After greeting each other in Northern Tutchone, last month I sought advice from family friend, Mr. Silverfox.
First Nation drumming relays the heartbeat of Mother Nature and all people. I wondered about incorporating drum music during a presentation on heightened experiences in nature.
“Is it appropriate for me to include drumming, does the music vary among tribes?” I asked.
He described the beat doesn’t change among tribes so much as the drum itself. “The skin,” he said, “defines tone, and where the tribe originates”. (Ie: Caribou= Northern tribes)
“You are making it too complicated,” he said. “Just like white man drumming, which is more complicated than ours. I will teach you.”
Ever the patient educator, hands on laps, we tapped the universal beat he spoke of.
Tone impacts conversation in all languages. With human conversations becoming more electronic, personal engagement is lost, and tone can be easily misinterpreted. In the words of Mr. Silverfox, it can be complicated.
What is the origin of our message? are we paying attention & listening?
How does tone affect communing with nature? The very description of commune relays depth of intensity :
Communing definition, to converse or talk together, usually with profound intensity, intimacy, etc.; interchange thoughts or feelings.
There are so many ways to explore the natural outdoors, alone or with others. It may help to reaffirm your purpose the next time you wander in the woods, to reap the benefits of nature. What is your intention? How will you achieve this?
Each experience has a ‘tone’, powerfully unique from others.
We can be inspired, infused with energy, distracted, or soothed, depending on activity and the company we may keep.
Walking with a friend, I focus on our conversation. Nature is the backdrop, which may set the ‘tone’ of our discussion. Often people feel more comfortable discussing difficult subjects in nature.
Cycling and running companions ask if I absorb the landscape we pass to paint. Thou I am witnessing beauty and feeling joyful, my focus is our activity and my companions.
It’s the solo adventures that fuel the work, and reveal a unique ‘tone’ of experience.
Solo explorations can be a window to sanctuary, reflection, and discovery. A personal conversation with nature, is communing in truth. It’s such a gift! If it’s available for you to wander solo, I highly recommend it.
Alone we can be attuned to whispers of the wind and feel our heartbeats merging with Mother Earth.
May your wanderings be healthy, safe, soul enriching, and remain in loving kindness.
~
All work above is available for purchase, email me for details dawn@dawnbanning.com
“Tundra” available at Hambleton Galleries, www.hambletongalleries.com
~ Special thanks to Mr. Silverfox, :0)