Survival is often thought of as living off the land. We gain much more from any survival skills we learn when we realise that they are about living with the land, and that we are supported by everything around us.

The process of learning to build a shelter from material lying around in the forest that can keep you warm in winter and dry in torrential rainfall is empowering and gives a profound sense of freedom. Creating fire by friction means that we never again take for granted the heat in our homes, the gas in our cooker or the flick of a lighter.

The deep sense of alienation from the earth and the environmental crisis we are now immersed in has arisen as a direct result of the disconnection we have from knowing that all our possessions and provisions come from the earth, and are a gift.

We may know this intellectually, but the entire structure of our civilized life divorces us from knowing this through experience

Natural movement is a key part of this. The way we move profoundly affects our consciousness, and how we move is a direct reflection of our inner state. Moving slowly, often at night, learning to move without disturbing any part of what we move through, enables us to calm the mind until we become synchronised with the rhythms of nature. Beyond thought, the layers of the world open up. We feel the life force within and around us, and we become able to sense and perceive in a way that goes beyond the physical senses.

Lipan Apache children would, as play, practice getting close enough to touch an animal before it became aware of their presence.  Stalking Wolf was given his name as a young child for his ability to do so with that most aware of wild creatures, the wolf.  Approaching wild animals, or sitting near them without them knowing you are there is an incredible feeling.