Why do you like working for Tir Coed? (2)
Written by Tir Coed / Friday 06 September 2019
Working for Tir Coed makes me feel like I am part of the solution. The pressures of the modern world sideline individuals, and our precious natural environment. By understanding good land management, practising traditional skills and working with natural materials, people tune into something instinctive, something inherited from our ancient ancestors. The incessant babble of advertising and celebrity obsession subsides; and you start to notice birdsong, the wind in the leaves, and conversations. The steady rhythms of hand tools gradually shape the landscape, the wood that it gives us, and the individuals using them.
I really enjoy being out in the woods, chatting with our trainees and working alongside them. Listening to their stories and seeing the difference that it makes to be noticed, and to feel like you are part of something useful. Taking the opportunities to rebuild confidence and make real changes in their lives.
Mental health issues are spiralling in the modern world, I think that we can all suffer from them at certain times in our lives. Being processed by an impersonal system that has been shackled by austerity is frightening and often overwhelming. Constantly receiving and not being asked to give back erodes people’s lives. The feelings of fear, guilt and failure are everywhere. Working together as a group, in our natural environment, with a sense of common purpose, subtlety yet powerfully changes all that. You sometimes see outbreaks of contagious optimism, confidence and self-worth, an appreciation of nature and each other, like the sunshine returning after too many dark days of rain.
