The Lantern Path - Step Two
OPENING
An invitation into curiosity, relationship, and possibility.
45–60 MINUTES · JOURNAL · MOVE IN YOUR OWN TIME
Crossing the threshold
__________________
Opening begins
in relationship.
Rooting invited you to listen to the life you're arriving from. Opening is where we begin turning toward the medicine itself, and the possibility of meeting our own lives in a different way.
You may be arriving with a question, a longing, or something you'd love to understand, heal, or see differently. Bring that with you. There's no need to know just yet where it might lead.
Some people experience mushrooms as teachers. Others understand them as medicine, a catalyst, or part of the living world. However you understand them, there is an opportunity here to approach this relationship with curiosity, respect, and discernment.
And that relationship can begin long before ceremony, in what you notice, what you ask, and how you choose to show up.
A TEACHING FROM THE FOREST FLOOR
What fungi do in nature, and invite us to notice.
Much of the work of fungi happens out of sight.
They work with what has fallen, form relationships with other living things, and help create the conditions for life to continue. There is something worth paying attention to in the way they participate in the world.
They compost. Many fungi break down fallen leaves, wood, and other organic matter, returning nutrients to the soil.
They don’t erase what came before. They alchemize it.
Our histories and habits might deserve a similar curiosity. Not everything needs to be discarded. Some things still serve us; others may be ready to change form, or simply be understood in a new light.
They connect. Some fungi form close partnerships with plant roots, exchanging resources in ways that support both. We grow through relationship, too. Another person's courage, tenderness, or perspective can open something we might not have reached alone.
There's an interesting echo in neuroscience as well: psilocybin can temporarily shift how brain networks communicate, loosening some of their usual boundaries. Familiar ways of seeing ourselves and the world may begin to feel less fixed.
They nurture. Through their quiet work in the soil, fungi help sustain the conditions for new life to grow. A lovely reminder that growth isn't always about what we need to change. Sometimes it's about what we choose to give our attention, care, and room to flourish.
I often carry this image into ceremony. You're welcome to carry it with you, too. Not as a roadmap for what should happen, but as another way of looking at what's possible.
Compost · Connect · Nurture
A THREE-PART REFLECTION
Divide a journal page into three sections, or give each its own page if you'd like to linger.
Let these three movements from the forest floor offer different ways of looking at your own life.
Follow what catches your curiosity. A few words might be enough, or you may find yourself writing more. There is no need to answer every prompt.
01
RETURN TO THE SOIL
Compost
What might I be ready to see in a new light?
Perhaps its:
A story you've told yourself for so long it feels like fact.
A role, habit, or way of protecting yourself that once served you well.
An experience you've always understood one way, but might now see differently.
Nothing needs to be discarded. Sometimes a shift in perspective is where transformation begins.
02
FOLLOW THE THREADS
Connect
Where do I already feel connected, and where might I want more of it?
Consider your relationship with:
Your body, its wisdom, and the pleasure of inhabiting it.
The people, places, and natural world that help you feel a sense of belonging.
Play, laughter, creativity, and the things you do simply for the joy of them.
Notice what brings you alive, what nourishes your sense of connection, and where you might be curious to deepen it.
03
WHAT’S READY TO GROW?
Nurture
What would I love to give more life to?
Maybe it’s:
A quality you'd like to cultivate, such as courage, self-trust, or tenderness.
A part of yourself that's been quietly waiting for more attention.
A dream, new venture, creative pursuit, or possibility that's only beginning to take shape.
Not everything meaningful begins with something that needs healing. Sometimes it's simply something beautiful asking for more of our attention.
STEP BACK · NOTICE THE WHOLE ECOSYSTEM
What begins to come into view
when you hold all three together?
Take a moment to look across all three reflections. Do you notice any threads connecting them?
Simply see what catches your attention.
A LISTENING PAUSE
Let the teaching
move beyond words.
Set your journal aside for a few minutes.
Let the music and imagery invite you into the world of fungi and mycelium. You can watch, close your eyes and listen, or simply enjoy the harmonies.
Nothing to figure out here. Just an invitation to experience something beyond words.
BEGINNING A CONVERSATION
A letter to the mushrooms
I often invite people to approach the mushrooms as they might a wise elder, teacher, or trusted friend: with curiosity, respect, and a willingness to listen.
One way to begin that relationship is simply to write them a letter.
It might feel a little unusual at first, and that's okay. Think of it as introducing yourself. Share a little about where you are in life, what brings you here, and whatever might be on your heart.
There's room for hope, curiosity, uncertainty, even a little humor. No special words or particular beliefs are needed. Just let it be an honest conversation, in your own voice.
Dear Mushrooms…
If you're not quite sure where to begin, here are a few ways into the conversation. Borrow whichever feel natural, or find your own words.
I am coming to this experience because…
Lately, I have been noticing…
Something I am curious about is…
Something that feels tender or uncertain is…
What I would like you to know about me is…
_____________________________________________
BEFORE YOU WRAP UP YOUR LETTER, MAKE A LITTLE SPACE TO LISTEN.
Set your pen down and sit with what you've shared.
Notice what arises. Maybe a thought, an image, a feeling, or simply silence. There's no response you need to find. Just give the conversation a little space.
MYCELIUM DREAMING · AUTUMN SKYE MORRISON
A RELATIONSHIP, NOT A TRANSACTION
Every meaningful relationship asks something of us, too.
Not as a bargain, and not because we owe the medicine anything. But as a way of showing up with care.
Maybe your offering is your full attention. Your honesty. Gratitude for the land that holds you. Or a willingness to carry something meaningful from this experience into the way you live.
What would you like to bring to this relationship?
What is your offering?
“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.”
— SIMONE WEIL
A compass,
not a contract
SETTING AN INTENTION
An intention isn't something the experience needs to deliver.
Think of it more like a compass. A direction you'd like to face, or a quality you'd like to bring with you as you enter the unknown.
Look back at what you've written so far. Is there a question, a feeling, or a way of showing up that keeps catching your attention?
Let that be your starting point.
And remember, the medicine has a cheeky way of deepening our questions, changing them altogether, or bringing our attention somewhere we hadn't thought to look.
A PLACE TO BEGIN
if you’re not sure where to start, try one of these.
01
02
03
A direction I'd like to move toward is…
I’d like to meet this experience with…
When I find myself in the unknown, may I remember…
A body check
Say your intention quietly to yourself.
Take a moment to notice how it lands in your body.
Does it feel spacious, tender, exciting, uncertain? Maybe a little of everything?
There's no right response. Just notice.
If your intention feels like something the experience has to deliver, see whether you can soften it into something you'd like to explore, practice, or understand.
A CLOSING RITUAL
Bring something
to the center
Choose one ~or several~ small objects
to bring for our shared altar.
It might represent an intention, a memory, someone you love, or simply something meaningful to you right now.
A photograph, a piece of cloth, a little keepsake, or a handwritten note. Nothing elaborate is needed.
When we gather, each person will add something to the center as part of our collective offering. This is one small way we begin co-creating the energetic space we’ll share.
BEFORE YOU LEAVE OPENING
A conversation has begun.
You've spent some time getting to know the mushrooms in a different way, sharing a little of yourself, and considering not just what you hope to receive, but what you'd like to bring.
That's a meaningful beginning.
And like any good conversation, this one doesn't have to unfold all at once.
In the days ahead, you might notice a question, a feeling, or a new perspective finding its way into an ordinary moment. Pay attention to what catches your curiosity.
There's something lovely about letting a relationship develop in its own time.
We'll continue exploring together.
NEXT · THE LANTERN PATH · STEP THREE
SURRENDERING
Opening invited you into curiosity, relationship, and the possibilities that come with seeing things differently.
Surrendering takes us a little further, into the practice of meeting what unfolds without needing to steer every moment. Learning when to soften, when to lean in, and how to stay connected to yourself along the way.
Can I trust myself enough to move with what is here?