Skogsfloating was born from the need for focus. There are situations in life where we want to withdraw, escape from something, maybe meet our own thoughts or meet other people. But where are we going? This is the question Swedish Torbjörn Wrange asked himself after lying alone in bed for a month and, to his relief, was told that what he was suffering from had a name: fatigue depression. Torbjörn went to the basement to find his hammock. The forest would prove to be his space for recovery! Torbjörn explains::
“I listened to my body. That wanted to be somewhere without meeting anyone. In the city park, at the farthest distance from civilization, under the pines, I found my place. There I slung easily for quite a few days. Watching the squirrels search for pinecones and welcoming the tops of the trees above me was part of what would rehabilitate me. It may sound meaningless, but it was these little things that mattered and something new was always happening and there was always something to focus on, something that kept unsorted thoughts away. It was quite a level of input for me back then. With distance and knowledge I understand today how important the place was. Under the treetops, far from the community, with no uninvited guests and yet less than ten minutes walk from home. Friends joined in and soon we were three friends with no structure in life, lying in each hammock with the ends of the feet facing the same tree. You cannot imagine a more relaxed atmosphere. When the summer was over, I knew I now had tools to deal with stress reactions should they return. ”
The experiences and thoughts returned
The years passed and I was told by a colleague that disabled children could experience nature by swinging in a hammock. In 2007 I took a course on nature and cultural guidance at Linköping University. The feeling of the conference room we created with the hammocks came back and I thought it should be possible to build something out of it. The space became Skogsfloating, and with that, from an outdoor living and health perspective, I presented a holistic tool that began to see its light.
An impression
Imagine; you put your head on your pillow and almost go to sleep. Just before you fall asleep, your brain prepares for deep sleep and a world full of dreams. At this stage, your brain makes free connections between all kinds of things that are happening or have happened in your day. Good ideas are born here. These moments pass quickly and are usually easily forgotten.
Skogsfloating creates a similar level of relaxation, so you can actively tap into this source of inspiration and creativity. Something special happens when you lie down and rock while you watch the irregular patterns of the sky and the swaying branches in the trees. You hear the slumbering sound of nature, birds singing, the wind whizzes and you experience a feeling of weightlessness, of floating, of freedom.
While our brain re-establishes all connections, space is created. New ideas, new associations and new perspectives on old questions or problems have the time and the opportunity to surface here. The round shape of the Skogsfloating space supports this effect. A circle is endless; no beginning, no end. It offers the opportunity to see and hear each other: everyone in his or her own place on the same level, equal presence, a safe, open and neutral place for training. A meeting in Skogsfloating invites more creative, open conversations than static at the conference table.
Our mission to share
Het werd mijn missie om de tools te delen. Na de afsluitende beurs die deel uitmaakte van het examen besloot ik het idee commercieel te ontwikkelen. Er kwam een prototype voor een Skogsfloating in Karlstad en sloten ons aan bij onze partners in een mechanische werkplaats, een naaiatelier en een timmerwerkplaats. We onderzochten wat de belangrijkste componenten van onze zwevende conferentiefaciliteit waren. Op de congresmarkt verkochten we Skogsfloating aan Bommersvik buiten Järna. Met succes en passie is het Skogsfloating concept verder ontwikkeld door is Mirjam Willaert en wordt nu ingezet voor trainingen, conferenties, lezingen, vergaderingen, wellness en teambuilding. Wat voor mij revalidatie, een missie en mijn herstel is geweest, is nu het concept: SPARQzone. En zien Mirjam en ik het als onze missie om te delen met de wereld.
