Tracking, Tending and Questing in Community
Tracking and Questing in South Africa
by Scott Davidson, stories of being called to South Africa, of circles clearly serving
6th International Guides Gathering in Western Cape and Tracker Academy in the Great Karoo - October 2014
Honestly, it seems impossible for me to share this story in one telling, to find words true enough to speak to this square page. At the risk of not sharing my love enough, I’ll try.
by Scott Davidson, stories of being called to South Africa, of circles clearly serving
6th International Guides Gathering in Western Cape and Tracker Academy in the Great Karoo - October 2014
Honestly, it seems impossible for me to share this story in one telling, to find words true enough to speak to this square page. At the risk of not sharing my love enough, I’ll try.
Circles are helpful and healing everywhere, this time with local red cloth, directional stones and a kudu horn as our talking piece.
There are lifetimes of stories that led me to South Africa, stories of my ancestor’s footsteps, of my own longings healed and empowered, of my skills sharpened and now serving. Specific invitations called me to serve on the other side of the Earth this time, at the 6th International Rites of Passage Gathering (big Thanks! to Global Rites of Passage for the special support) and at the Tracker Academy (special thanks to Alex van den Heever for the invite). These invites came to me in ripe moments of living in full connection and flow, following what feels like living original instructions without resistance. Simply being myself, sharing my truth and vision. Is there any other way to serve life in this great turning but to be ourselves in loving connection?
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Living original instructions, following invitations with the Wilderness Guides Council 2014 Gathering at Ocean Song, CA, tracking with Ren and
Alex in the Cuyama Valley, CA, and with the 6th International Rites of Passage Guides Gathering in the Stanford Valley,South Africa.
Alex in the Cuyama Valley, CA, and with the 6th International Rites of Passage Guides Gathering in the Stanford Valley,South Africa.
Now imagine rolling down a strange dusty road in the Great Karoo in South Africa to “bring skills in rites of passage” to people you haven’t met within cultures you don’t understand on a completely foreign landscape. Kind of crazy. The ceremonies I most love come directly from the land with structures, cycles and teachings that mirror the local ecology. I so love my work at home, mentoring rites of passages, guiding across thresholds, cultivating deep connections. Circles, smudge sticks, directional prayers, personal stories, the language of birds… These are all common place with our work at home on the west coast of North America. As we rolled down that dusty road at the Samara Game Reserve in South Africa to the Tracker Academy, my dear friend and co-guide Lolla and I held many questions, perhaps most essential: What will serve these people on this land now? Will this circle of indigenous North America serve in South Africa? Months earlier I asked: Who am I as a white dude from the States to bring ceremony to black Africa? Am I really the right person for this job? The answer was clearly yes, threefold, and I trusted. Who am I to deny synchronicities and loving laws of attraction? Trusting in the moments, we paused at the Samara gate, introduced ourselves wholeheartedly to the wild Karoo landscape, offered these questions and listened. Two pied crows above and some mousebirds in the bush nodded openly.
On the dusty road to the Tracker Academy in the Great Karoo, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
The Tracker Academy is a non-profit organization in South Africa which trains disadvantaged rural people in the traditional skills of wildlife tracking. Nearly all students are permanently and proudly employed upon graduation as trackers for conservation or tourism. Given the lack of sufficient rites of passage, occasionally graduates still struggle with adult responsibilities and service, with residual adolescent habits still in them. We were invited to the Tracker Academy to help. On this land of cheetah, acacia and great plateaus with huge herds of African antelope, we rolled down that dusty road buzzing with anticipation and trust, spotting eleven tortoises in the late afternoon light like blessings along the way. We were warmly greeted with a line of handshakes and bright smiles from students at their modest base camp, an old ranch hand house in the flats. As the boys filed inside to prep dinner, the two instructors for this first semester, Janetta and Pokkie, also welcomed us as we landed on their front porch edged with simple gardens of Karoo succulents and antelope skulls. “We’re ready for you. What’s the plan?” Janetta asked openly. What’s the plan… It was hard to say exactly, with so many basic questions unanswered. Over tea kindly served, we asked. What’s their typical daily schedule? What’s their personal experience with and understanding of rites of passage? Is it safe for them to walk alone in these wilds with water buffalos and rhinos? How about at night? I know the scene at home like my own palm. But who and what conditions are we working with now, and what serves this particular moment?
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The Tracker Academy is a non-profit organization in South Africa which trains disadvantaged rural people in the traditional skills of wildlife tracking, as well as leadership development and rites of passage. Nearly all students are permanently and proudly employed upon graduation as trackers for conservation or tourism.
One of my plans was to introduce and practice tools that help us connect with what’s true and listen deeply for understanding, meeting real moments in life with heart and presence. Each step would naturally inform the next. This work is a relational practice that unfolds, not a heady lesson plan with a hard schedule. When listening for what may serve in that moment, it felt entirely natural for us to call the boys back out to that porch then circle up to hold space for introductions, our first council practice.
Once our circle was round enough, I introduced myself briefly with a story of coastal California where I’m from, the work we do and how this visit to South Africa came to be while tracking in the high desert in California with Alex and Ren, both highly competent trackers and instructors for the second semester of the Tracker Academy. They have a lot of respect for Alex, essentially the principal of this school. “Alex recognized something valuable in this work,” I acknowledged, “and he invited me to bring it here for you this week.” Sometimes the context really matters and this was part of the ecology of the moment that we now shared. I felt them relax some and their attention sharpen. A life well lived honors transitions in community. Much of our lives are casual, just hanging out, doing our best to be ourselves. And sometimes it helps to formalize things a bit, especially during life transitions, to help us meet the moments in life with more presence and intention. Some life changes we can’t really plan for, like suddenly losing a loved one. My dad died just over a year ago, and it had a major influence on all aspects of my life that year. Some changes we can prepare for, like when two people commit to marriage, a formal wedding ceremony brings people together in a special way to witness and bless this great transition. “As far as I know, no one here is getting married today,” I said. Some laughed. “But this is still a big moment, for me coming all the way from the States to visit your country, for you in this very formative year as students of the Tracker Academy. Your lives are changing now. These moments are big, you can feel it. And right now we are meeting each other for the first time, we’re beginning something together. So let’s set some things in place to help us meet this moment as we each introduce ourselves.”
Once our circle was round enough, I introduced myself briefly with a story of coastal California where I’m from, the work we do and how this visit to South Africa came to be while tracking in the high desert in California with Alex and Ren, both highly competent trackers and instructors for the second semester of the Tracker Academy. They have a lot of respect for Alex, essentially the principal of this school. “Alex recognized something valuable in this work,” I acknowledged, “and he invited me to bring it here for you this week.” Sometimes the context really matters and this was part of the ecology of the moment that we now shared. I felt them relax some and their attention sharpen. A life well lived honors transitions in community. Much of our lives are casual, just hanging out, doing our best to be ourselves. And sometimes it helps to formalize things a bit, especially during life transitions, to help us meet the moments in life with more presence and intention. Some life changes we can’t really plan for, like suddenly losing a loved one. My dad died just over a year ago, and it had a major influence on all aspects of my life that year. Some changes we can prepare for, like when two people commit to marriage, a formal wedding ceremony brings people together in a special way to witness and bless this great transition. “As far as I know, no one here is getting married today,” I said. Some laughed. “But this is still a big moment, for me coming all the way from the States to visit your country, for you in this very formative year as students of the Tracker Academy. Your lives are changing now. These moments are big, you can feel it. And right now we are meeting each other for the first time, we’re beginning something together. So let’s set some things in place to help us meet this moment as we each introduce ourselves.”
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Master Tracker and national icon Pokkie Benadie with students posing for the camera. These guys have so much life in them and jaw-dropping skills.
Out of deep respect and consideration, I kept my prayers to myself this time but shared the rest transparently. Circles serve on so many levels, perhaps the most obvious being that everyone can easily see everyone else when sitting in a circle. There’s nothing dogmatic about it. It also helps to clear the air some, to leave the past behind and future distractions too, snapping us into the present moment more fully. So that time I shared a special mix of sagebrush and mugwort in an abalone shell harvested from home that we used as a smudge to cleanse, aligning breath, smoke and all, inviting us to be here now. I also brought a wild turkey feather from home with a story, our first talking piece. We then lit a candle at the center with the spoken intention to simply listen for a deeper understanding as we took turns with the talking piece. That was our work, to listen to each other from the heart for a deeper understanding.
The questions were simple and felt true to the moment. What’s your name? Share a story of your name if you have one. Where are you from? And then describe a moment in your life when something happened that changed you on the inside, after it happened you were a different person because of it. I passed the turkey feather to my left with a breath. Our council was opened.
They had been living together 24/7 for four months at that point, literally out there in the valley bushveld wilderness without a car or money, lots of tracking, lots of time together. And yet this was their first time sitting in a circle together as equals, listening. It was a simple council, a good opening. They each listened and learned beyond expectation, sharing real connection and authenticity. “What an honor to meet you, and to be here together. Thank you. Who wants to blow out this candle to complete our time together…” Clear openings and closing are important.
The questions were simple and felt true to the moment. What’s your name? Share a story of your name if you have one. Where are you from? And then describe a moment in your life when something happened that changed you on the inside, after it happened you were a different person because of it. I passed the turkey feather to my left with a breath. Our council was opened.
They had been living together 24/7 for four months at that point, literally out there in the valley bushveld wilderness without a car or money, lots of tracking, lots of time together. And yet this was their first time sitting in a circle together as equals, listening. It was a simple council, a good opening. They each listened and learned beyond expectation, sharing real connection and authenticity. “What an honor to meet you, and to be here together. Thank you. Who wants to blow out this candle to complete our time together…” Clear openings and closing are important.
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Through the week we wove together time on the land following fresh trails of eland, kudu and rhino, with time in council exploring ways to connect with the truth in our lives, the truth at the center of our circle in community. We practiced discerning what’s true in the track from how we want it to be. We reflected on the cycling seasons of human nature, adapted from the Four Shields teachings. They courageously brought personal questions of gifts and fears to the land in ceremony. We explored “I am a man who…” and “I am a tracker who…” It was a simple and profound week of excellent work. “I’ve never tracked myself before. I really like this,” one student said. This circle so clearly served.
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The clear prints, browsing sign and trail of a White Rhino, one of several at the Samara Private Game Reserve. Epic!
Each day our circle mirrored the local landscape and culture (summary of our daily schedule). One council was set in the shaded clearing of bitterbos and sweet thorn acacias with red cloth, directional stones and a kudu horn at the center ready for stories. “Who wants to start?” They each walked the land with a potent question and a willingness to listen. Certainly they each have stories to tell. Benedict leaned in to hold the kudu horn, our talking piece this time, and we listened. Wildlife trackers are naturally good listeners, and always have stories to share, especially on this particular morning. The birds listened too.
Council practice and thresholds in the shade of bitterbos and sweet thorn acacias with the Tracker Academy in Samara, this time with a Kudu horn talking piece.
The more I track wildlife and quest for guidance, the more I realize that inner and outer tracking belong together. They feel very similar to me, both drawing on my senses and soul, mind and imagination. Both heal and make whole. Engaging my curious body with the land to find wild animals … In human relationships, feeling into love and fear patterns, singing my own heart song in service… With bird language, learning to be truly at peace, inside and out… We all belong to the Earth and the Earth to us, in reciprocity and
prayer. Circles served the Tracker Academy well. All of our Relations sang the same beautifully
song.
I love this life and this work. My roots are deeply nourished from South Africa, and I’m so deeply grateful. Where will I be well used next?
I love this life and this work. My roots are deeply nourished from South Africa, and I’m so deeply grateful. Where will I be well used next?