Mirror Walk
The Mirror Walk is a silent outdoor exercise in pairs in which one partner, eyes closed, is led by the other to touch, smell and listen to the surroundings and is invited at chosen moments to open their eyes and look at what is in front of them as if into a mirror. It comes from Joanna Macy and Molly Brown's book Coming Back to Life, part of the Work That Reconnects, where it is adapted from the older Trust Walk. It sharpens the senses, builds trust between partners and invites people to see the natural world as part of themselves.
Facilitation script
- 1
Outdoors, explain the exercise and its source, demonstrate guiding and the look-in-the-mirror moment with a volunteer, and give the safety and consent briefing. Name the boundaries of the area and the signals. Form pairs.
7 min - 2
First walk in silence: one partner leads, the other keeps their eyes closed except when invited to look.
10 min - 3
Signal the swap. Second walk in silence with roles reversed.
10 min - 4
Signal the end. Pairs join into fours and talk about what they noticed in each role.
8 min - 5
Gather the whole group, take a few comments and make the link to the next part of the programme.
5 min
Tips
Walk the area beforehand, set clear boundaries for where pairs may go and check that your signal can be heard at the far edge.
Demonstrate the head positioning and the invitation to look with a volunteer, since the camera idea is hard to grasp from words alone.
Make the exercise freely optional and offer the choice of lowered eyes instead of closed eyes; people who feel pushed into it will be tense, and tension is the opposite of what the walk is for.
Common pitfalls
Skipping the safety briefing, so a guide walks their partner into a branch or off a kerb and trust in the whole exercise is gone
Treating participation as a given; someone who feels unable to refuse spends ten minutes anxious and takes that into the rest of the day
Guides chatting or narrating, which turns a sensory experience into a guided tour and drowns out what the partner would have noticed
Guides rushing from object to object to show as much as possible, when a few slow encounters leave a much stronger impression
Choosing a site with too little variety, such as a bare car park, so the mirror moments have nothing worth looking at
Variations
Without the mirror moments this is the classic Trust Walk, which focuses on trust and the senses alone. In a city, a park, garden or courtyard with a few trees and planters is enough. If there is an odd number of participants, one group of three can rotate so that each person is led once, with shorter turns. For groups where touch is a concern, the guide can lead by voice from close by, which breaks the silence but keeps the sensory encounters. Indoors, a room prepared with natural objects can stand in, although much of the effect is lost.
Where it fits
When to use it
A workshop on sustainability, ecology or place where you want people to meet the subject with their senses and not only through slides
A retreat or offsite with access to a garden, park or woodland and a group that has chosen to be there
After a long stretch of talking or emotionally heavy material, when people need to get out of their heads
A group that will rely on each other and would benefit from a concrete, physical experience of giving and receiving care
Before reflective or creative work that asks for close attention
When not to use it
The only available space is rough, steep, near traffic or water; walking with closed eyes is not safe there, so use a seated sensory exercise or a soundwalk
Participants have not had a real choice about touch or closed eyes, for example in a mandatory corporate session; a paired walk with a conversation prompt is a better fit
The group is in open conflict or pairs do not trust each other at a basic level; being led blind by someone you distrust does harm, so work on the conflict first
You know of participants for whom closed eyes and being steered may be distressing, such as some trauma survivors, and you cannot offer an equal alternative
Bad weather or darkness, which make the ground unpredictable and the sensory encounters unpleasant
Related methods
Frequently asked questions
What is Mirror Walk?▾
The Mirror Walk is a silent outdoor exercise in pairs. One person walks with eyes closed while the other leads them to touch, smell and hear things, and now and then invites them to open their eyes and look at what is in front of them as if into a mirror. It comes from Joanna Macy and Molly Brown's Coming Back to Life and adapts the older Trust Walk.
What does looking in the mirror mean in this exercise?▾
The guide points the partner's head at something specific, such as a flower, a patch of bark or the sky through branches, and invites them to open their eyes. The partner is asked to see what is there as a reflection of themselves, as part of the same living world. After a few moments they close their eyes and the walk goes on.
How long does a Mirror Walk take?▾
About 40 minutes. Plan a short briefing and demonstration, around ten minutes for each partner to be led, and ten to fifteen minutes for the conversation in fours and a brief whole-group close.
Is the Mirror Walk safe?▾
It is safe when the site is suitable and the guides are briefed. Choose even ground away from traffic, water and steps, tell guides to move slowly and keep contact, and agree a way for the led partner to stop at any time. Make it optional and allow lowered eyes instead of closed eyes.
How is the Mirror Walk different from a Trust Walk?▾
A Trust Walk is about relying on a partner while you cannot see. The Mirror Walk keeps that and adds the moments of opening the eyes to a chosen view, which shifts the focus from trust alone to a sense of connection with the natural surroundings.
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Try it freeMethod descriptions on Workshop Weaver are original content written by our team, based on established facilitation practices. This method was inspired by work from Joanna Macy and Molly Brown, Coming Back to Life (Work That Reconnects).