Hello my friend.
I'm so glad you are here,
Because today we are going on a very special journey.
A journey into a quiet winter forest,
Where the trees are tall and still,
The ground is covered in soft snow,
And a little animal with very big feet is waiting for us.
Today,
We are going to meet a snowshoe hare.
Before we begin our journey,
Let's get your body comfortable.
You might like to lie down somewhere cosy.
Perhaps you have a blanket over you.
Maybe your head is resting softly on a pillow.
Wherever you are.
Let your arms relax beside you.
Let your legs become heavy.
And gently close your eyes.
Take a slow,
Deep breath in through your nose.
And slowly sigh it out.
Again,
Breathing in.
And breathing out.
With every breath,
Allow your body to soften a little more.
Let your shoulders drop.
Relax your hands.
Soften your tummy.
And let your legs become heavy and still.
There is nowhere else you need to be right now.
Nothing else you need to do.
You can simply rest and listen to my voice.
Now imagine that you are standing at the edge of a beautiful winter forest.
Everything around you is quiet.
The trees stretch high into the sky.
Their branches are covered with tiny crystals of frost.
And beneath your feet is a thick blanket of soft white snow.
You take one slow step forward and your foot sinks gently into the snow.
You take another step.
And another.
The air feels cool and fresh as you breathe it in.
And tiny clouds of mist appear in front of your face every time you breathe out.
You look around and notice how peaceful the forest feels.
As you walk deeper into the forest,
You notice something moving quietly between the trees.
Something small.
Something soft.
You stop.
And watch.
There,
Sitting very still in the snow,
Is a snowshoe hare.
It has long ears.
Bright curious eyes.
And enormous fairy feet.
You stay very still so you don't frighten it.
And after a little while,
The snowshoe hare begins to move.
It hops gently across the snow,
And you notice something very special about its feet.
Its back feet are large and wide,
Almost like little snowshoes.
Did you know?
Snowshoe hares have very large back feet that help them move across deep snow.
Their wide,
Furry feet spread their weight across the surface of the snow.
A bit like wearing snowshoes helps people walk across soft snow without sinking as deeply And those wonderful feet allow the hare to move quickly through its snowy home.
You watch as the little hare hops away.
Hop,
Hop,
Hop.
Its movements are light and quiet.
And then it stops.
It listens.
Its long ears rise into the air.
The forest is so quiet that you can almost hear the little hare breathing.
You become very still too.
And perhaps you notice your own breathing.
Slowly breathing in.
Slowly breathing out.
You look closely at the snowshoe hare.
Its fur is white,
Almost the same colour as the snow around it.
Can you imagine how magical it would feel to disappear into a snowy forest like that?
The little hare blends into the winter world.
But its fur hasn't always been white.
Did you know,
Snowshoe hares change the color of their fur with the seasons.
In winter,
Their coats become white,
Helping them blend into the snowy landscape.
Then,
As the seasons change and the snow disappears,
Their fur becomes brown again.
Their coat changes with the world around them.
It is one of the ways this little animal adapts to life in the forest.
Imagine the snowshoe hare moving quietly through the white forest,
Almost invisible beneath the falling snow.
And now,
Imagine spring arriving.
The snow melting.
Tiny green shoots appearing.
The day is becoming warmer,
And the hairs coat gradually changing with the seasons.
White becoming brown.
Winter becoming Spring.
Everything changing.
Everything growing.
Everything becoming something new.
And perhaps there is something beautiful for us all to learn here.
Change is a natural part of life.
Sometimes we might wish things could stay exactly as they are.
But,
Just like the seasons,
We changed too.
We grow.
We learn.
We discover new things about ourselves.
And we don't have to be the same person we felt we were yesterday.
We are allowed to change.
We are allowed to grow.
The snowshoe hare begins to hop deeper into the forest.
And you follow from a comfortable distance.
The snow is falling.
Tiny flakes drift down from the sky,
One by one.
They land softly on the branches.
On the ground.
On your hair.
On the hair's soft white back.
Everything feels slower here.
Why is that?
Sleep ya.
The snowshoe hare disappears behind a fallen log.
And you sit down beside a large old tree.
You lean your back against its warm,
Solid trunk.
And you look up.
The branches stretch above you like enormous arms.
Snow rests gently upon them.
The wind moves softly through the trees.
And you breathe in.
And out.
In and out.
Your body feels heavy against the earth.
Your eyes feel peaceful and sleepy.
And you imagine the snowshoe hare curled up somewhere nearby.
Safe beneath the trees.
Resting.
Listening.
Waiting.
Did you know snowshoe hares are most active around dawn,
Dusk,
And during the night?
During the day,
They may rest quietly in sheltered places.
They don't need to be busy all the time.
They know when it's time to move.
And they know when it's time to rest.
Perhaps we can learn something from that too.
You don't have to be busy all the time.
Rest is important.
Quiet time is important.
Your body needs moments to stop.
To breathe.
To be still.
Just like the snowshoe hare.
Now,
Imagine that evening is beginning to arrive.
The sky above the forest is changing colour.
The soft blue of the afternoon is becoming deeper and deeper.
Until little stars begin to appear.
One.
Thananaba.
And another.
And soon the whole sky is filled with tiny sparkles of light.
The forest is quiet beneath them.
The snow glows softly in the moonlight.
And then,
You see the snowshoe hare again.
It hops slowly through the moonlit forest.
Its white fur almost seems to glow against the dark trees.
And then it pauses beneath a tall pine tree.
It lifts its ears,
Listening to the sounds of the night.
The whisper of the wind.
The gentle movement of branches.
The tiny sounds of the forest.
You become still too.
And you listen.
Perhaps you can hear the sound of your own breathing.
Perhaps you can feel your body resting against your bed.
Or your blanket.
Or the couch or floor beneath you.
You don't need to move.
You don't need to do anything.
Just breathe.
Imagine the snow falling around you,
Softly.
Quietly.
Like thousands of tiny feathers floating down from the sky.
The snow covers the forest floor.
It covers the branches.
It covers the little pathways.
And everything becomes soft and peaceful.
The snowshoe hare curls up in a sheltered place,
Tucking its little body beneath the protection of the trees.
And you imagine yourself feeling cosy too.
Your body warm beneath a blanket.
Your head resting softly.
And your slow,
Gentle breaths.
As you rest here in the quiet winter forest,
Think about the little snowshoe hare.
It has taught us that we can adapt when things change.
We don't always know what each new season will bring.
But we can learn to move with it.
The hair has also reminded us that we don't have to rush.
There is a time to explore.
A time to listen.
And a time to rest.
And perhaps most importantly,
The snowshoe hare reminds us that being different can be a wonderful thing.
Its enormous feet may look unusual.
But those very feet help it travel through its snowy world.
Its changing coat helps it belong to different seasons.
The things that make you different.
The things that make you uniquely you.
Maybe some of your greatest gifts You don't need to be like everyone else.
You don't need to fit into someone else's shape.
You can be exactly who you are and grow in your own way.
Take a slow breath in.
And breathe it out.
One more time breathing in.
And slowly breathe out.
And now,
My friend.
Our winter journey is beginning to come to an end.
The snowy forest is becoming quieter and softer in your imagination.
The little snowshoe hare is safe and cozy beneath the trees.
And you are beginning to make your way home.
You walk slowly back through the forest until you reach the place where your journey began.
Take one final look at the snowy trees.
The moon above.
The sparkling snow.
And the little tracks left by the snowshoe hare.
Perhaps you can carry its lessons with you.
You are allowed to change.
To grow.
To rest.
And you don't have to always rush.
And of course,
You never have to be exactly like anyone else.
Take a long,
Slow breath in.
And slowly breathe it out.
Begin to notice your body again.
Feel your head resting wherever you are.
Feel your shoulders.
Your arm.
Your hands.
Your tummy gently rising and falling with each breath.
Feel your legs.
Your feet.
And the surface beneath your body.
Notice the room around you.
Perhaps you can hear a little sound nearby.
Perhaps you can feel the air on your skin.
And when you are ready.
Gently wiggle your fingers and your toes.
You may now open your eyes and move throughout your day again or continue to stay here and rest for as long as you need.
Thank you for joining me on this snowy journey together.
I hope you remember the little snowshoe hare and the quiet lessons it shared with us.
Bye for now,
My friend.
