Service at Woodstock Farm: 11-11-16

In the past few days, a new personal motto has come up for me: The Antidote to Apathy is Action. Taking action can also help alleviate frustration and anxiety, and generally helps one feel purposeful. 

Four GEC groups contributed joyful purpose to our shared service day, taking pride in our new role as caretakers of Woodstock Farm.

At our gathering meeting, we learned about the history of this place and the role of generosity and forward conservationist thinking that led to its preservation. Thanks to Cyrus Gates, his family home and land has been gifted to Whatcom County for all to enjoy - Mr. Gates also had a strong hand in protecting Larrabee State Park, Arroyo and Fairhaven Parks, Sehome Arboretum, and the Mt. Baker Bulb Farm (since turned into Bellis Faire Mall due to a legal loophole).

We brainstormed on who the users of the park are: humans, yes, but also raven, salmon, chipmunk, raccoon, weasel, mouse, heron, slug and so much more. We talked about why a park needs caretakers for all these stakeholders, and what occurs without people lending a hand to manage trails and terrain. Since our gathering area was adjacent to a stand of alders, thimbleberry and salmonberry, overrun by invasive blackberry, the girls quickly understood how invasive species take over native ones rather quickly.

Then we were off on a very short trip by bus to our destination just up the road. The next few hours were spend collaborating in purposeful work, removing invasives with care and attention, singing and talking while we worked. Worms were admired, baby fir trees were transplanted, connections were made between within and between GEC groups.

Each group shared some time on the bluff overlooking the sea, marveling at this extraordinary view that is normal for us here in Bellingham, and feeling thankful that Cyrus Gates had the foresight to set this bluff aside for all to enjoy. We also gave thanks for the Clark family for it's donation of Clark's Point to the Whatcom Land Trust, and the preservation of Chuckanut Island, now owned by the Nature Conservancy (but which was, long ago, a 13th birthday present for Cyrus Gate's son!).

Other gratitudes shared included the company of one another, the chance to serve, Explorers Club, trees, the Salish Sea, connections, generosity, and people who understand that all things are connected.

Enjoy the slideshow from our day here! 

Exploration at N. Lake Whatcom 10-2-16

The Salish Seals spent this past Sunday lost in exploration and imaginative play on the North side of Lake Whatcom. The sun shone down upon us as we gathered in the parking lot at the N. Lake Trailhead. We widened our circle to welcome Lila to the Salish Seals group, along with some of our Fiddlehead friends who joined us for the day. The group discussed a potential plan for the day and distributed jobs bags during our Opening Circle and then we set off into the woods towards the lake.

Our Owl Eyes were quickly awakened by beautiful spider webs glimmering in the trees above us. Banana slugs slimed their way across the trail in front of us, and a few girls pointed out some artist mushrooms growing on a dead stump beside the trail. We hear birds chirping in the canopy above our heads and stopped to observe shelters and fairy houses built by the Fiddleheads group weeks before. The Salish Seals took their time on the path down to the beach, stopping to be sure the whole group was together and living out our motto it's about the journey, not the destination.

We stopped at a break in the trail to practice our Collaborate and Compromise skills to decide which way to go. Holly, Eleanor, and I stepped out of the circle as the girls did an impressive job of voicing their opinions in an organized fashion, giving every group member a turn to voice her opinion before making a joint decision. In the end, the girls chose the beach over the waterfall, with an exciting vision of creating their own civilization on the beach.

The day unravelled with snacking, splashing, and three hours of imaginative play and free exploration. Our small strip of beach soon transformed into our own civilization, complete with a shelter, a campfire, a baking oven, and a hospital station. Girls took on the roles of huntress, doctor, medicine girl, herbalist, baker, mayor, and builders. Berries and leaves were collected for tinctures and bandages, rocks were collected for a bakers oven, and driftwood was secured in place to create a shelter. After some busy work on the beach, the girls cooled off in the lake...in October! Their voices carried over the water as they gleefully shouted, "I'm alive!" and "this is life!", splashing one another and encouraging others to join in.

With the sun still shining high and the lake sparkling in front of us, we spread out to dry off a little and enjoy Peaceful Place before packing up and heading to the field across the trail for a final activity.

We played a quick few rounds of Rabbit Hole and then gathered for our Closing Circle to give our thanks for this place, the water, our friends, the sunshine, and many other things during our Attitude of Gratitude.

With all hands in the middle of the circle, we concluded with our words of the day: WATER, FUN , and FRIENDS at WILD WHATCOM!

Enjoy the full album of the day here. 

International Coastal Clean-up 9-17-16

Wow! Saturday's coastal clean-up came and went in a flurry of rain, wind, fog, sleet...you name it! The Fiddleseal Salishheads truly lived out our motto Walk your Talk, joining thousands of volunteers in a world-wide effort to clean up our coastlines! Instead of complaints and "no-can-do's", we heard sing-songy voices yelling "it's raining, it's pouring, let's go exploring!" and watched the group jump into gear (literally, as trash-bags became dresses...) to clean up Bakerview Beach. While most people (for good reason) probably snuggled up with a warm blanket and cup of tea on this stormy Saturday morning, this group of young stewards braved the weather, setting a truly inspiring example of how we can Connect and Protect the natural spaces and habitats that surround us.

Some highlights of our day included...

Gathering like a group of ducks in our bright and oversized rain gear, smiles on faces despite the downpour. As girls gathered, we played a warm-up game of Rabbit Hole to get our bodies moving!

Welcoming in a few new faces to the group during our Opening Circle and discussing ways in which we could help keep our spirits high for the duration of our service project. The girls were eager to voice their thoughts on correct layering, shelter-building, and eating food for fuel to stay safe and have fun throughout the day!

Painting our faces and transforming into Trash Tigers. The girls then scattered along the beach with big garbage bags and gloves, hunting for their prey...in this case trash!



Discovering and disecting a large dead salmon on the beach.

Sipping hot apple cider under the protection of our shelter and singing rain songs into the wind during lunch.





Dressing up Holly, a.k.a. Queen Trashola, with a soggy towel, trash crown, and plastic shield.

















Splashing along the shore and building hot tubs to put our feet and hands in. They actually felt warm!

Shlepping our soggy selves and full bags of trash back up to the somewhat sheltered yard. Here we enjoyed some nice warm hot cocoa and rolled up in a cinnamon bun hug to warm each other up!

Playing games in the yard until it was time for closing circle and goodbyes. Our cups were all overflowing with gratitude for the warm houses, beds, and showers that awaited us. But more than that-despite our soggy clothing and cold feet-there was much gratitude shared for the rain, the ocean, the mud, and the friends around us on this day of service.

We ended with our words of the day: Trash Tigers, rain, and service on the beach!

To view the full album of the day, click here.

Exploration at Teddy Bear Cove: 6-4-16

The Salish Seals are such curious and spirited explorers! Their commitment to being Earth Keepers shines in their need to clean up every place we visit. They are a force during service projects, and their ethic carries over in every outing. Each group eventually forms its own identity over time, and some take a few seasons or even years to find the flow of curiosity, energy, and creativity that buoys exploration. The Salish Seals LOVE to explore!

We gathered near the trailhead in opening circle, and reconnected with our group. We revisited memorable moments from our outings this spring season and spent some time talking about how we feel about garbage, based on our last service project. There was lots of expression and digesting of feelings about how they know whether a situation feels safe. We discussed how to let the quiet voice inside be your guide when it comes to situations that may feel uncomfortable, and you are not sure what to do. We agreed that asking a grownup about the relative safety of garbage BEFORE picking it up is good advice, and listening to one's intuition is a valuable tool. While sharing a few salmonberries, we also talked about meeting plants before you eat, as some berries that are yummy, look like noxious ones, and vice versa.

We knew that today was one of the lowest tides of the year and the popularity of our destination, so we expected our location to be rather busy. We revisited relevant safety protocols, especially regarding picking up garbage, and our agenda of exploring today. We began our descent down the trail to the sea, and within minutes of leaving the trailhead the Salish Seals were engaging in impromptu service projects! These girls truly embody the motto You See it You Own It, and have owl eyes for litter that needs picking up.   

Our day was framed by a constant dance of Stretching Our Edge, Safety First, and so much curiosity about the world. Often the strongest pull is to explore a new experience such as rock climbing, dunking in the chilly sea, scrambling down a steep hill or up a limbed tree. These new experiences offer the Challenge By Choice for girls to stretch their edges, and at the same time also require us to take responsibility for our safety by Thinking Through Before We Do and conducting S.T.O.P's before we leap into a challenge such as rock climbing. The girls are learning the important balance between going headlong willy nilly into exploration and taking a moment to contemplate and proceed with a wise plan.

Highlights from the day included:

-Lots of quality time spent during snack and lunch sharing feelings and stories.
-Setting up a rope and climbing up the steep rocky bluff to a grove of Madronas and stunning view of the bay

-Looking out to sea and seeing a magical rainbow in the clouds!

-Discovering an alligator lizard sunning itself on the rocks, and quickly disappearing

-Finding many treasures to wonder. Piddock clams (they bored holes in the ROCKS-much to our sheer amazement), Seastars and crabs galore, sea anemones, sea cucumbers...
-A treasured visitor, Teacher Jess! 

-Peaceful Place on the bluff during a busy afternoon.

Finally, as we do on the last outing of every season, The Salish Seals reflected upon the connections we made together throughout the season with a Web of Life Activity that reminded us of our motto All Things Are Connected. Each girl became something from nature we connected to this spring: clouds, sand, sticks, water, sunshine, the Salish Sea, insects, wind, the world, and a human. In creating our web with string, we clearly saw how all things are connected, and how every single action - human caused or nature made - affects the entire web. We can strengthen or weaken the web through our choices: in GEC we aim to be strengtheners! 

Our words of the day? Sun, Fun, Crabs!

For the full album of the day, click here

Service along Connelly Creek: 5-14-16

The Salish Seals took their collaboration, determination, and participation skills to the next level this past Saturday, cleaning up the trail along Connelly Creek with owl eye vision and fox-walk caution. With Leave No Trace attitudes, we were able to pick up a large bag of trash, and another filled with recyclables, along with other miscellaneous items.  

There was excited energy during our Opening Circle as the wind swirled around us. After a very fitting game of "The South Wind Blows" (as the south wind did indeed blow), we dove into a discussion about what our main task would be for the day- trash pick-up along Connelly Creek- and how we could accomplish this in a safe and collaborative way. We reviewed the three R's (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) and talked about the importance of minimizing waste in everything we do. The girls then defined the "unsafe" trash we might encounter, and we agreed as a group to Think it Through Before You Do. The girls would use their "chikadee-dee-dee" call to get a mentors' opinion before touching anything that didn't seem safe. Our motto "let that quiet voice inside be your guide" and our S.T.O.P. principals would be especially alive while we hunted for trash, following our intuition and putting our safety first! We did a quick pop-quiz to review the items worthy of a "chickadee!", with props from our packs. As expected, the girls aced the quiz, pointing to the safe vs. unsafe items and deeming the group ready to become Trash Detectives and Earthkeepers for the day. 

Before hitting the trail, the girls searched for a poison hemlock on the edge of the parking lot, which they learned is the most poisonous plant in the PNW (all parts are poisonous!). With a few ID clues (carrot-like top, purple splotches on the stem, deep purple/redish coloring at the root crown), the girls pointed out (but didn't touch) the poison hemlock growing all around. 

We then set off, Walking our Talk and practicing the motto You See it You Own It with every single piece of garbage we saw. We also were able to notice some of the wonders that nature holds this time of year. The cottonwood seeds had created a thick, snowy layer over the forest floor, and the thimbleberries showed off their sweet white blossoms, soon to be berries. 

After wandering down the trail, slowly and carefully as not to miss any trash, we came to a "social path", which had been heavily used to access a once beautiful cedar grove. Now this area was scattered with trash, a fire-pit in the middle, and evidence of human damage to the surrounding trees and forest floor. This area sparked a rich conversation about the stories these places might tell us and the things we can learn from others who leave their trace rather than respecting the forest plants and creatures who were there first. We discussed the motto We Are All Teachers, emphasizing that it is our job as Earthkeepers and land stewards to teach others the importance of Leave No Trace. 

After a short jaunt down the trail, we stopped for lunch in a still beautiful and untouched cedar grove. Aimee shared a story that related to reciprocity and the GEC motto, Our Cups Overflow. The discussion turned to the idea of acting on our motto You See It, You Own It simply by acting as a safety net and support system for others, and stepping in when appropriate rather than being a bystander in situations we can help resolve. The girls acted out what they felt was the right action to take if someone they knew was being teased or needed support. 

Our lunchtime conversation wrapped up and we continued on to the open fields of Joe's Garden. We stopped here to reflect on the many wonderful things that humans bring to this world, with perfect rows of greens and sprouting squash plants stretching in every direction around us. We continued on from there, stopping briefly for a picture of the group with two giant bags of trash before leaving them behind to be scooped up by the city trucks. 

Our final fork in the road, worthy of group collaboration, was at bird box 27, mounted high on a sitka spruce tree. Here the group had to decide wether to take the well-traveled but roundabout trail to the llama pasture, or go through the woods and across a stretch of swamp to seek and find the back gate. We decided to take the road less traveled, entering the pasture through the back gate after mucking our way through an impressive grove of skink cabbage...P-YEW! 

Our service day concluded with sharing snacks with Aimee's sister-in-law's llama and sheep, respecting these regals animals as we offered up apples and carrots in an attempt to coax them closer. Unfortunately, our group seemed to be closer in appearance to a wolf-pack than a friendly group of girls, and our llama and sheep friends didn't venture very close. We talked about how llamas and sheep are both animals of prey, with eyes located on the sides of their skulls to see predators better. "Eyes in the front, the animal hunts. Eyes on the side, the animal hides." 

We ended with a heartfelt attitude of gratitude and acknowledgements for the hard work we put in as Litter Detectives and Earthkeepers throughout the day. To view the slideshow of the day, click here. 

Our words of the day? Seeking and Serving!

EC Mottos that came into play today: You See it You Own It, Everybody Helps, Walk Your Talk, All Things are Connected, Leave No Trace, Our Cups Overflow, Bridges Not Walls

Service with Greenways at Franklin Park: 4-16-16

"What group is this?" and "How old are these girls?" were two questions we received multiple times throughout our service outing at Franklin Park this past Saturday. Dog-walkers, fellow volunteers, and even a photographer from the York Neighborhood Newsletter voiced their disbelief and appreciation for the hard work and determination of the Salish Seal group.

Our outing began with an enthusiastic round of names and body actions to represent how each of us was feeling during Opening Circle. We reviewed the mottos we learned during our previous outing, including Widen Your Circle, Be Prepared, and Safety First, followed by a great explanation of our S.T.O.P Principals from a few of the girls. We talked about the importance of both physical safety and heart safety in this group when our motto, Build Bridges, Not Walls, was introduced, and then introduced two new mottos, both of which would be especially alive throughout our service day: Walk Your Talk and, Our Cups Overflow. Aimee provided a demonstration of the motto, Our Cups Overflow, filling a cup with a splash of water for each basic need the girls called out…“Food!” “Water!” “Shelter,” “Clothing,” “Love!” “Nature”. When all of our basic needs were accounted for, Aimee asked the girls to share some things we have in our lives that we don’t necessarily need. The list grew quickly, overflowing the cup as girls shouted out everything from toys, candy, extra clothes, key-chains, and books to vacation, pets, electronics, and sports! We discussed how today we would be taking some of our own overflowing cups and pouring them into the cups of Franklin Park and all the animals, plants, and people who enjoy or live in this beautiful space.  

The girls then became those plants and animals as part of a skit to represent the main job the day. Some girls became sword fern, oregon grape, and nootka rose, while others planted themselves as red flowering current shrubs or scurried around like squirrels and rabbits. Finally, a few girls jumped into the mix and planted themselves as bluebells among the thriving forest. Soon the bluebells began growing and pushing the other species out. But not for long! Some determined and willing explorers came along and noticed these invasive (yet beautiful) bulbs taking over the park and began pulling them out and putting them in buckets to be taken away. This would be our job for the day!

We gathered to help Rae (the project coordinator) schlep buckets, snacks, and gear bins down to the path where we’d begin our work. With Hori Hori gardening knifes and pitch-forks carefully in hand, the girls set to work uprooting bluebell bulbs and freeing the Oregon grape, snowberry, and red flowering current plants that were desperately trying to grow among them.  And WOW can this group ever Walk their Talk and get work done! If you’ve ever seen a colony of ants at work, that’s exactly what the Salish Seals looked like scattered across the hillside, dirt flying, buckets filling, and enthusiastic, encouraging, and collaborative energy rippling among them.

Finally, after a morning of hard work pulling bluebells and mulching, the girls (reluctantly) gathered for lunch. Some girls had found trash among the plants so we discussed another GEC motto, You See It, You Own It and the precaution that must be taken when picking up litter. We gathered our belongings and walked up the path to set up a lunch circle on top of the hillside where we'd spent the morning working. We took our time wandering along the trail, picking bouquets of bluebells and comfrey. During lunch, we shared acknowledgements for each other and for the earth, with some very passionate and mature comments from most of the girls about the things they observed and appreciated throughout the morning. Freya reminded us that we should all acknowledge ourselves, as well as each other, which can be hard to remember sometimes. 

To conclude our day, we split into pairs (with our buddies for the day), and did a trust walk activity, which brought us back to our morning gathering spot. In our closing circle, we shared an Attitude of Gratitude and our Words of the Day: Finding Trust And Filling Cups!

Enjoy our full slideshow of the day here.

Exploration at Scudder's Pond & Whatcom Falls Park: 3-5-16

Sunny skies and warm temperatures greeted us this Saturday morning for the Salish Seals' first outing of the spring season! We looked for signs of the turning season around us as the girls gathered- budding leaves and blossoming flowers on Indian Plum and cherry trees, earthworms wiggling in the warm mud, the bright green grass below our feet, and robins chirping happily in the trees above.

Before coming together for Opening Circle, we played a round of "Who Am I?", pasting tape with different animal and plant names on each girls back. The girls mingled and asked each other "yes" or "no" questions until they guessed their plant/animal.

Our Opening Circle was especially exciting, with a lot of new faces in the Salish Seals group. Welcome Paige, Azadeh, Ava, and Shiloh! A lively name-game got our bodies moving as we each shared our name and an action to represent something we like to do outside (climbing trees, swimming, napping, hammocking, biking, discovering new things...).

Before beginning our trek to Whatcom Falls Park, the returning girls in the group helped teach and act out our S.T.O.P. safety principals (Stop, Think, Observe, Plan) and we assigned group roles (trash carrier, "spirit girl", water cheers leaders, etc.) The girls Stretched their Edge by pairing with someone they didn't know well in the group to be their trail buddy for the day before we set off. The day unfolded with new discoveries, sharing of nature knowledge, free exploration, and connections made within our group and with the many different places, plants, and animals we saw along the way. Read on for some highlights of our sunny Saturday. You can find our words of the day, the mottos that guided us, and the full photo album below.

* We stopped to admire the wonders of wetlands at Scudder's Pond: redwing blackbird's brilliant markings and song, beaver's chew marks on trees, cattails' many talents (food, shelter, insulation, medicine, multiple uses in every season), and wetland plants' skill at removing toxins from water before releasing it beyond...

*Before leaving the Scudder's Pond, we acted out the service project that wetlands do every day. A few girls became oil, pesticides, and other toxins. Some became mud, a few danced like water, and some girls became plants rooted in the pond. The skit we created showed the pond in action- as the toxins began seeping into the pond, the mud worked hard block these toxins from getting to the plants. Some toxins still got through but the plants put up a good fight, absorbing the toxins through their roots and acting as a strainer for the clean water to dance and flow freely through. We gave gratitude to this wetland ecosystem for the incredible service it does for the earth before moving on down the trail.

* We learned how to identify cottonwood trees, with their curvy branches, large buds, and heart-shaped leaves. We stopped at a particularly large cottonwood tree and saw how many girls it took joining hands to wrap around the trunk. We thanked the cottonwoods for providing us with yellow sticky sap, which can be used as an antibacterial remedy for the skin. Some glued their hands together, while others simply enjoyed the sweet smell.

* Observed trailside inhabitants like blossoming Indian plum, a sunning snake, a giant upturned root system, beaver signs, Oregon grape, Salal, big cedar trees...

*The girls used their Collaborate and Compromise skills to navigate their way towards Whatcom Falls Park, stopping to make a group decision whenever we reached a fork in the trail.  

* Meandered down "Lichen Lane", discovering the variety of dust, crust, scale, leaf, club, shrub, hair and other types of algae/fungus relationships! So green and hairy, and lots to observe with our Owl Eyes.

* Crawled under a bridge to see the river before returning to a side trail for lunch in the sun!

*We had a very thoughtful group check-in, sharing the recent changes in our lives and discussing how each of our lives is constantly moving, changing, ebbing, and flowing, just like the river we have followed throughout the day. We talked about the safe space that we create as a group when we listen to one another and build trust as a group.

*Played "Pooh sticks" on the bridge after lunch. 

* Found serenity in Whatcom Creek, and sat along the slow calm edges for Peaceful Place, watching waterfowl, writing, sketching, imagining, sitting still...

*Made it to "Licorice Fern Bridge" near the main falls where we watched the  churning water below.

*In closing circle, we followed the EC Motto "Attitude of Gratitude" by giving thanks. We were thankful for sunshine, trees, cattails, mud, wetlands, friends (new and old!), and each other for supporting our exciting discoveries this outing.

Enjoy our full album of the day here.

Our words of the day? Awesome sunshiny day exploring clear waterfalls, mud, trees, cattails, and fish hatcheries with new friends and mentors at Whatcom Falls!

Mottos that guided our day together: 
Be Prepared, Widen the Circle, Collaborate & Compromise, All things are Connected, Make sure you Meet before you Eat, Leave No Trace, Attitude of Gratitude, and Stretch Your Edge!