Mika Taga-Anderson ’20, an intern for the Paulson Ecology of Place Initiative in 2019–20, created a sitting circle in a pine grove in the botanic gardens—an area that only wanderers who have left paths will happen upon.
Valeria Yang ’21 (left) and Bryn van Dommelen ’22 enjoy the sitting circle on a fall afternoon.
Photo by Lisa Abitbol
Sit and Contemplate. Mika Taga-Anderson ’20, an intern for the Paulson Ecology of Place Initiative in 2019–20, created a sitting circle in a pine grove in the botanic gardens—an area that only wanderers who have left paths will happen upon. Made of stumps from a fallen white oak near the chapel, and woven with pine branches, it is meant to feel nest-like, a place that inspires “a sense of contemplation and ease amidst life’s chaos.” “My hope,” says Taga-Anderson, “is that this is a secret place for students to discover on their own, where they can sit, add to the space, create freely, and feel a sense of ease and belonging. To know they aren’t alone in their feelings of aloneness, and to encourage them to try and connect to this place. …”
