An invitation to walk, listen and offer at Lake Murray

As early fall settles in with its quiet hush, we make our first visit to Lake Murray: a wide, reflective body of water shaped by both time and human hands, held gently between the soft hum of neighborhood life and the distant rise of Cowles Mountain.

We come not in search of steps or to conquer distance, but to offer our presence—to begin a relationship with the land beneath us, the water beside us, and the wind that carries memory across the surface.

This lake, once carved to carry the city’s thirst, now carries something quieter: a space for return, for noticing, for being with what is.

We’ll begin with a grounding breath and a moment of gratitude for the season, for this land, and for the unseen threads of care that have tended it long before us.

As part of our shared practice of respect and reciprocity, you are invited to bring a small offering for the land, something from your home or heart: a stone, a flower, a few drops of water, or a quiet intention. These gestures remind us we are not only visitors, but participants in a larger web of relationship.

From there, we’ll move slowly and mostly in silence along the lake’s path, opening our senses to the early signs of fall, tuning to the shifting season and to the quieter rhythms within ourselves.

Midway, we’ll pause to sit and listen to the land, to our bodies, and to whatever arises. There will be space to share, or simply to be held in quiet company.

On our return, we’ll open to gentle conversation, walking side by side in ease and presence.

Whether this is your first walk or one of many, you are welcome here.

We look forward to walking with you and to meeting this place together!