As humans, we often fall into the perception that nature is something that’s “out there”
doing things that are somehow separate from us. At the same time, the more we
meditate, slow down, bathe in the forest, take the waters, we slowly become aware of a
“re-membering,” if you will, that we are not only a part of the natural world, we are also
constantly interacting with the ecosystem, and its other members are interacting with us.

This past month, we participated in a “musical walk,” with our talented musical friends,
Justin and Maren of Honey of the Heart. We walked to several places near the hotel,
singing songs to the trees, sun, plants and animals, and something magical happened
to remind us of our (re)membership in this ecosystem. When we arrived at the
geothermal source, where the waters emerge from deep in the earth, there were a
number of Kildeer (a species of plover) going about their normal routine, flying solo here
and there through the creek bed and sounding their familiar cries in the morning air. You
can observe these colorful and independent birds almost any time of the day or night at
Wilbur. When Justin and Maren took up the song, “songname” and we all began to sing
along, suddenly all the Kildeer, in unison, rose up into the air and began flying playfully
circling around us throughout the entire song. When the song ended, they resumed their
independent activities as if nothing happened. None of us have ever witnessed this
behavior, and they were clearly singing with us, dancing in the air as we all sang
together. What we often perceive as “nature” is a myriad of beings, waiting patiently to
be in relationship with each of us.

Robert Bray, a longtime Wilbur guest who now leads Forest Bathing here, reminded us
recently that our deep connection with the natural world, through listening and
observing, is a scientifically proven, positive step toward our own well being. Each of us,
in our own varying degree, we may have forgotten to listen to what the sky, water, birds
and plants are saying to us. If so, we can always make the choice to slow down, open
our hearts and our ears and listen. We welcome you to join us in doing just that on your
next visit to Wilbur Hot Springs.

We began welcoming Stewardship Work Traders at the beginning of March and since then they have put in over 800 hours into stewarding the land! We are deeply humbled by the support of our community and are so grateful to everyone for giving us their upmost support. Thank you to everyone who participated in hitting this milestone. 

Cool weather means it's easier to put in a good days work. It also means we become busier and our rooms fill up, making it harder to host work traders.. Please assist us in deciding how to navigate this through our busiest months by filling out this survey. As we wrap up summer projects and get invested in Fall projects, we excitedly await for steady rains to bring us Beaver Dam Analog building weather. Be sure to join our Stewardship email list to stay up to date on all upcoming opportunities for this winter!

Be on the look out for bird boxes on your next walk in the nature preserve! David Adams recently brought us 12 new bird boxes and helped us to locate and repair already existing boxes. 

If you have a land based project you are interested in collaborating on or are experienced in using a CNC machine for sign making, please email brew@wilburhotsprings.com.