For my summer backcountry trips, I like to use themes that I learned from my 1991 vision quest and subsequent studies. Ideal for this is three full days in the wilderness, which is equivalent to four nights.
Day 1 is based on the traditional idea of “crying for a vision.” Or another way of saying this is, Where is my heart calling to find my place in the world?
Day 2 is based on the statement, “Grant me a vision that my people might live.” In other words, open my heart and eyes to what I can do to best contribute to those I love.
Day 3 is all about reincorporation, or coming back into the body. This means weaving my vision into my day-to-day life.
As I write, I am full on into Day 1. It has rained much of the day, so in the evening, I was faced with building a fire in the wet forest. I went around and broke off the lower dead limbs of the pines, which are highly flammable. Then, back at my site, I used my knife to strip the wet bark and find the dry, aged pine. It was a success.
May you find the visions that sustain you.
“This is the path where poison becomes nectar and worldly life becomes the abode of liberation. “
-Sally Kempton
