How do you describe the sweetness of a mango to someone who’s never tasted it? Or explain how the ocean feels to someone living in the desert? Experience is our greatest teacher.

I’m halfway through my Morning Altars teacher training, and this past weekend, it was a gift to share this practice with three special individuals. To bear witness to the transformative power of meaning-making using nature. Arranging our outer world to make sense of our internal landscape. To see the changes that took place through gathering, arranging, rearranging, creating, and surrendering to what wanted to come through each altar. To lay something down and let it go.

I’m still a student- deepening, growing, and fine-tuning. But being able to share this practice with more people as I continue to learn has been the best part of all. Like sharing a slice of ripe mango with a friend or stepping into the ocean with them for the first time. You look at nature differently. Appreciate it in a new way.

(Photos courtesy of Anthony Lé)