Wild Swimming

Immersing yourself in the wildness, magic and history of Britain
by Daniel Start

When I was young, the rambling old house we shared with two other families came with lakes, woods, streams and an overgrown boat house. Situated deep in the heart of the Wye valley, close to the Welsh border, in the UK,  it was here my brother and I first learned to make dams, build rafts and explore the river.

I loved one stream in particular. Gushing and snaking its way down the side of the Black Mountains, its mossy dingles and foxglove-filled dells enchanted me. Plunging into deep pools and sliding down chutes, my brother and I spent much of our summer squealing and slithering along its helter-skelter of cascades.

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“Brother Sun Sister Moon”

by John Scull

A while back we were contributing favorite films related to ecopsychology. I forgot to mention my favorite, “Brother Sun Sister Moon,” featuring Donovan’s musical settings of some of St. Francis’ prayers and a very lovely St. Clare.  Francis is portrayed as a gentle nature-loving hippie and nicely ignores the side of him that was a Christian fanatic and skilled organizer.

For an amazing new cinema resource, the National Film Board of Canada, famous for their shorts and documentaries, has now compiled all their ecology-related footage and made it available online for free.  Some full length films, some excerpts.  Browse