Dear friends,
Last week I was invited to watch my daughter’s year 6 after-school science club. When I arrived along with all the other parents we found the classroom was filled with eggs. Four tables had been pushed together and were stacked with egg boxes. Scores of eggs were laid out in rows, covering a large portion of the floor. “This way please” the teacher said as we edged our way around the eggs, careful not to step on them, and made our way to the seats at the back.
Our children were lab-coated and visored up, with blue shoe protectors on, all looking very excited. “Who thinks they can break some eggs by squeezing them?” the teacher challenged us. In groups of six at a time, parents and kids came forward to give it a try. “That’s it, squeeze as hard as you can, dig in with your nails, use both hands!” There was much puffing of cheeks and laughing, as we squeezed with all our might without producing so much as a hairline crack.
Next came the pièce de résistance, as every child stepped forward to walk over the scores of eggs laid out on the floor. One after the other they teetered the egg gauntlet without cracking a single shell, jumping off at the end, smiling, triumphantly.
The teacher went on to explain why eggs evolved to be so resilient under pressure, and how the engineering of this actually works. Most of this scientific explanation was lost on me. I was just struck by the turning-on its head of the old adage about walking on eggshells, and by how glorious it felt to be defeated in our efforts to crush what was new, unformed, and vulnerable.
Wherever you are, and however you’re celebrating the arrival of Spring, I wish for you that you may trust that what comes vulnerable and newborn into your hands, brings with it a certain toughness, more so than you realise, and that you can rely on it, even rest your body weight on it, and it will hold.
The resilience of newborn things is a theme that’s been on my mind, since our flagship spiritual ecology programme Lifelines wrapped up its planting season. All up and down the country, rose, hawthorn, and rowan whips are bursting into leaf, their first greening in their newly planted homes. Meanwhile, the friendships forged between volunteers on the programme are also growing in new and unexpected ways. If you’re interested in participating in the 2024/25 Lifelines programme, you can find out more here.
This Spring we’ve got some exciting events we hope you’ll join us for. On 7th May we’ll be hosting Mudibu at Listen to the World. Our ever popular Conflict Coaching training is happening on 19th April, and on 10th May we’ll be offering our one-day Facilitation training. Check out our latest nature-connection programme With Nature in Mind. There’s still time to apply for a space at our Spiritual Ecology Conference in June, and for other upcoming events, new blogs and videos do visit our website! I hope to see you in person or online very soon.
With warmest wishes from
Clare Martin
and the whole of the St Ethelburga’s team
