In the early summer, with the trees being full of shade, Buddha's Light Centre Waterloo invites Ms. Sock Gee Gan, a forest therapy guide, to give a three hour "Forest Bathing" session. Twenty people, including members from Buddha's Light Centre, Waterloo University Buddha Light Club, and local community, gathered at the backyard of Waterloo Water Drop Teahouse. Everyone was surprised to find Waterloo Buddha's Light Centre and Water Drop Teahouse to be so peaceful and natural.

The course was scheduled for three days on May 30^th, June 3^rd, and the 4^th, with each section being three hours long. Sock Gee Gan introduced the idea that forest bathing emerged in Japan in the 1980s. It was originally done to cope with the tech-boom burnout and autoimmune diseases; an environmentally friendly and eco-antidote in the technological world. The course usually takes three days, but in order to adapt to the North American lifestyle, it is condensed into a three-hour session. The main purpose is to train the ability of our "frontal lobes" to resist pressure or stress. 

Sock Gee Gan guided everyone to calm the brain and feel the changing of the surrounding environment through the five senses. This included using the eyes to see the surrounding flowers, grass, and trees, ears to listen to the surrounding sounds, the nose to smell the air, the tongue to taste the air as if it is the same as the nose, and close contact with plants and trees before finally returning to oneself and being alone.

Logan said: “When Sock Gee asked everyone to pay attention to the wind, she noticed that the leaves seemed to dance while being blown by the wind, as if telling her to relax and not be too tense.” Steve shared, "I often walk in the woods, and like to be close to nature, but I never noticed the interaction of sounds."

Jackson said: "At first, I thought the noise of the vehicles would affect the course, but in the natural environment and with a calm mind, the noise was weaker. I only think of "wind" when the weather is hot. It is very interesting to discover the different states of wind during the Forest Bathing."

Monastic Advisor of the Waterloo subchapter, Venerable Ru Xing said, “With the continuous advancement of modern technology and AI, many people feel at a loss; but please don't forget that the Buddha told us that "everyone has the Buddha’s nature" - no matter how advanced the technology is, becoming a Buddha, cannot be replaced by AI.”

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