You may remember my conker activities from previous years (conker prayers and conker reflection).
This year got me thinking about new ways use conkers especially as I’m working on activities which can be used with patients at Birmingham children’s hospital as part of my new role as part of the Chaplaincy team there.
How about this:
Carefully hold a conker in a shell.
I wonder if there’s something in your life which feels ‘spikey’, difficult or painful.
Allow yourself to feel the difficult or painful feelings.
Notice how you are holding the conker shell.
Imagine you are holding yourself carefully.
Allow yourself to feel the care.
Carefully open your conker shell to reveal the conker.
What do you notice about it?
What does it remind you of?
How do you feel holding it?
Notice the contrast between the shell and the seed.
In what ways are they different?
Why are they so different?
What or who is bringing softness, gentleness or care to your life right now?
Put your conker somewhere (in your pocket/on your mantlepiece/by a clock) to remind you to look for the smooth ‘conkers’ in life amidst the spikey shell experiences.