Deep Stirring

Between Snow Storms — Colorado Blue Sky Beauty

The Earth itself speaks in myth. There is an aliveness in it. It speaks across species, a form of ecological communication that invites us into the unknown forest. Emergence Magazine Valemon the Bear: Myth in the Age of the Anthropocene (click here for a treat!)

Much is stirring deep within this blustery third day of Spring, the 500th week of ‘dates with Creation’ (aka Muse), of sitting to write and share. A cursory search for the significance of the number 500, brought a spectrum of possibilities, none of which resonated deeply, so I left that path for what seems more fertile ground.

On the search I encountered Peter, Paul, & Mary’s hit song 500 miles. But rather than the sad feeling that this journey of The Zone and The Pivot has taken me away from home, I sense it brings me ‘home’, wherever and whatever home may be. Thank you for being on the journey.

As I write, a strong wind blows and large blobs of melting snow slide off of the roof. Plop! More snow is forecast. The few signs of Spring rising from the soil are hidden for now, snow and wet earth nurturing them for the warmth and their growth to come.

Deep stirring. Seeds ready to burst and sprout. In time, their time. Nature’s time.

My deep stirring feels like a call from and for new futures rising, and it is sprinkled with rich curiosity about the old, ancient times when our ancestors were in deep reverence for and clear communication with Earth, with ALL her beings, and with the cosmos.

I don’t recall my German and Irish ancestors telling me the traditional stories of their peoples, their roots, the myths that live on through such handing down through the generations. Despite the lack of early kindling of this interest, today I find myself curious about such stories in this time when ‘something’ is definitely ‘on the move’ in me, in my immediate environs (aka ‘the woods out back’), and beyond in most every aspect of life all around the globe … and beyond.

I wonder what mythology is alive today that can inform this new future. Perhaps that is why I find the myths emerging from astrologers today so fascinating and why I’m fascinated with the stories from indigenous Earth Keepers. Perhaps that is why I found this offering from Emergence Magazine insightful and inspiring. I hope you’ll make yourself a special cup of tea and enjoy the gift.

The unknown forest is inviting us in. Will we embrace the invitation to enter and forge the new futures yearning to be birthed? Futures that we too long for deep within. Or will we cling to that which is crumbling and no longer serves? Will I?

Before the Equinox Storm

Irony and a Thanksgiving Prayer

The Haudenosaunee Flag (image from Naraya Cultural Preservation Council website)

Today we have gathered and we see that the cycles of life continue. We have been given the duty to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now, we bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as people. Now our minds are one. Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address – Greetings to the Natural World

So continues the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address. It begins in this way

Words Before All Else: Greetings to the Natural World

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday here in the U.S., it is ironic that for some the way to end Covid and prevent future pandemics is to impose vaccines on everyone yet our ancestors brought disease from Europe to these shores as colonizers centuries ago.

Muse startled me awake with that thought this ‘blog’ morning, one day after I’d both read a news clip about the possibility of renewed interest in mandating Covid vaccines for all, and I’d retrieved the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address – Greetings to the Natural World – with the intention to read it aloud each morning before Thanksgiving and perhaps beyond. If you’ve been with me for a while, you may remember last year’s post about this sacred, indigenous gift (find it here).

There are of course many ironies around this holiday that we Americans have morphed from a time of giving thanks for all that is and for what we have to a time of plugging into the consumer culture of getting more. Muse and I will leave such ironies for another time (or not).

Honoring the awareness that what my attention feeds is what grows, I put aside thoughts about vaccines and events of the past, and focus on the Thanksgiving Address, a beautiful prayer encompassing ALL life, reading each verse aloud.

Tears fell as I recited the prayer, touching that place of knowing that all too often in the ‘doing’ of life, I forget the interconnectedness and interdependence that makes life possible. Tears fell too for the treatment of indigenous peoples from the time our ancestors landed on these shores to today, for the agreements/promises made and to this day not kept. Tears for all who experience injustice in its many forms.

I’m grateful for the awareness Muse’s thought brought me and even for the sadness evoked. I’m grateful for how the ironies seemed to both broaden and deepen in me as I read each verse and opened to that sadness. Sadness for our culture’s lost connection with the Natural World of which we are but a tiny part. Sadness that we continue our colonizing ways, not just of lands and peoples, but of the very gifts of Mother Earth, Gaia herself. Sadness for cultural ways that try to colonize us each day of our lives.

The sadness lifts giving way to wonder as Zadie Byrd and I embark on our ritual morning walk this cold morning. The sky is bright blue, and the air, crisp and still. All is quiet except the occasional squawk of a Clark’s Nutcracker. Zadie picks up a scent of interest and we zigzag across the road and then off road into a grassy meadow.

As I often do, I wonder first how I might deepen my awareness of ‘all my relations’ and honor that in the daily choices I make. And I wonder how might our world be if everyone could connect with the beauty of place in a deeper way?

The Naraya Cultural Preservation Council says of the Thanksgiving Address:

When one recites the Thanksgiving Address the Natural World is thanked, and in thanking each life-sustaining force, one becomes spiritually tied to each of the forces of the Natural and Spiritual World.  The Thanksgiving Address teaches mutual respect, conservation, love, generosity, and the responsibility to understand that what is done to one part of the Web of Life, we do to ourselves.

I intend to recite it as part of my morning practice each day until I feel it more deeply in these bones. I invite you to join me.

Mother Nature (image from Naraya Cultural Preservation Council website)

Return on Investment

Morning Light in the Woods

I know it's way too Utopian to think we will all ever just hug and love each other- but proactively dealing with hate could be as important to the future as clean water. Bobby Sagar

The sky lightens earlier and earlier each morn as Mother Earth moves toward the Summer Solstice in less than two weeks. Warmer weather has arrived here in the Sangres bringing the blessing of cool evenings and crisp, cool mornings. Nature’s air-conditioning.

Just as I do as winter settles in, I remember the patterns and adjustments needed for the season: windows open at dawn, closed as the sun rises over the peaks and shines in the woods, open in the evening cool, close at bedtime lest bear feels invited in. Cycles. Adjustments. Patterns. Breaks. Life!

My investment in rest this week has returned an abundance of reflection and thought time. Cycles of light and dark have been part of that reflection. Knowing that each and every day when one part of Mother Earth is in darkness, another part is in light. The light expands in summer and contracts in winter. Consistency.

We experience this cycle 365 days a year. I’ve experienced it 26,349 times during this sojourn on the planet, far too many of those cycles unconsciously, even grudgingly. Especially in my young adult years waking to the annoying ringing of an alarm clock (remember those?). Ugh! Another day already? Do I really have to get up? In those years too few mornings were met with the tingles of gratitude, wonder, and curiosity I experience today.

Though different, my gratitude and wonder these days is reminiscent of the wonder and excitement I remember as a child. Excited to explore and discover what treasures and treasured experiences awaited, I was the first kid in the neighborhood to be awake and outside on summer mornings. I didn’t have an awareness of gratitude in those early years; perhaps my joy was sufficient.

Pen pauses. Muse has taken me on an unexpected turn in this reflective flow, but perhaps a worthy turn it is. In the morning cool and quiet I wonder how it relates to the week’s experiences and other reflections such as acknowledging the darkness in events around the globe without being overwhelmed by them.

Honoring my deep desire to be a point of light that attracts other light while maintaining my balance and sovereignty, I remember that everything is magnified by the Universe without distinguishing what we think of as good or bad. Everything. Every thought. Every word. Every deed. I experience a moment of sadness, regret for mindless words spoken to a friend when I was irritated recently and for feeling irritated itself. It’s a strong reminder to pause, to breath before speaking.

Muse smiles and reminds me about my reaction yesterday to a new structure being built nearby that seems quite out of place and character in our neighborhood and community, both its physical appearance and intended us. I think about the trees sacrificed in the name of generating a high return on investment. No regard for Nature. No regard for community and community needs. I’ve been there in that profit only mindset. I’m pivoting to a new understanding and finding new investment vehicles for the resources I have access to.  (Hmm … another unexpected turn from Muse in this morning consciousness stream.)

Gently I return to the new structure, thinking about the challenge to speak my concerns from non-judgement, non-violence, and love, putting my attention on my care for Nature and the nature of our community. I wonder if there is cause to rally neighbors in protest. How might we do so with love? And, how will I stay in my center, not getting caught in the flurry of a word storm or contributing to it, while standing in and speaking my truth?

This I sense is what we are being called to do as world chaos intensifies and the old breaks down to make way for the new. How will we invest our energy to generate returns in the form of a new world, higher consciousness, a world that works for all? How will I? How will we begin to see and understand our complicity in each of the day’s pressing issues – micro/community and macro/global - without losing heart and hope and with an eye toward making individual pivots toward that better world? How will I? How will we learn to value ALL life and reflect that value in our daily choices? How will I?

Blessing the Feeding of the Mother Pinon Pine

Magic and Magnification: What Are You Energizing?

Season’s First Dandelion!

Your attention is a magnifier. Jan Engels-Smith (www.lightsong.net/)

What are you energizing? What am I energizing? We are each and all paying attention to something 24/7 (yep, even when we sleep) and in doing so we energize whatever that something is. So, what ARE we energizing?

On many fronts we are collectively energizing the very things that we rail against. When we put attention on that which we don’t like or what we fear rather than on what we want and how we want life to be, the former is energized.

What inspires you? Put attention on the source of inspiration and the possibilities it calls forth rather than on the fear so rampant in our culture. Magnify that which represents the life you want to live and the world you want to be a part of by giving those possibilities, those dreams, those ideas and ideals your attention. Call them forth in thought, in word, in deed. This is the magic we have available 24/7.

Want justice? Focus not on the vast injustices present in society, but on what true justice looks like to you, how it feels, what and who inspire you in this domain, and what part – small or great – you can play?

Personally, I have a growing concern about and interest in food systems and how they impact our health. I hold a deep desire that all have access to food which not only nourishes and fuels our bodies, but also feeds mind and spirit. While I’m aware of the devastation being created by many practices in corporate agriculture, my attention is focused on what is possible, indeed what IS being created by regenerative practices, restoration of water sources, and the emerging (and new to me) field of agroecology. I found this recent presentation to Humanity Rising’s Global Solutions Summit (https://humanityrising.solutions/) both inspiring and informative: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJdpu1QWYi8).

I’m deepening my awareness that I ‘vote’ each time I eat. I want the dollars that I invest in food to support the people, businesses, and systems that show care for the land, the waters, the environment, and the well-being of all creatures, including we humans. I aim to magnify positive progress and possibility. In the process I know there are pivots to make – new choices about what I eat, how and where I shop, and probably letting go of a few tasty favorites.

In working the magic of magnification it is important to align what we think, what we speak, and the actions we take from the inside out. That is the great opportunity of learning, of life, and of this moment in time. Doing so is at once simple. AND, it is not easy.

Aligning thought, word, deed with values requires attention, practice, commitment, and consistent awareness. It is a process not an end goal, and while there are vast, diverse resources for support, most are not found in the mainstream. One needs to seek and search – inside and out.

Yesterday was the beginning of a new cycle of the moon, the sixth new moon of the year. Ancient wisdom and indigenous teachings point to the new moon as a time to set new intentions and to recalibrate, reenergize those which are ongoing. The energy of the new moon and the first few days thereafter call us inward, if only briefly, to look at what we are energizing in life and to refocus our attention on what is important to us as well as to let go of what is not. It invites us to ask: What am I energizing in this moment?  And, what about the next …?

Mountain Magic - Beauty Abounds!

Matriots for Mother Earth

Morning Beauty in the Sangres

Once you acquire planetary loyalty, you are loyal to everybody. You are way out of line if you try being loyal to people before you are totally loyal to the planet.  Gregge Tiffen

It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world. The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens. Baha’u’llah

As I began writing, I was experiencing one of those blog mornings with many thoughts and several themes seeming to want my attention. The beauty of the mountains captivated me on our walk this crisp morning, hinting that nature and the planet would appreciate attention. I sense these mountains, trees, and the wildlife that abound here want my attention, my care. I sense that their kin right where you live want and need the same.

Perhaps their beauty and the sunshine in these woods was more than a hint. In this week following Earth Day I’ve noticed how easy it is to honor Gaia on the day we’ve proclaimed hers and then, like the day after Christmas, to forget. As I reflected a bit more, I recalled a post I wrote several years ago suggesting that we become ‘matriots for the planet’ [read it here]. I remember thinking that I was cleverly making up a word, then happily discovering that the online Urban Dictionary defined ‘matriot’ this way: A person who loves, supports, and defends the earth and its interests with devotion.  Of country, patriot. Of earth, matriot

Last week as I listened in via Zoom to the Global Freshwaters Summit, I was awed and inspired by the activism – public and private – addressing the wide range of issues in the watersheds of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers here in the U.S. I felt gratitude that the event, originally planned as a conference to be held in St. Louis Missouri, was virtual so that I could easily attend. And, I had a sense that the planet was grateful as well that the 400 people from around the globe who participated were doing so with a minimal carbon footprint.

At the same time, I get that there is another side to this story: revenue, jobs, etc. lost in the travel and hospitality industries; people suffering as a result. We need innovative, integral ideas and creations to bridge such divides. That, for me, is the ‘stuff’ of matriotism. We need to question EVERYthing as well as ourselves.

In the rush to return to our pre-pandemic ‘normal’ will we simply ignore the impact of our ways of life on our planetary home? Or will we take account of how our systems and the choices we make reflect what nature has shown us, particularly over this past year? Author, activist, and friend Rivera Sun shared a documentary that premiered on Earth day – The Year Earth Changed – detailing how nature has responded to our human ‘pause’. Having watched the trailer, (click here to watch) the film is at the top of my ‘must watch’ list. I want to more deeply understand my/our impact on the planetary being upon which my/our life depends. I take a moment to distinguish ‘life’ and ‘lifestyle’, wondering what lifestyle changes I/we can make to demonstrate matriotism: loving, supporting, and defending the earth and its interests with devotion?

Rather than ‘returning to normal’, I wonder how we might pivot to integrate greater consideration for the planet in making decisions?  Perhaps before deciding to engage in business travel for meeting with or speaking to others at a conference, we matriots will ask and evaluate the cost to the planet of a pending decision. Perhaps we’ll learn to better compensate Gaia for her life giving support, offsetting the costs to her well-being of our choices.

I’m not advocating that we stay totally ensconced in our homes and our local communities. Indeed (full disclosure), this week I’m making a day trip to town about 80 miles away to celebrate a friend’s birthday and to pick up some auto parts and supplies that I can’t get locally. I recognize that we need each other. We need play. We need connection. At the same time, we need to recognize and integrate the planetary costs of meeting those needs into our consciousness more consistently and powerfully.

Valley of Contrasts

Courage for Our Time

A Visual Feast Every Day

It takes more courage to dig deep in the dark corners of your own soul and the back alleys of your society than it does for a soldier to fight on the battlefield. William Butler Yeats (Oct 13, 2020 - This Nonviolent Life: Daily Inspiration for Your Nonviolent Journey from Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service)

When I read this quote it seemed to both echo and expand last week’s musing about true power. It reflects much of what we are witnessing in the collective move to look more deeply at history and understand the dark side of our so-called progress. To do so requires courage, especially in the face of resistance, sometimes armed and violent.

Likewise, it reflects the personal courage that I’m discovering I need to look in the ‘dark corners’ of my lifestyle and habits of consumption where their true cost is revealed.  It takes courage to dare wonder about the cost of my choices and to ask who is paying the price of my choices.

These are the kinds of questions that present themselves as I explore the territory of greater awareness in spending and investing choices searching for avenues that are more fully aligned with what I claim are my values. And, wondering if I have the courage of those convictions.

Such musings seem magnified this week in the great divide between those who would celebrate the colonization of the Americas symbolized by Columbus Day here in the U.S. in contrast to the messages from indigenous people (who continue to pay the price) calling upon humanity to awaken to the consequences not just to their cultures but the very planet that we all share.

It takes courage to read and to think deeply about Nemonte Nenquimo’s message to the western world (click here).

It takes courage to listen to 2018 presentation (click here) that Nenquimo and other indigenous leaders made at the Bioneers conference and then to think deeply and do more than sign petitions.

I know this, because I am questioning how deep my courage runs to be better informed, to reflect AND then to ACT upon these and other issues of our time. I pray that it is deep enough and that I might earnestly adopt the words and spirit of a prayer that came my way this week.

It is said to be the Dalai Lama’s morning prayer, written by Shantideva, a Buddhist monk of the Mahayana tradition who lived around 700 AD. He was a devoted practitioner who authored the Bodhicaryavatara or Bodhisattva Way of Life. Thanks to Nick Polizzi and the folks at The Sacred Science for this uplift to my week!

Bodhisattva Prayer for Humanity

"May I be a guard for those who need protection

A guide for those on the path

A boat, a raft, a bridge for those who wish to cross the flood

May I be a lamp in the darkness

A resting place for the weary

A healing medicine for all who are sick

A vase of plenty, a tree of miracles

And for the boundless multitudes of living beings

May I bring sustenance and awakening

Enduring like the earth and sky

Until all beings are freed from sorrow

And all are awakened."

… Enduring Like Earth and Sky …

From Domination to Love

Sangres Sunrise

For thousands of years, Western culture has become increasingly obsessed with the idea of dominance: with dominance of humans over nonhuman nature, masculine over the feminine, wealthy and powerful over the poor, with the dominance of the West over non-Western cultures. Deep ecological consciousness allows us to see through these erroneous and dangerous illusions. Bill Devall, Deep Ecology: Living as if Nature Mattered

This week finds me immersed in a personal family event, so the weekly muse is taking a break from writing my usual post. Yet even with much of my attention elsewhere, the need for laying old systems to rest and bringing forth new ones is ever present in every aspect of our lives.

This week I invite - no, I encourage - you listen to Humanity’s Team co-founder Steve Farrell interview conscious business pioneer, Hazel Henderson. Find it here.

Then, think about, indeed dare to imagine an economy that is fair, just, equitable. One where dominance has no seat at the table. And, deep ecological consciousness has a voice.

What is possible? What will you do to contribute to the pivot toward this possibility?

Cottonwood Creek Nearby