Finding Your Sit Spot

This past week, I have been exploring the campus and surrounding area in preparation for this class. I have been wandering around campus in search of my sit spot, feeling like I am exploring a strange new land. And the more I explore, the more I realize that it is a strange new land. I am finding water where I had never thought to expect it, hidden stands of trees, edible and medicinal plants peeking out of the mulched landscaping, trees and shrubs that I had never noticed before, birds species from the small Carolina Wren to the larger Red-tailed Hawk, animal tracks of deer, raccoons, a fox and maybe even an opossum. I realized that North is not where I had thought it was all these years and that I really didn’t know the topography of the campus very well. On Wednesday, I got so carried away listening to bird language and poking around in the dirt that I had forgotten I was supposed to be heading back to the office. This past week, I have been utterly fascinated by the influx of hominids of all different shapes, sizes and colors. Some are clearly very new to this strange land, and some seem to be returning (migration pattern?). Despite my familiarity with this specific species, so much of their behavior utterly mystified me…
-Geoff Cox

Finding your sit spot: Spend some time this week wandering the campus as if you were a surveyor seeing the campus for the first time, or Ish exploring a new world. Allow yourself to be led to a spot on campus that calls out to you, maybe one you have never been to before. Your spot must be outside and should be in a place where you can observe what is going on around you without interacting with other people. You can choose a location that has a view of an area with frequent human activity, but you will still have to make sure you will be able to sit still and not be required to interact with others at your spot. You may have to get creative to make this work. You can consider what the best camouflage might be around other people.

Although any spot can be a sit spot, you may wish to consider:
-being near a body of water
-being on an edge area (for example, where a meadow meets a forest)
-a place with a diversity of natural elements
-a place with a broad view where you can see a large area well
-an area where you are unlikely to be seen or noticed by other people
-a place where you can sit comfortably
-and most of all, a place that invites your curiosity!

At your spot: When you find your spot, spend 15-30 minutes sitting there, looking around and getting to know the place. How many different kinds of plants and critters do you see? Can you tell which way North is without a compass? Settle in and allow your mind to become still.

In addition to your journal: After returning from your spot, draw a map of the area around your spot from memory with as much detail as possible. Bring your map to class on Tuesday.