5/19 - Making Something With Our Hands

This Tuesday morning began bright and warm with the promise of water play. Friends gathered at the table to discover the wet-felted rocks they had created the week before, now dry and ready to open up! With blunt needles, thread, and beads, they made different creations.

First, they cut through the felt in an X pattern to remove the rock and pull it out. Then they shaped the petals and pushed a threaded needle through the back of the flower to create a stem. Lastly, they strung beads along the thread to make a chain. Littles worked together with their caregivers to make art together.

Then it was time to make some big body movements and jumping thought the sprinkler! Friends snuck up to the spinning water, unsure of what the result might be. K convinced her caregiver to run through with her and then we all felt more confident. N and Mt wanted to fill up big bowls with the sprinkler and problem solved the best way to get close to the spray. T and Hn bravely ran though to show their friends that it was fun! We follow each other’s lead when things seem uncertain. If our friends can do it, we can too!

After cooling off in the water, we gathered on the blanket for a story. It was K's birthday, so we read Welcome, Flower Child by Bridgette Barrager and learned about everyone's birth flowers together. We sang "Happy Birthday" to K, and then we were off to the fountain to cool off some more.

At first, the water felt too cold. Mv clung to her caregiver, uncertain whether she wanted to be in or out of the fountain. N and K used cups and bowls to make soup while Hn climbed to the top of the fountain. From up there, he kicked water toward T, who was surprised and they both started to cry. Hn came down, and T went up.

After a few minutes, T asked Hn if he would join her at the top. She was asked whether she was ready to play a splashing game, and she said, "Yes!" It seemed that the question itself was what she needed - an invitation that let her choose. Sometimes we just need to be asked if we are ready to play a game.

We noticed how this small exchange held something worth sitting with: we make mistakes and get caught up in moments, but when we take time to reflect and then repair, we can come back together ready to play.

Once we cooled off at the fountain, we headed down the hill to the rope swing. Friends took turns swinging or settled among the pine needles. R went off to check on the big stick. Mc, Mv, and K made nests out of pine needles on the ground. They considered together what a bird might want in a nest and added soft leaves and grasses. Mc found a pinecone completely stripped of its scales, we thought it might be evidence that a squirrel had been by for a snack. What happened here, and who came before us?

Then we all made our way back to the circle in our own time. We move slowly in the heat, enjoying the warmth, drinking lots of water, and resting in the shade. When everyone was back in the garden, we sang "Love Is a Circle" before saying our goodbyes.

Thanks for being part of Brave Nature Collaborative.

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