Most people always have their phones on-hand, but this is one divination method where you definitely want to have your phone with you. You may come across a tableau of sticks or twigs, or a particular tree, which you feel certain has a message for you, but you can’t put your finger on exactly why. Just take a picture of it with your phone and continue your walk. You can study the picture later. Maybe with time, the meaning will become clear.
In fact, it’s probably a good idea to take a picture of every ‘wood-scape’ you come across, which seems to have a message for you. You may find, when you’re walk is over and you’re studying the pictures you took, that everything which caught your eye during your xylomantic walk, starts to fit together in one comprehensive message or story. Each xylomantic tableau you photographed may be telling you one line or chapter in the overall story. Or everything you photographed could be telling you the same thing! Upload these pictures to a file, and include your insights as to what they mean. Set a future date for yourself to return to this file and assess whether your interpretation was accurate, or missed by a country-mile.
You may get so good at this ancient practice, you’ll spontaneously feel a ‘nudge’ to go for a xylomantic walk. If this happens to you, it’s possible your spirit guides or guardian angel or dead relatives have learned this is a good way to communicate with you. Walking has been called the perfect exercise. Researchers have found that going on as short as a ten-minute walk a day can also alleviate feelings of depression. As you’ve seen here, you can divine on a walk as well. Getting exercise, alleviating depression, and gaining crucial insight into a problem, win-win! Just set the intention, before you walk out the door, ‘tell me what I need to know via the sticks, twigs, branches and trees I see on my walk.’ Then remain open to what you see. Like bird and animal divination, wood divination can get you interacting with nature in a new way. The Divine is communicating with us all the time—you just added a new vocabulary.
