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On the Path to Connection — My Encounter with the Vara
In my search to embody the seven elements, Andreas Weber came onto my path. An ecologist, philosopher, and writer, but above all, someone who touched me deeply through his vision of our connection with the living world.
Andreas was one of the study group facilitators during the Living Water Course at Schumacher College. There, I experienced a profound sense of recognition. I felt that Andreas and I, each following our own path and shaped by our own experiences, were walking in a similar direction. A path in which connection is not merely an idea or philosophical concept, but something we are increasingly invited to experience and embody.
During the course, I witnessed something that touched me deeply: the transformation of myself and the people around me. By working with the element of water, space emerged to rediscover ourselves and the more-than-human world, and to become fully present within it.
Slowly, the idea of connection became an experience of connection.
An Invitation to meet the vara
After the Living Water Course, Andreas invited me as a guest to his seminar Living Waters: Communicating with Apennine Mountain Streams, which took place from 2 to 5 July 2026 in Varese Ligure, Italy.
An invitation to get to know his river friend: the Vara.
The Vara flows through the upper Vara Valley in the Ligurian Apennines, a wild and relatively untouched part of the Apennines, shaped by the many rivers and mountain streams that find their own way through the landscape. The intention of the seminar was not only to understand the interconnectedness of all living beings, but to actually experience it and give these experiences a place within a poetic space. During the retreat, we explored this by connecting directly and practically with the Vara and other local rivers.
Working with the River Vara
The Vara, as an individual being, cannot be captured in words. She is unique in her own right, alive and full of spirit. I feel deeply honoured that, during this retreat, I was able to listen to the Vara, to wonder at her, to slow down and practice yoga beside her, and simply to be present. From that place of presence, I could work with whatever arose in each moment.
I was deeply impressed by the way Andreas, drawing on many years of experience and research into more-than-human relationships, created a safe and open space. Through practical exercises, attentive presence and a poetic approach, he invited us to explore a different way of relating to the living world, while allowing each person to remain fully respected and valued as a human being.
The wisdom of the encounter
What emerged during those days was, for me personally, a blessing. And difficult to put into words. Not because these experiences should not be shared, but because words can never fully convey their depth or honour what was truly experienced.
What I can say is that my encounter with the Vara gave me a form of inner wisdom that I will carry with me always. A wisdom that is not so much about having answers, but about listening more deeply, slowing down, and being present. For this, I am deeply grateful to the Vara, to the rich landscape that surrounds her, to the people with whom I was able to share this experience, and to Andreas.
"Words can never fully convey the depth or honour of a experience."
A RECOMMENDATION
I would therefore like to turn my gratitude into a recommendation
If you are curious about another way of relating to nature, water, yourself and the living world, I wholeheartedly recommend experiencing a seminar with Andreas Weber. Perhaps, as I did, you will encounter a river that becomes more than a river. A friend. A living presence. A source of wisdom and warmth.
Vara and Andreas, I am grateful that our paths have crossed.
Michelle van der Vegt
Mindfulness gids en ecoloog
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