributing to the nurturing water cycle of the
web-of-life.
Again,
in the final analysis, no matter what they be, the needs, goals and
wants that we experience or construct are a means to satisfy
one
or more of our natural senses. Fulfilling them directly through sensory
connections to natural attractions located in people and natural places
produces the
most balanced, organic and inexpensive fulfillments. This is intelligent. Fulfilling them
with artificialities usually produces questionable side effects.
*self-evident
Apply now. Learn and teach Natural
Attraction Ecology. Call 360-378-6313
NAE Axiom18
Death
does not exist in nature, there is only the transformation of
natural
attractions and their effects, into other natural attractions
and their
effects.
Do
not stand at my grave and weep;
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripend grain.
I am the gentle autumn's rain.
When you awaken to the morning's
hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at
night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there. I did not die.
Mary Elizabeth Frye,
1932
"In
a closed system (such as the universe,) energy can neither be created
nor destroyed: it can only be transformed from one state to another."
- First
Law of Thermodynamics.
The
article Who
are You, Who am I and We? scientifically explains how and why
we do not die.
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NAE Axiom19
The
NAE Whole-Life Iceberg Analogy
Point of Information:
An iceberg simulates our contemporary mind in that
-10 percent of it, its tip, floats in the air above sea ("see") level
and
-90 percent of its great mass lies below sea level, out of
sight.
Similarly, in humanity
- 10 percent of our mentality, our "new
brain,"
knows and communicates by "floating" as our story world. It is
our
mediated conscious "light" and reason that is conveyed by our abstract,
literate
words, symbols and stories, verbally and via books,
films and other media.
- 90 percent bulk of our mentality, our "old
brain"
is a seamless, multiple-sensory connection to and registration of the
world, including natural attraction and its eons. Our nature-conquering
new brain story,
however, buries most of our senses "out of sight" in our subconscious
(below "see"
level).
The Analogy:
Two floating icebergs that broke away from a glacier could
see each other and were attracted to the reasonable idea that, to best
survive the sun's heat, they would join together, as of old, and help
each other
stay cold, as well as heal their glacier-separated disconnection,
frailty and
loneliness. But, try as they might, they could not join
together. They
could not understand why because their intentions made so much sense to
them.
What the Bergs could not see was that their huge,
unseen, underwater bulks bumped into each other. This collision
prevented the tops from connecting.
To accomplish their goal,
the tops would have to help the underwater parts of them find a way to
interlace or meld together in mutually supportive "NNIAL" ways,
as they were when part of the glacier. Helpless
to make this happen or to even be aware of what had to be done,
(because it was below "see" level), nature's flow
took its
course. Over time, the Bergs were naturally
attracted to
the warmth of the sun and sea as it transformed them into
water.
As
water, the Bergs became part of the water cycle and supported all other
forms of life including the glaciers and the birth of new icebergs.
The Conclusion:
For
our conscious thinking and its intelligence to actualize our reasonable
intentions, our thoughts and feelings must include the unifying wisdom
of our
"below sea level" natural attraction sensitivities and their eons.
When
we help our sensory self connect with natural areas via "NNIAL activities,"
the under-see ways of these areas
register in us. Then, our thinking and sensibilities are connected to
nature's powers to transform and this helps us make
things happen to the
benefit of all.
We
are similar to the icebergs and their separation from a glacier
because, from womb to tomb Industrial Society excessively separates our
psyche from nature's flow. However, we are part of
nature's cyclic dance.
As a photograph of us at the top
of this page portrays, our natural selves and origins are
beautifully unified.
Our
challenge is for each of us to make conscious sensory contact with
authentic nature (NNIAL,) the source of the picture, above. Only then
can its powers help us heal and release from the jail in our
subconscious mind, the pure sensory congress of intelligent delight and
spirit that we really are. That is when we consciously have available
to us the resources that our thinking needs to transform and reverse
our dilemmas.
Apply now. Learn and teach Natural
Attraction Ecology. Call 360-378-6313
NAE Axiom 20
Where Are You Now?
NAE
helps us recognize Earth and the universe to be similar to large
dancing, circulating and growing web-of-life pond. Since it's beginning, the
pond and its life have consisted of eons of non-literate natural
attraction
relationships that grow and increase the integrity of themselves and
the pond.
Contemporary-thinking
humanity
is like a single drop of water just introduced into to the pond. This
drop,
unlike the rest of the pond, is lingual, it has the added ability to communicate and
relate through the literacy of stories consisting of word symbols and
images
about the pond. However, being non-literate, the pond seldom
understands them. Too often, these are stories that we create
from our
imagination, stories that emanate from our indoor world, not from
direct sensory contact with the pond and its balanced, purifying ways.
Since
our stories are not the real thing, they go on forever with respect to
us unifying with nature through them. Genuine sensory contact
vs the
abstraction of it
often produces duality and its discontents, in and around us.
NAE remedies this breach
by giving us stories that help us make genuine connections with
natural attractions and report directly from the connection
experience.
In
our
indoor-oriented society, a bias in our stories indoctrinates and
rewards us for excessively separating from, conquering and exploiting
the dance of the
pond. Although we can profitably think and feel with our stories, we
can also see their unreasonable and destructive results.
The
NAE
remedy for our habitual, yet detrimental nature-disconnected way of
thinking and feeling is to offer us activities that help us engage in
nature-connecting "NNIAL" contact, backyard or
backcountry. Because the
activities are informative and rewarding, engaging in this unification
process becomes a reasonable and constructive habit. It
enables us to
create moments that let earth and nature teach us what we need to know
to come into balance with them, each other and ourselves.
For
each individual the choice is clear. We can choose to operate
in
ways that produce, and make us suffer, the consequences of Industrial
Society's
nature-disconnected stories, thoughts and feelings. Or we, instead, can
decide to learn
how to be in mutually beneficial connection with the
self-correcting ways of natural attraction's dance. We accomplish the latter by
experientially engaging in the sensory
nature-contact ECHN activity process,
backyard or backcountry.
Moment
by moment each of us can
choose to create and live in the beneficial effects of NAE 9-leg
unity
and healing with NNIAL. Our other choice is to continue engage
in and produce the
consequences of 5-leg duality and its biased deterioration of
whole-life relationships.
Before
NAE, there was little choice. We saw the problems but we had no process
or tool that enabled us to address them. Through NAE, that tool is now
readily available. Empowered by the tool, today, the way each of us
chooses
to think and feel, with or without it, produces our destiny along with
that of Earth and
humanity.
CHOICES
(
) I want to learn the educating, counseling and healing with nature
process through very low cost, online NAE courses, degrees
and careers. I would like to
reasonably strengthen my life and livelihood by greening
them. One of my goals is
to enable the restorative powers of nature's amazing grace to help us
all, hand in hand, walk Mother Earth's natural attraction path to
balance, sustainability and well being.
(
) I'm satisfied with my present way of thinking and relating along with
its effects and rewards.
( ) Other:
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Summary
Certain
shades of the color violet can appear to be blue against a red
background, and appear to be
red
against a
blue one. However, each shade of violet also has its own
integrity.
Similarly, with the conquer-nature bias
of Industrial
Society's story
as our "background," our thinking
sees nature as a resource that we must increasingly exploit/consume"
for
profit and economic growth if we are
to
survive.
NAE helps us sense and reason based on
a different
background. That background is nature's sensory callings.
It
demonstrates and certifies that
for our
survival and balance, the "NNIAL" integrity
of nature is a powerful and
supportive
friend.
Our survival benefits from it's nurturing of natural attraction
relationships as they create their
own self-correcting perfection around and within us.
We
learn to see and relate to the world through the color or warp of the
nature-disconnected glasses Industrial Society trains us to wear.
This
makes us create and be responsible for most of the disorders that we
suffer. The glasses also warp the wisdom of the inherent natural
attraction sensory powers that nature gives us to remedy our
problems and to strengthen individual and global wellness
To survive in a
balanced and ethical way with the whole of life, it is rational for us
to learn how
to use and teach NAE activities. They help us think
and
feel while in conscious sensory contact
with NNIAL, the
eons of power and integrity of our
natural attractions in natural areas. This organic process lets nature
help us
compost, recycle and correct the warp in our glasses. The
effectiveness of this process is documented by personal
experiences, results of studies, and professionally
reviewed research.
"Oh, what a catastrophe, what a
maiming of love when it was made personal, merely personal feeling.
This
is what is the matter with us: we are bleeding at the roots because we
are cut off from the Earth and sun and stars.
Love
has become a grinning mockery because, poor blossom, we plucked it from
its stem on the Tree of Life and expected it to keep on blooming in our
civilized vase on the table."
-
D. H. Lawrence
"We
cannot win the battle to increase the well-being of the web of life,
that includes our life, without strengthening our natural senses, our
attraction bonds with nature - for we will not fight to save
what
we do not love."
-
Michael J. Cohen's blend of statements by Stephen Jay Gould and
Jalaluddin Rumi
Apply now. Learn and teach Natural
Attraction Ecology. Call
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Conclusion
We, along with all other people, places
and things, are equally born as an expression and
manifestation of natural
attraction. We are it, it is us. However, the unwarranted prejudice
against nature
in tropicmaker
thinking motivates us to conquer that expression.
We
are normally born with naturally-satisfied minds and hearts.
Industrial Society educates/socializes us through
desensitizing
processes that irritate our psyche. Our dissatisfaction motivates us
to excessively purchase artificial, less adequate than nature
products to
meet our
discontents. Desensitized, we often ignore the detrimental effects of
the artificial
on nature's renewing flow in and around us.
Most therapies help
us deal with the stress and disorders that result from our destructive
socialization. However, they are usually indoor oriented, not organic
and unaware of our indoctrinated prejudiced
against nature origins or how to remedy them.
We
can no longer afford to endure the consequences of being habitually
bonded and shaped into consumers who are excessively
sliced away from the balanced-life authenticity and
satisfactions of our
planetary
home.
To
counteract the prejudice of our unbalanced bonding, each of us
needs, or may learn,
to
shamelessly feel and declare anywhere, "I
love nature," or "I love Planet Earth,"
and, in this glow, be motivated to
design and build
naturally attractive and sustainable relationships with humanity, the
environment and
creation. NAE courses, books and
degrees are offered
that help any individual or institution achieve this goal.
Project
NatureConnect
supports individuals whose consciousness appreciates the contribution
of NAE. Any interested person can be funded
to
help increase well-being by
using NAE to beneficially green their psyche, life and profession while
helping
others do the same.
There
is a heartfelt essence that helps us achieve peaceful balance with
Earth and each other. It is to use NAE to
register,
trust and consciously think with our natural senses and the wisdom
they, in congress, convey to us while we are in contact with nature, in
and around us.
NAE enables us to gain a recuperative, stress releasing fulfillment of
our 53
senses by enabling us to freely interlace
our psyche with nature instead of, to this end, purchasing and bonding
to excessive and often
destructive
technologies.
"The
Smokies always reminds me of coming home. From the top of the
hills you look down into a slow meandering stream that loops all
through the mountains. I was attracted to become the
interconnecting flow of this
stream, thinking how strange and wonderful is our home and Mother
Earth's natural attraction to produce its swirling vaporous
atmosphere, its flowing frozen liquids, its
plants, its creeping, crawling, climbing creatures, the croaking things
with wings, the rocks, the grasses. As I sensed an attractive
connection to these
things I became one of the grains of sand that helped
form these mountains. This strengthened my senses and I
enjoyed
an intense, fulfilling awareness of the rocks and all things around me.
I thought, 'This must be the high that people get from drugs' "
-
Anonymous NAE Participant
Read
additional unsolicited testimonials
Perhaps the most practical and applicable conclusion
about NAE has been stated above, including in Axiom 16, and bears
repeating here:
In
the final analysis, no matter what they be, the needs, goals
and wants that we feel or that we design, are always signals to satisfy one or
more of our natural senses.
Fulfilling these senses through direct sensory contact with nature, in
people and/or places:
- is
most direct.
- is
the least expensive.
- is
organic.
- produces
the lowest negative environmental and social impact.
- is a
choice that provides sustainable nurturing rewards to the benefit of
all.
As the words you now read here attract you, you are engaged in part of
the NAE process.
The goal is to use ECHN to engage yourself and your community in all of
it, in the
joy of supporting authentic nature in a natural area, as it is
attracted to supporting you.
"Nature is the unseen
intelligence that loved us into being."
-
Elbert Hubbard
"Our
troubles begin when we bond to sensory fulfillments obtained from
flawed substitutes for nature. Our remedy is to reason in ways that
include the "now" and the intelligence of our natural attractions while
they are genuinely connected to their source in the web of life,
backyard or backcountry."
-
Michael J. Cohen
"This
is why I say love is a flowing, because it's not "My"
Love, it is God's/Creation's/Nature's and it flows to me and through
me. When I hold it and claim it to be mine it stops flowing and
suffering happens."
-
Vincent Brown
"I
thank God for beginning this world with a natural attraction seed and empowering it to independently grow attractive relationships."
- Project NatureConnect Student
Online, learn and teach NAE
nature-connection activities to yourself
and your community. Participate
now. The benefits
speak for themselves. Call
360-378-6313 to implement your participation or a degree
program.
Natural Attraction Ecology ECHN is a profound tool and hope for the
future. You can help make it happen. Please sign
our Petition to the United Nations to implement it.
You may read or distribute a press release about this page.
The Source of the NAE
Axioms
Below
are field
reports taken from the journals of anonymous Project NatureConnect
participants who used Natural Attraction Ecology activities to gain consent to make 53-sense contact with nature in themselves, others
and the environment. Their results are confirmed by published
scientific studies.
Additional
reports are available via the survey
of participants
and its links
My Authentic Voice
"Slatic’s Lake is
a
very special place to me. When
I got there I was already on a high from life. I have had a
good
last couple days and am just feeling healthy and alive. While
asking
permission to be at this place, the seagull flying above seemed to say
to me, “Yes, you are one of us.” Almost as if I was supposed
to
know that already.
Immediately some geese
soared by and I rejoiced in the sound they made. I wanted to
skip
or do a dance because I was feeling so alive! Things just
seem to
be coming together in my life, I am feeling the flow of life, not even
so much feeling as I AM the flow of life. I’m
flowin’…….
“I
am
attracted to this
flock of geese because they make a beautiful sound as they whoosh by in
flight and show me life. I like this sound because it fills
me
with happiness. I feel alive! I feel vibrant life!”
The
NAE course helps me recognize that, like the geese, I am part of nature
and that I can honestly say I am naturally attracted to myself in
exactly the same way that I am naturally attracted to the wild geese.
Things
that don’t feel right, relationships that don’t feel right, I am moving
away from. I feel now as if I am attracting the stuff in my
life
that is supposed to be there because I am open and trusting, because I
am being authentic, because I am being true to myself, because I LOVE
myself. Yay! I dance and giggle at that!
The geese have taught me that I love myself because I have a vibrant,
happy life that flows
and that I make a beautiful sound!
On
my walk around the lake I watched the community of birds around the
lone open spot of water…ravens, mallards, geese, seagulls….living in
harmony. Absolutely gorgeous…why are we humans not living
like
that???????
I learned that I
am a vibrant, flowing, life-being and I am welcome and loved in nature
I
choose to keep trusting and believing in NAE nature connections because
things are a coming
together…there is
balance on the horizon. I would be sad to have the web-of-life
attraction strands taken away from me
that I am experiencing every day of my life. Definitely this
activity
enhanced my sense of self-worth and my
trustfulness of nature. It help me identify that it's OK to
be happy,
to trust in each moment, in what is happening in your life, and to
listen
to your authentic voice."
Support along the way
"Needless
to say, the way in which this group and the NAE classes have enhanced
my life has given me so much more balance than I've had in a very long
time. I quit my ADHD and anti-depressants, stabilized my
weight,
and am just smiling a lot more. Thank you for all of the love
and
support along the way."
"The above is from one of my peers in my
ECO 501 class. NNIAL in action. Not to mention my own
adrenals
and thyroid have at least stabilized and I am also stabilizing cyclical
fluid gain. Nice... thank you and nature! "
You
can participate
in NAE now.
We
know what we are doing
"I
stopped at the little woodland, asked for permission and sensed in my
body a welcome back from the trees. Coming frequently to this place, we
start to know each other better and the connection got a quality of
visiting good friends. My immediate attraction was air and the
breathing cycle of give and take. I always enjoy how deeper breathings
slows me down and relaxes my body and mind. After a few breaths I
became playful and experimental, so I used the next minutes to change
my breathing and sensed the impact to my body and feelings. I was
breathing shallow and fast, deep and fast, shallow and slow, through my
mouth, through my nose, with open eyes, with closed eyes, held my
breath, breathed in my lungs, in my stomach, in both, was breathing
while looking up in the sky and crouched down, was circling my hands
and breathed in rhythm of the swings and a-rhythmic. It’s amazing how
fast and simple our body reacts and how feelings are changing. What a
powerful instrument nature gave us here. After this exercise I enjoyed
that all my breathings are a give and take between the trees and me.
Suddenly I wondered how my friends are breathing in winter? Don’t they
need leaves? My story type of thinking was getting ready to explore and
search for answers to this questions. And my sensory thinking simply
asked them, and they replied with a smile: don’t worry, we know what we
are doing."
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Reducing inaccuracy
"Although the air was cool, the sun was shining so I experienced the
chill
of air passing into my nose while feeling the warmth of the sun on my
cheeks. I sensed the damp earth soft for sitting, the earthy, pleasing,
surprisingly aromatic and green smells of the abundant
surrounding plants, the warmth of the sun, the grounding energy of the
oaks and madrones and the view to the hills across a narrow valley. I
felt welcome, nurtured, at peace and one with my
surroundings. I also felt grateful, a wonderful, too often absent, way
to feel. This was such a welcome experience.
It was extremely
enjoyable and even instructive to pay attention to
everything I was experiencing. Paying more attention increased
the enjoyment, increased my appreciation and happiness, partly by
moving into the background the thoughts and concerns that occupied my
day before I got there but mostly from connecting to the softness and
widespread beauty. It was a warm experience, perfectly
balanced. It was also extremely enjoyable to replace the bird
in the drawing with different elements of my environment and
this felt
very true and beautiful as I sensed into each one: large oak, soft
green plants, blue sky, sun, gentle breeze, damp earth.
It
was very grounding and affirming to do this exercise...I felt so happy
to bring the awareness of all these things into my sensory fields. It
was like an exchange of love and I felt completely transformed compared
to my state of mind and being before I started it.
Spending enough time in nature so that
significant impressions,
insights, comforts, peace, etc. can occur is extremely important,
otherwise those things and their connection will barely register, if at
all. And the more
time that is spent in nature, the less likely an inaccurate or
superficial story about
it will be formed."
You
can participate
in NAE now.
On
any given day
The effect of NAE is
immediate and specific. I step out in nature, begin using fifty-three
senses and then the slow down in heart rate, the deeper breathing, the
slow down in racing, anxious thoughts, the realignment of slumped
posture, the renewed warmth of increased circulation, the sheer,
physical pleasure moving all through my body are strong and
present. This pleasure creates a reservoir of good feelings
that
I then take in to my daily life and apply as needed; maybe as fuel to
be more patient with my kids, as strength to focus on my own creative
weaving tapestries more often - instead of just putting my own process
aside for family duty, as the inspiration which energized me to move to
a smaller, simpler house in a walkable part of the city and also start
growing food.
So for me, that is the 'global' as it is
translated into shifting cultural, gender, personal, familial and eco
systemic choices on any given day.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
It just
gave
I
lost my brother four years ago and my entering into PNC not long after
was a saving grace........My Mother is in the dying process now and
again it is my strength and comfort...it is life, the same life in
everyone and every living thing and it comforts me daily to bathe in
it, to breathe the truth of it, to trust it. I was having a
particularly difficult day not long ago and I felt a spontaneous
attraction to take a long hike.......not in too good shape physically
right now so that was strange it seemed. It was a very cold day and yet
I hiked way down the valley and up the other side to the very top of a
bluff....I felt a strong pull to make it to that top ridge that I could
always see from my kitchen window. And so, hours later, I
did.........the perspective looking back, way back, at my window, that
tiny window I look out of........sitting there in the cold and vibrant
wind blowing, the scent of winter ground-fall all around and under me,
the trees whispering something beyond my straining to hear and yet of
an ancient and cavernous wisdom....something just gave way. I wept for
10 minutes non-stop, then I buried my face in the ground and smelled
the richness of it.........I scooped some leaves all around me and fell
asleep. I awoke at dark....and wobbled the long trek back exhausted and
cleaned by an unseen but clearly sensed ubiquitous life......When I
re-entered the house everything looked different, and somehow it was,
and I was OK.......now I can look out the kitchen window at that ridge
and something sweeps through me, like a witnessing wind that has more
power and strength and mystery than I could ever know or exhaust in a
million lifetimes. The day before I was floundering and now I was being
upheld by an invisible force that never
asked for anything, it just gave.
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The
love of trees
It is
raining and windy, which made me want to stay indoors where it was snug
and cozy rather than brave the elements. However, when I bundled up and
went outside I was reminded once again about how invigorating and
uplifting it is to go outdoors even when (and perhaps especially when)
the elements are heightened. My nose was cold and my cheeks stung with
the chill of the rain and the wind blew against me. I leaned against
the tree and was filled with gratitude over its shelter and protection.
I imagined its strength being draw from its roots in the earth surging
upward and was also strengthened.
I love the trees because they are deeply rooted and filled with
strength.
I
love myself because I am deeply rooted and filled with
strength.
Classmate:
This is a
really great sensory image and easy for me to accept from what you
have shared about yourself in this class.
Writer:
It does
describe me: I draw my strength from my natural attractions of my
family, my
dear friends and my connections to the earth, all of which sustain me.
Like the trees who sheltered me from the elements, I also
shelter
and protect my family, my friends, my community and give them my
strength in return.
Classmate:
No wonder you love trees! I did the activity and was attracted to a
little flower growing under a bush. I discovered "I like
this small flowering plant because it is in constant upward
motion and means no harm. This translated into: "I like myself because
i am in constant upward motion, and mean no harm," and that felt right
to me. I recognized that I have more in
common
with nature than I previously noticed and that ways of life that are
not in
accordance with nature have desensitizing effects.
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I could not be separated
When
I was in college a friend of mine let me know about a trail that
followed a small river that led to a waterfall in the forest next to
our college campus. I am from NY the metro area, and I never took a
hike in the forest with creeks and various different types of terrain.
I set out to the walk because it was not optional my spirit demanded
that I go. When I arrived at my destination, I not only had a deeper
appreciation for water; I fell in love with the trees the sky the
animals the ground and the rocks for I experienced all of it. I
listened to the red and blue birds sing and the wind touch green leaves
of the trees and watched the clear water flow down the fall. My
thinking became clearer my spirit became more profound within me. I was
urged to pray to my maker and thank the Almighty for the creation,
which he had made. I began to notice that water was imperative to my
sanity and that if I kept myself from experiencing nature I would loose
all mental glue and begin to dwindle down a path of self
-destruction. I knew then that I could not be separated from
my
holistic family.
I
like the quote " If however, we are to be true to ourselves and trust
our senses, rationality and experiences, it becomes reasonable to
consider that our universe may be constructed of God's attraction
energies and that to know God while bypassing nature creates
disorders." I completely agree that YAHWEH (God) made the
universe from his attraction energies.
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Unification
I
walked out with permission into the nature of a cloudy day.
The
feeling was damp and cold feeling more like a New England morning than
Arizona. The feeling of moisture driving the cold deep into
my
being felt different than the crisp dry Arizona cold of most days
here. As I walked along, I began to say unity --unity-- I noticed the
extreme peaceful feeling of no movement, no wind, the feeling as if
time itself stood still.
The
human community, not yet awakened, usually consists of the bustle and
movement of vehicles and sounds of a
town waking. Instead
a feeling of peace, absence of noise and wind
presides.
The
ravens
with
their winter calls then started up-I was just thinking the day
prior that I had not heard them this year. Perhaps it was due
to
my business responsibilities and the disconnect they bring about.
I
sensed total peace as I walked along-
with the awareness of unity and support. It was as if the ravens were
ushering me to work. As I approached a large tree there were a flock of
birds roosting at the top of its twisted, mature branches. I felt a
oneness as the solstice light began warming the day. I entered the
building and as I sat at my desk I saw that the flock of birds, now
visible, were taking off from the tree top, also starting their day.
What
a profound sense of belonging I was at in that moment in time.
Addendum:
At the end of the day as the nurse and I sit by my desk recounting the
day
and sharing support and healing for ourselves, the birds
returned to the tree top. What a sense of unity this day.
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Belonging
in Christmas
I
did not grow up in a family that celebrated Christmas or Hanukkah (by
birth I am Jewish, and was raised Christian) and the holidays are
painful for me. Although I’m not consciously reflecting on negative
memories, the past insidiously creeps in and puts a pall on what should
be a joy-filled time for me and my family. I formally coped with this
by feverishly throwing myself holiday preparations and rituals to the
extreme. The house was bursting with homemade gifts, we participated in
every holiday activity imaginable and there wasn’t a spare moment to
even sit down. People would delight in my gifts, charmed by my
professional looking holiday newsletter of our family complete with
humorous and touching stories and photos and make references to Martha
Stewart. But year after year, after our children would unwrap their
gifts from under our perfectly decorated tree I would crash in absolute
exhaustion and/or would be physically ill. The last couple of years
have increasingly been more challenging due to life circumstances added
with a string of devastating events. I’ve barely been able to
muster the energy to even acknowledge the holidays, much less truly
celebrate them. I’ve felt guilty and conflicted about this, unable to
overcome my inner turmoil to try to find a middle ground.
Early
Christmas Eve I chose to do my assignment and seek Nature’s wisdom. The
weather has been intermittently stormy, snowy, wet, sleeting and so
forth, not just on any given day but at any moment it could shift
without warning. Around the time I stepped outdoors the sky had
cleared. I stopped and simply let myself breathe, in and out, in and
out. I let my mind go free and think of anything for awhile. My anxiety
rose up and unexpectedly so did my tears. Although I did not cry hard,
it seemed to have risen up from a low deep place within me. I felt the
air chill my hot tears as they sprang from my eyes. I stayed in that
feeling for awhile and then as my heart, mind and emotions quieted down
in the calm of nature I began to think of my assignment. I followed my
attraction and was drawn by the deep emerald green of the fields that
spread out in every direction. I began to free-form hum, then little
phrases of music began to creep up and spill from my mouth. The green
was like balm to my eyes and the music soothed the jangled cords and
began to form into song. Perhaps cliché, I began to sing the Christmas
songs my little girl had been singing earlier while playing quietly by
herself. I felt a strong sense of harmony with what I saw in nature and
what I felt inside, as the two were intertwined. Singing required a
different kind of breathing and this action regulated it. I suddenly
trailed off no longer feeling like singing. I simply listened to the
wind in the tall grasses and blowing the branches, to the creeping
crackle of a cat walking across the fallen leaves and to the sound of
our two ducks swishing their bills around in the water to drink. It was
a perfect disjointed and yet perfectly harmonious symphony of it’s own
kind and I felt myself a part of it. I thought about how I was a part
of it, it was a part of me, a whole community resonating together
consciously and unconsciously. I felt calm, quiet and at peace.
I
didn’t want to interrupt this feeling to go through the natural senses
in the book, so I tried to simply sort of generalize from memory what
they were. I thought of sense of community (all around me), the sense
of feel (the air touching my skin), sight/color (the soothing green
fields), but what most stuck out to me was that the longer I stood
there, the more I felt like I was part of a larger whole—a community. I
felt that as nature resonated with me and me with it that there was no
“me” or “it”. I felt accepted, as though I belonged.
I
carried this feeling of belonging and calm with me into the house as I
interacted with my family. I found myself humming and filled with the
holiday spirit as I prepared our Christmas meal of fondue. We literally
sat and broke bread together, I
laughed with them and we enjoyed ourselves.
My
husband
prefers chilly sleeping so he’s been happily
enjoying the solitude of sleeping alone. However, this night,
apparently drawn by my
quiet contemplative calm spirit, he came out and “spooned” me, sort of
cocooning me as I nestled against him. We didn’t speak. We merely lay
quietly breathing together, completely filled with peace as we gazed
with love at our sleeping little children who appeared to be angelic
while they slumbered. I felt nature’s gifts to me, which I carried
indoors and into my family. It is the best Christmas present I could
receive.
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A
good place to be
Well,
as usual this was a pleasantly surprising activity. With a
perceived lack of time, I was a bit disgruntled about doing it and
wondered what I could do quickly and not have to put too much of myself
into it. Funny, huh? Short story even shorter, I
walked
into the yard, obtained permission, mustered up some gratitude, scooped
up a bit of snow onto my finger and felt it -- deeply. I felt
the
sting
of cold, the contrast of temperature with other fingers. I observed the
response of cold snow on warm finger, the sensation of water dripping
down the finger and onto the back of my hand. I even let out
a
spontaneous musical sigh as it dripped. The water all around
and
inside of me and evaporating off of my index finger and frozen in tiny
ice designs and somehow making its way through cold air to make water
clouds was all at once very much in my awareness. The sense
of
feeling was amplified. My body heat and the cold snow
resonated.
Later,
I played a game of scrabble with Marty. He set me off once or
twice by waiting what seemed an inordinate amount of time to take his
turn, making high scoring plays, and otherwise being a true
opponent. Each time these feelings arose, I put my hand on
him --
touched his arm, rested my hand on his knee. This immediately
settled me and I didn't feel the distance between us any longer.
I
was so happy to have done this activity, and learned that the sense of
feeling and touch was a way to resonate with and to create a
non-language way of feeling within me, not just on my finger!
By
connecting with the cold snow through the sense of touch, I got outside
of my head which was a good place to be since it hadn't been working
too well all day!
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Discovering
Community
As
usual, I went to the two small parks two blocks from where I live. The
Stuyvesant Parks have been my "saving grace" in maintaining a sense of
balance and getting in touch with my feelings. When I come home after
one of my walks I always feel good. I am filled with a
renewed
sense of hope and have a deeper connection with myself and with others.
As
I began my walk around the park, I noticed the stark bare tree branches
of elm and oak, the color of dark gray, of diverse width, shape and
length spread sideways and up to the sky, inspiring the image of a
Japanese painting. This image brought up a melancholy feeling
so
I asked the question, "What webstrings do I most desire to surface from
my subconscious to conscious that would make me feel good Was
it
validation? Recognition? I heard a voice say, "dig a little
deeper." Belonging? "Community," that felt right.
As
soon as the word community came into my head I saw a flock of pigeons
flying overhead, then a gathering of squirrels eating from the same
patch of land, then sparrows sharing the same rose bush. I
was
witnessing a good feeling of connection from the trees, pigeons,
squirrels and sparrows.
Then I saw 2 squirrels
playing together, chasing each other up and down trees and on the
benches -- they made me laugh out loud.
Several
park employees were cleaning up the leaves and I had a deep desire to
tell them how grateful I was. So I went
over to one
of the men and one of the women, and I thanked them for keeping the
parks so clean. I let them know how much they are appreciated
and
how good it feels to come here. One man said he doesn't hear
that
very often and it felt good to see his smile of pride.
A
few minutes later I felt something hit my shoulder and at first I
thought, "Oh no, it's pigeon s--t." No, it was a
snowflake.
The most extraordinary thing happened, millions of snowflakes as big as
cotton balls fell from the sky. The color of the sky was an
off
white and it made the park translucent. A few people walked
along
with their tongues out trying to catch a snowflake, so I started to do
this too and we all laughed.
Suddenly adults
were transformed into children. People began to smile at each
other and laugh at the magic that was happening. A man
stopped,
put his briefcase on the ground and started doing tai chi.
For
the next 10 minutes I happily stood smiling as I watched him and the
snow falling in the park. We were by then the only 2 left in
the
park, except for 2 park employees who kept looking up at the sky in
disbelief.
There is something about snow in the
city that brings everyone together --for me it brings out the
natural attractions of community. The snow that
fell from
the
sky
today wasn't your typical snow, it was a phenomenon in its size, shape,
the way it fell from the sky and it lasted a good half-hour. I thanked
the snow for being there.
The whole
experience was breathtaking. Good feelings of being
childlike,
playful, connected, and loved filled my heart. It felt so good to be
there. There are no words to express the joy I felt.
My experience in nature shows me that I
am a person who gets good
feelings when I am in the moment, being still and
silent, outside connecting to natural attractions of
life, for being grateful and giving heartfelt thanks to the trees,
wildlife
and the people who take care of the park
-- for creating
the opportunity of making possible a connection
to the natural attractions that bind community.
I discovered that connecting with
strangers through laughter caused by the unexpected
phenomena of millions of snowflakes, the size of large cotton balls,
rapidly falling from the sky--transformed adults into playful children
sticking their tongues out trying to catch a snowflake.
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Awakening
Love
Oh
beautiful sentient being Mother Nature, I have just begun to appreciate
your presence, beauty and love… How did I live all these
years
without this connection is beyond my comprehension. I am so
glad
I have arrived!
The Self, Meet Yourself activity was so
beautiful and eye opening that I had to re-do it and be in it till each
aspect of my being felt like a part of Mother Earth and her
atmosphere… I must say it was an awakening experience… Such
profound love which I always thought is rare and felt occasionally when
meditating, is actually present in every ounce of Nature and can be
accessed by simply allowing and following Nature’s attractions…
As
I walked in Nature away from my backyard to an open space…
allowing spontaneous attractions to call me… I was mesmerized by a
loving embrace of two trees with branches running through the other
tree… Love is not just between two people it is present in
Nature
everywhere.
What I learned from this activity is the
abundance of love and that Nature nurtures through natural Love
ever present supporting all of existence.
LOVE
is natural attraction, it cannot be taken away as that is our true
Nature… We sustain
and
create through LOVE… we even die through love merging back into what we
were born from…
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Interacting
Responsibly
The seed of my interest in Natural
Attraction
Ecology and Ecopsychology based on it, was sown with my gradual
awareness of the unsustainability, destructiveness, and unhealthiness
of our way of life. By "our," I mean several institutions whose shared
values have changed this planet in unprecedented ways: Western
civilization, America's (and many other like-minded countries)
death-culture, the objectification of nature as "resources" to be
exploited, cheap oil, etc. Through this series of realizations, I
decided that I wanted to find a way to become a more responsible being
on this planet -- more profoundly than buying organic/free trade food.
By "responsible being," I mean I want to find my place in the Natural
World and help others do the same. With my educational background and
interests, ecopsychology made the most sense. What I like about this
program in particular is that it's got a grass-roots (organic!) drive
behind it. Even though it's Internet- and email-based, students get an
experiential education. The activities I've done so far -- and their
lasting effects -- have confirmed for me that this program resonates
with ideas I hold dear and sacred, and simply just makes sense for me.
My background is in psychology, child development, and family support.
My realizations about the direction that civilization is headed have
also influenced the way I look at my "career field." So many of the
systems I've worked in and with, while they are counter-cultural in
some ways, are still grounded in and dependent upon the injustices and
destruction and separation-from-nature that inform so much of our
existence. Put bluntly, I began to get the feeling that I was
empowering and supporting these people only to feed them back into the
Machine Culture. Through this course/program and the supportive
nature-connected relationships it reinforces, I intend to forge a more
sustainable and proactive career in light of the current state of our
society and environment.
Professionally, I want to find a way to do good, sustainable,
productive work that truly empowers and supports people by connecting
them with their real Natural Selves. Personally, I anticipate going
through deep realizations about some of the nature-disconnected stories
that are
still operating in my life, and opening up to all the other ways I have
available of interacting responsibly with myself, this world, and its
inhabitants.
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Waking
up
It is a blustery day. The wind and snow
are swirling around outside my window.
And the temperatures are cold. Feels like a day to enjoy the day- but
from inside looking out.
I went to my family room window where
Don recently hung a bird feeder. And, there they were out in the storm
a several junkos and a finch. How do they do it? I found myself
asking.
And, so I asked them. First for
permission to ask them and then by expressing my
gratitude for whatever they were about to teach me.
I
called to mind some of my stressed thoughts and feeling. "I don't know
how to do
the financial world. There is too much to learn, that I can't
understand. I won't have the opportunity to retire if I don't make the
right decisions, now. I may not survive today, if I don't do it right.
But, I don't know how to make the right decisions!" Stress-out! Life
feels like one big never ending anxiety trip- when I approach
it
with these thoughts.
So, I matched my body with the bird's
movements as the activity suggests.
The finch sat munching the seeds from the bird feeder. I chomped and
moved my neck in swallowing motions. He seemed unfazed by thoughts of
the future. He just seemed grateful and content to be eating now. I
noticed as I matched his movements that I somehow began to feel more
grateful and content. Wow!
I began to sense a
message."Opportunities have been and always will be available. No need
to stress. There is no such thing as a missed opportunity. When one
disappears another arises." There was no bird feeder there last week-
but this week there is.
Don came in the room singing a happy
holiday song. The finch sensed that it was time to move on. He simply
flew off the bird feeder and away. Non-attachment was his message as it
was attracted to a safer setting. Be
grateful for what you are receiving now and trust that what you need
will be provided. The next opportunity awaits. And, the next.
Feels like a much lovelier way to live.
I would be so devastated if
the finch and my experience with
him were taken away from me.
I wrote: "I
like the finch because it weathers the storms of life with its
contentment and gratitude. It trusts this moment and gives its focus
and love to it. Its life matters to it. It gives itself to what it
senses that it needs. It is willing to look for opportunities and trust
that when that opportunity has passed that another one will present
itself in perfect time. He knows and trusts his place in the moment and
in all of nature."
Then I wrote the same thing about nature
in me:
"I like myself
because, I weather the storms of life with my contentment and
gratitude. I trust this moment and give my focus and love to it. My
life matters to me. I give myself to what I sense that my spirit needs.
I am willing to look for opportunities and trust that when that
opportunity has passed that another one will present itself in perfect
time. I know and trust my place in this moment and in all of nature."
My self esteem and trustfulness of
nature were very much enhanced
through doing this activity. Thank you little finch.
I did this same activity with
a person to note the effects.
When I asked Don for permission to match
his movements. He said, "Sure!
Match this!" and gave me a big smooch!
I did this, this morning, so I haven't
slept on it, yet. But, I do
notice I am facing the day with a sense of calm- as if I had just woken
up from a good nights sleep.
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A
tree-dance response
I ran in from the
cold approaching storm with groceries in hand, shook off the chill and
moved the mouse around to see if I had any new mail. There
you
were, reminding me that Friday did come. And so after reading
your wonderful post -- so full of life and connection and essential
learning from Finch the Teacher -- I sat at the front window and asked
the pine if we could play. Bobbing and reaching in the cold
wind,
I reached my limbs outward and did the dance of the tree.
Energy
coursed through me and the connecting tingle was thick and
pure.
A cloud bank in the west moved like a
wall, unflinching
in
it's form except for the steady movement north and east. So I
moved, solid, slow, with snow filled density. A
darker
cloud moved in the opposite direction and so did I. I loved
it! In my wildest dream of what today would hold, I didn't
imagine I would take the time to dance with a tree! No one
was
home to match movements with, but Maggie is always willing to wag when
I talk to her, so I matched her, I wagged my tail and twitched my eyes
without moving
my head, lifted my ears in anticipation and giggled at the sight of
me!
What I learned is that a mere waltz with
a tree or cloud
can
push aside the clutter of a to do list, the worries of the day, the
undone housework, the anticipation of any event --and bring me
powerfully to the NOW of what is beautiful, what is deeply and
profoundly HERE as teacher, as dance partner. I like myself
because I bend with the wind and move solidly through the atmosphere of
life. Both of these are qualities are powerful ways to manage
the
unpredictable weather I encounter.
Thanks to all of you who
support me on this shared email
list. Thanks to Dr. Cohen for bringing this work to
us. Thanks to the wind and the trees and the clouds and the
birds
who hang in the wind until it shifts.
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Making
the connection
I
find hope in people like my sister
who went on a walk with me one day and I asked her to tell me what she
was attracted to. At first she told me that she wasn’t
finding
herself attracted to anything….that really she is just attracted to
people. I asked her to think of something in nature that she
was
attracted to, even if she was not seeing it on our walk. She
told
me she loves a beautiful sunset. I asked her what she would
feel
like if that sunset was taken away from her. She told me that
it
would not affect her life, she would still be able to
survive. I
asked her if her life would be as fulfilling without the sunset, would
she enjoy her life as much? The wheels began turning….she was
able to tell me some things she was attracted to on the second half of
the walk.
About a week later I asked my
sister to read my posting
from
Chapter 6. After reading it she asked me if this course was
supposed to help strengthen our relationships with people. It
was
like a light bulb went on in her head when I answered yes, and she
responded, "Well, I can see us working together someday." My
sister
is in school to be a counselor and she loves helping people with their
problems. She made the connection!
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No prescription needed
I
am enjoying everyone's introduction and their feelings and thoughts
about this course. I already "feel" different since I
started. I feel so lucky to be taking this online
class. I
have
been a nurse for many years and get to see on a daily basis what being
disconnected from nature can do to a person. I have taken
many
classes on holistic nursing and studied vibrational medicine, healing
touch, for many years. It seems more and more of society is
numbed, overwhelmed, helpless, desensitized, and in pain. I
feel
this is the class for everyone. I have always been attracted
to
nature, rivers, rocks, trees, etc.I find myself
growing vegetables
and making compost and love every minute of
it.
I
have a small place on the lake in the woods and it seems when I am
there it is the only time I feel truly happy and content. As
I
watch my grandchildren sit in the house and play video games
sun up till sundown I am concerned. I have seen how
this
class will
help me to help them and others to understand just how disconnected we
have become and that we can be healed!! A walk in the wood fights
depression and is better than anything that does not require a
prescription!!
Enhanced
self-worth
For
this exercise, I sat outside and watched the snow fall for this first
time this year. While doing so, I came to the awareness that,
"I
am attracted to this snowfall because it reminds me of how pure,
all-knowing, and beautiful nature truly is."
Substituting
"myself" in this statement was a little awkward, took some time for me
to contemplate, but ultimately agreed with the intentions of nature: "I
like myself because I remind me of how pure, all-knowing, and
beautiful I truly am."
I
am not going to lie.
When my
second statement didn't sound perfectly flowing in grammatical
correctness to me, I was tempted to cheat a bit and go back and change
my first statement. Rather, I chose to ponder why I thought
of
myself so separately from nature, considering that is from where I was
biologically created. I am definitely not "all-knowing," but
nature sure
is.
It was in its all-knowing ability that nature created me.
I
never really thought to think of myself in the sense of purity, but
when nature created me, I was as pure as possible. So I modified and
improved the statement about myself. This whole
process, to me, is beautiful...and amazing.
I learned that:
It
is the parts of ourselves that are most similar, and thus connected, to
nature that find different natural elements so attractive.
We are psychological indoor addicts because of our excessive
indoor-oriented upbringings.
Though
it is often difficult to do so, we must acknowledge that we are
creations of nature, and in this creation we inherit nature's great
qualities.
Now
that I am aware of these natural attraction qualities within
myself, I would not want them taken away. However, I can now
acknowledge how many times I allowed societal influences to rob me of
my natural attractions.
This activity absolutely
enhanced my
self-worth. It forced me to recognize that I must question the
times when I disrespect nature by not trusting in its
"all-knowingness." While
participating in this activity, I was able to identify myself as more a
part of nature, rather than simply an organism living within nature.
Thought
stories
I
remembered the time I spent living in London, England.
I
was out one day, and a squirrel that was walking on the ground suddenly
ran over, up my leg, further up my torso and arm, and then sat on my
shoulder. It all happened so quickly, and caught me
completely by
surprise. I did not respond favorably to the squirrel.
I
began to shake myself, trying to get him off of me. Everybody
was
looking at me like I was crazy. Then an old man who worked
nearby
came over, yelled at me for treating the squirrel poorly, and handed me
a peanut. He actually wanted me to feed the squirrel while it
was
relaxing on my shoulder! He put his arm out, and allowed the
squirrel to run up it. Once the initial shock and trauma wore
off, I laughed at the societal differences. I would never
think
to feed a squirrel. I thought he, a fraction of my size, was
going to eat me! It shows the way we frequently respond to
nature
based on our thought-stories, rather than our natural attractions.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Living
with all beings
As
I read the questions I started thinking and feeling things that I could
not verbalize. This also gave me hope for the future that I did
not
have before. We are all a part of the earth community,
interconnected with trees, rocks, birds, animals and other
beings. Many mystics, world views, and modern forms of
science
have realized that there are actually no points where one being ends
and another begins, but a "flow" of life. PNC strives to help people to
feel this connection.
PNC is a path of healing, one that can
bring a great sense of purpose and place in modern day lives.
There are many, many, values to PNC. Stress release,
anxieties,
addictions. It is a personal and professional tool.
Another
reason I am taking this advanced class is to help myself and others
feel this
connection with the rest of life and live with the interconnectedness
with all beings and the earth.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Relationships
between things
During a beautiful snow,
I went out to refill the bird feeder. I was then attracted to stand a
few feet away and watch the feeder while reciting the word, "unity."
While
concentrating on this word, like a koan in a meditation, I became aware
of unified themes all around me. It began with the attraction of the
chickadees flying back and forth from the feeder. I connected their
paths with invisible lines, making a diagram in my imagination of all
the strings that the chickadees were tying together. The trees, shrubs,
and ground became tied to the feeder.
I then began to think of
the chickadees as a whole due to their similarities, then birds as a
category adding in the tufted titmouses, mourning doves, and cardinals
also visiting the feeder, then animals as a category, now including the
squirrels and myself, then biosphere, then planet, cosmos.
I
also became attracted to the snow. It indiscriminately covered
everything, regardless of category, trees, grass, rocks, me, all were
subjected to the same conditions. This brought me to thought of global
situations such as climate change, that also affect everything.
When
I didn't concentrate on unity, I noticed that my mind was more occupied
with individual thoughts, not necessary related to anything else. When
thinking of "unity" I was thinking of relationships between things.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Natural
Attraction Resonation
I was in for some surprises while doing
the resonating activity.
We
had just received one of the biggest snowfalls that I have seen since
living in this valley. It was pretty magical and pretty wild. And, it
made for
wonderful natural attraction resonating connections.
First, I looked at the
snow crystals that frosted my window pane. Thanking them and asking
permission I began to feel my resonance with them by singing a tone
that I felt represented them. They were so glorious especially as the
evening light peeked out from a cloud illuminating their facets. I felt
grateful for this program, without which I wouldn't have bothered to
notice
them, perhaps at all, that day.
Then, I walked across the street
to return the snow shovels that I had borrowed from my neighbor. The
sunset was bouncing light from pink cloud to blue shadow against a
crystal clear blue sky. The light shown off the freshly fallen snow.
Needless to say, I did not find this difficult to resonate with. My
heart was full of gratitude for the moment.
As I walked back
into the house I thought of the part of the assignment that asks us to
resonate with a person that we like and a person that we don't. I
noticed that I thought myself, "I don't know how I am going to do that
part of the assignment because, I can't think of anyone I don't like!"
The
moment I thought that I think I genuinely felt it, but I also sensed a
little bit of superiority on my part in thinking it. I was in for a
little humbling almost immediately.
When I got back in the
house, I asked my son to take a break from his computer and then went
to get changed. About a half hour later, my daughter came in to tell me
that my son was still on the computer and then she proceeded to lecture
me on my parenting skills. Hmmm? It seemed I had found someone not to
like. I wasn't sure if it was my son for not respecting and obeying me,
or if it was my daughter for trying to manipulate me by pushing my
inadequate parenting buttons so that she could get on the computer, or
if it was me for my lousy parenting.
I breathed and remembered
that I told you all yesterday that I would do my resonating activity
with my kids. O.K. well this was a little different than what I had
imagined- but the ice crystals and sunset were still resonating in my
body strengthening me. So, I imagined my children in my mind and
breathing said "resonate" in a low tone to myself.
Something
hard to describe began to happen. My feelings of hurt and anger were
still there- but less painful. I think my ego was loosing its grip
slightly. "Resonate, resonate," I repeated. Carlie's words drifted into
my consciousness, "If I didn't have to judge this- could I love it?"
"If I didn't have to judge them or myself, could I love them and
myself." "If I didn't have to l prove myself as a worthy parent- could
I be at peace....and could simply respond to what I felt love prompting
me to do."
A quiet settled over me. I realized I
had entered
into unexplored territory. I scarcely knew what to do, or how to be
without my judgments of them or myself. My ego asserted a few more
attempts to win my peace. "How dare he disobey you! How dare she
lecture you! You need to tell them off! How dare you try to be a
parent!"
"Resonate....Resonate...Resonate." The
natural attractions within me
repeated.
"There is nothing to do." Carlie's words
came again. "What is the truth
about this?"
The truth is, "I am the power and
presence of God in this
world....and..."
Resonate... Resonate....Resonate... "So
are they."
"Appreciate
yourself for creating this situation. It is the perfect situation for
you to discover who you are." the natural attractions whispered.
"Appreciate
yourself....Appreciate yourself....Appreciate yourself....and be Gentle
with yourself"
A guitar string was struck in
my heart
space. Its resonance reverberated into my body.
Res......o........nance..........................
How can I describe this. Somehow, I felt
strangely at peace with no
need to fix anyone or even fix myself. Bizarre.
What came out of my mouth next surprised
me.
"It's time for dinner,
everybody! Come join me."
The course guidebook notes that each
time we resonate with a natural attraction through a different
sense, we get to know the attraction and ourselves in a new, more
fulfilling and holistic way.
I learned that my judgments about
myself and others are one and the same thing. When I appreciate myself
and am willing to be gentle with myself I can respond with a clearer
mind. I also learned that resonating with someone else helps me to see
them anew and helps me to see myself anew as well. This new perspective
helps to free myself of my old pattern of self hatred and victim, and
my ego's need to be right about them. It helps me to appreciate myself
and them again.
I realize that this situation would
probably
have gone a whole different direction without my awareness of my
natural attractions and the
resonance activity. And not such a good direction. I am thankful that I
had to do the assignment before this happened.
My self esteem was strengthened as I
resonated with my natural attractions and as I
appreciated myself. I discovered that when I resonate with someone, I
can't dislike them.
When I awoke today, I felt at peace with
myself and looked forward to
being with my kids.
I
will place in my consciousness an image of a guitar string sounding
in my heart, its vibrations resonating out to fill my body and
extending out to those I am with.
I found that am a person who enjoys
resonating with snow crystals and who feels alive when I resonate with
the sunset.
I let go of judgments of myself when I
resonate with
others.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Rainbow
tranquility
I was attracted to the rainbow, the kids
counted its colors loudly. I looked at it as the bridge I
could walk across to search my inner nature.
This was not the first
time I saw the rainbow. In Portland, it's easier to see one.
I felt so content to watch into the sky, the soft
white
clouds covered the sunlight of the sun, the rainbow had so many
colors, the colors of life.
I raised my arms upwards, as if I was
touching the rainbow, seeing its
beauty and integrity through myself. How much I desired to find that
pure soul inside me. I looked at the kids, they all looked up
and
smiled, enjoyed what the rainbow brought to them. I then felt very
proud of myself, I had the feeling that I wanted to be the rainbow, I
wanted be the bridge connecting the kids with their inner nature,
though I knew the inner child inside the kids have already been
wakened. The joy of the kids was so impressive, I really felt
content by just standing there, watching the rainbow, sharing that
moment, that peace and tranquility with the kids.
When
I looked at the rainbow, I believed there was a rainbow inside me. I
felt its gentle and colorful spirit, that cheerful spirit, encouraged
me to stick to my belief...
Yes, I
believe as a teacher, I have more power than I can see. I
gain
this power from my connection with the kids, nature and all the species
in nature
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Nature
love
Given the extreme cold
temps (way below zero even without the wind chill) and the blizzard
conditions this past week, I went to the local pet store hoping to find
something creaturely and nature-filled to connect with. From the moment
I walked through the door, I was acutely aware that it was clearly
nothing like being immersed in nature. However, I enjoyed the fish,
rabbits and assorted rodents, but was most attracted to the birds,
particularly the canaries. I enjoyed watching the two little birds
interact and listening to their sweet song. I felt a twinge of sadness
- knowing that these little birds were taken from their natural home to
be held captive for the pleasure of us, human-beings. I admire their
adaptability.
I
love these little birds because they are is playful, curious, tender,
resilient.
I love myself because I am playful, curious, tender, resilient.
Initially,
I hesitate as I read the statement and wondered if this really
describes some aspect of me (now). For the most part I know that I am
resilient and adaptable. Although I truly believe that it is
my
nature to be playful, curious, and tender, (and is how I would have
described myself a few years ago), I think that adjusting to the losses
and life challenges presented by Parkinson’s disease, has caused me to
be more serious, less inquisitive and maybe a little dispassionate in
some ways. It makes me wonder if the natural systems within us shift,
adjust or adapt in someway, too, when we experience chronic illness,
trauma, etc. or if those attractions/characteristics just get buried
underneath the stuff we have to do to cope/survive.
An
Email group member's response to the above:
(Before
I begin, note that I am writing this because I know Debby, and
meet with her,
usually once a week, in a professional and friendship
manner).
I found this so interesting, Debby, that
you see
yourself
as less playful, tender, and curious (and ones you wouldn't normally
associate with yourself now after the Parkinson) because those would
be words you think would not describe you now.
As I was reading this I
thought, wow if she thinks she isn't like this anymore what WAS she
like??? She must have been through the roof!!!
Playful? The woman who is
cutting up in class and gives her
buddy a bad time?
Tender? The woman who came to
me in prayer when I was feeling
the weight of the world?.
Curious?
The woman that researches everything on the Internet and comes with arm
loads of info. about grants? What about you starting an art
therapy
program?
Dispassionate? The woman who
took a canoe trip this
last summer who wasn't sure her physical body could withstand it but
did it to
support Parkinson's research and our program???
I think
the natural attractions are more accurate than perhaps you want to
believe. They celebrate your innateness---your inner
beauty. This is what I see Debby, just what you saw in the
birds!
Perhaps
the disease makes you focus on different ways to use your playfulness,
or curiosity or passion or the energy level you would give to it, but
all those senses that you picked up on in the birds are vividly
displayed! In friendship, June
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Deeper
sensitivity message
I
decided to make a walk bare footed so that I could feel the earth! I
slowly followed a path in undeveloped piece of land in the outskirts
of the City of Kampala. I moved while observing different plants and
insects. When I asked for permission to be connected the natural
attractions of
this environment, I was quickly attracted to a small plant (whose name
I don't know). I was attracted to it because it folded its leaves when
I accidentally rubbed against it with my leg. The leaves
moved
upwards and folded like the hands of a human being raised upwards. The
plant I am talking about is about 20 centimeters tall and the trunk is
about the size of a needle of a sewing machine and purplish in color. I
watched it closely and realized that after about 15 minutes, it started
putting its leaves back to their original posture. But this was very
difficult to notice. I could tell by seeing that the gap between the
leaves was widening till all leaves lay almost in a straight line but
opposite of one another. I almost uprooted to take it to the "botanist"
for identification, but then quickly realized, I was going to harm a
friendly plant that had revealed a lot about itself and I left it. May
be I will carry a camera next time I visit this place so that friends
can help me to get its botanical identification.
I
was attracted to this small plant because it had a deeper message to
me! I was able to learn that very often, we look at plants and think
they are insensitive to things like touch stimulus! But this plant
disapproved it. It quickly showed to me that they too, have senses and
they respond to disturbances as a way of protection. I thanked this
part of nature to have revealed more to me about itself. And I have a
feeling that, this small plant could have represented other higher
plants which may have low levels of responses to stimuli that are
ignored by human beings and therefore, have continued to be destroyed
since their tears can never be noticed!
I am happy to see that every time I
visit nature, there is something new to learn about.
I am sad to notice that very few people
appreciate nature.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
A
sustainable relationship
I
was slowly walking through the snow. I became immediately
attracted to the ice frozen to the branches of a nearby leafy bush tree
(of which I don?t know the name of). As I was walking closer
to
it, the ice on top of the snow began to crack and my feet sunk in about
10 inches. I proceeded to get close enough to the bush to
touch
it.
With my gloved hand I caressed a few of
the leaves
and stroked the stems. I could hear the ice begin to crack
and
the branches and leaves seemed so fragile between my fingers I knew if
I kept touching them my desire to caress them would break off their
natural attraction and I would have hurt the
bush. I stopped immediately and instead bent down to examine
the
bush from a different angle, from underneath.
As I lay there in the
snow I gazed up at the wonderful oval shaped leaves. No longer did the
bush appear white and lifeless, but instead I was greeted with its
calming color green with only a small layer of ice over its surface,
and the white outline of ice a fourth of an inch around each
leaf. As I looked up the snow was falling gently on my face
melting as it made contact and all around I could hear the snow falling
to the ground. It was so peaceful and quiet, the movement of
the
snow towards me was so relaxing, my whole body felt numb and it was as
if I could not move.
With a smile on my face I closed my eyes
and took in all that was around me. The soft touch of the
snow on
my face melting upon contact, seeping into my skin and into the many
other objects around, the continual sound of the snow making contact,
the smell of burning firewood, the cracking of ice from the trees and
plants all around, and the fragile ground beneath me as I lay on top of
the ice and snow. It was breathless, especially the hidden
beauty of this
plant that was revealed simply from the shift in the angle at which it
was
seen.
I, perhaps, was the only one to have
taken the time to
appreciate the plants beauty. Although a part of me wishes for it to
stay that way, so as for the plant not to be disturbed by too many
people and their carelessness, the other part of me hopes someone saw
me and has now discovered the amazing beauty of this plant, that would
have otherwise gone unnoticed if it had not been for my
attraction to nature.
In this activity I replaced the bird in
the Mimbres design button first with
an ice covered leaf, then with a snow
covered tree, then with a snowflake. In all three occasions,
the
sensory attraction of water and its life sustaining qualities along
with the cycle at which it accomplishes such a task was alive and well
in my senses and thoughts. After wearing this pin for a few
days
the number one comment I received was, "What is this?" A
perfect
way, as The Web of Life Imperative
book describes, to begin a
conversation about our need to connect with nature. More
specifically it usually began a brief discussion of the importance of
recognizing and honoring Mother Nature and our connection to her, to
recognize our self-destructive habits brought on by our dominate ways
of thinking and being, and to find ways to reconnect with and relate to
nature that
do not strive to dominate and control, but rather to sustainably
cooperate and coexist interdependently with her.
You
can participate
in NAE now.
Read
additional unsolicited testimonials
NOTE: You
may read
or download this source book online, or obtain a complementary copy of
it, at http://www.ecopsych.com/ksanity.html
Education,
Counseling and Healing
With Nature
by
Michael J. Cohen, Ph.D
The
Sensory Science of Natural Attraction Ecology: Creating Web of Life
Moments, Backyard or Back Country, That Help Us Increase Personal,
Social and Environmental Well Being.
We hold
these
truths to be self-evident:
Think of at least one good experience
that you have had in nature:
backyard or backcountry; mountain, forest or field; brook, ocean or
shoreline; pet, garden or aquarium. In the present tense:
-Are
you remembering colors, sounds, aromas, textures or flavors part of the
experience?
-Does your contact with nature contain
comforting motions or attractive feelings of community, trust or
place?
-Do you feel this visit is enchanting,
self-enhancing or spiritually pleasing?
-Is it supportive, peaceful or
both? Does it help you clear your mind?
-Do
you feel renewed or purified, or that you are part of a greater whole
or being. Do you feel you belong?
These
are some of the results that many
individuals have reported from remembering
valuable experiences in
nature, experiences they would welcome repeating. Many have
conveyed that they did not need a teacher, class or book to teach them
to have an attractive nature experience; its qualities seemed to be
innate, some could remember wonderful experiences from early childhood.
We hold the truths in these experiences
to be
self-evident axioms.
|
RESOURCES
Overview
Article<http://www.ecopsych.com/hallucinatearticle.html>
Process
Synopsis<http://www.ecopsych.com/transformation.html>
Basic
Course<http://www.ecopsych.com/orient.html>
Outcomes<http://www.ecopsych.com/survey.html>
Interview<http://
www.ecopsych.com/ecopsychologyjournal.html>
Research<http://www.ecopsych.com/2004ecoheal.html>
Identity<http://www.ecopsych.com/thesisquote6.html>
Articles<http://www.ecopsych.com/2004artnews.html>
Book<http://www.ecopsych.com/ksanity.html>
Film<http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1357054/>
NAE<http://www.naturalattractionecology.com>
Act
now.
Master
Organic Psychology by doing it.
Explore it from our homepage
Contact us at
360-378-6313 <nature@interisland.net>
Achieve
a Degree or
Certificate to
strengthen your professional interests, or your hobbies or pastimes, by
connecting them with nature. Implement your strongest hopes as you
increase personal and global well being.
Topics,
subjects or leisure pursuits can include those listed below or other
areas of interest:
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"Human
behavior is rooted most deeply in nature's intentions and desire. The
rhythms of nature underlie all of human interaction: religious
traditions, economic systems, cultural and political organization. When
these human forms betray the natural psychic pulse, people and
societies get sick, nature is exploited and entire species are
threatened."
-Stephen
Aizenstat
In
industrial society our excessively nature-separated lives mold us to
betray the natural psychic pulse. We learn to block from our thinking
over 98 percent of the wise sensory callings and fulfillments we
normally share with natural systems and their eons of experience. Our
subconscious hurt and frustration from the severed disconnection of
these senses underlies our greatest troubles.
-Michael
J. Cohen
..................................
Benefit
from learning to enhance the natural psychic pulse within and around
us. Add the sensory ecoscience of Organic Psychology to
your life and livelihood.
|
.
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Grant-funded,
social and environemental science accredited courses, career training
and holistic organic learning degrees: alternative adult education and
sustainable career training jobs online for expedition education and personal and global health.
Act now: student grants,
scholarships loans for college online
|
"Scientific
research is based on the idea that everything that takes place is
determined by laws of nature, and therefore this holds for the action
of people."
.
"Truth
is what stands the
test of experience."
-
Albert Einstein
.......................................
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