Pivoting Into Autumn

Our Ancestors

The wise leader solves the problem of water first. Lao Tzu

The question before us, then, is not only how we will mobilize to redress the immediate harm done by the current militarism and violence. The question is also how we will plant the seeds of a peaceable economy. There is no more fundamental place to start than with how we grow food, how we feed ourselves and one another, how we relate to and care for the land. Woody Tasch – A Call to Farms

You’ll learn how to be a good ancestor. The answer is in the land, in the mountains, which are the sources of life. Dr. John Hausdoerffer

Tomorrow, September 21 is the International Day of Peace and day 1 of Campaign Nonviolence 12 Action Days (check it out here). I think of this as I reflect on the threads woven into this week past, threads that carry forward from last week’s post about living into a desired future (find it here).

Last week we were approaching a new moon, a time to set and renew intentions. In the wake of that new moon, I experienced two long-held intentions stepping forward with opportunities for attention and action.

The opportunities rose perfectly timed to redirect me from stepping into a commitment of time and energy that was interesting, but around which I felt little excitement or passion, and which, in hindsight, was only minimally aligned with my values.

Food and water. Now we’re talking passion and alignment. Both water and food are ingredients for building a culture of peace. They go hand in hand as elements of Nature that our culture all too often views as resources to be tapped.

The desired future that I want my daily choices to create includes sustainable, just, and accessible to all food systems, along with clean, pure water that sustains ALL Life. I believe that future will rise as we repair and restore our relationship with Nature, as we listen to that which sources Life and align our choices with our planet home.

Ancestry is a related thread in the fabric of life this week, inspired by Dr. John Hausdoerffer in his webinar, Kinship with Mountains, (enjoy it here). If you’ve been with me for a while, the title alone clues you into why I was drawn to the event. Hausdoerffer speaks beautifully, questioning how Life could look when we “recognize Earth as our kin and Mountains as our ancestors.” I wonder, as does Hausdoerffer in his forthcoming book, What Kind of Ancestor Do I Want to Be?

Are my choices aligned with that? What pivots are indicated?

As summer gives way to fall here in the northern hemisphere and we approach the autumnal equinox with equal hours of daylight and darkness, I feel myself musing these heady questions from a deep, heart-centered place. What do I value and what actions align with that? As my priorities shift what old habits, beliefs, ways need to fall away?

It seems a different pattern to be in these questions in the season of harvest. Perhaps my harvest of opportunities this week is nourishment for navigating what lies ahead and the questions are integral to receiving that nourishment. Perhaps they will linger and be the focus of winter morning musings by the fire.

Perhaps I’m experiencing the speeding up of time in a changing world, on a changing planet. Perhaps I feel an age-related urgency.

I pause to observe Zadie Bryd licking her paws, then rubbing her face, as she lays nearby. I wonder what she’s experiencing in her body and whether there’s something I need to know or to do to support her.

The observation and questioning in that pause brings clarity that, no matter the project or priority, my prayer is that I step into the flow of Life with heart-felt love and care, being the kind of ancestor that will leave this world a better place.

Our Kin

Spring! Awaken, Think Deeply, Pivot

Yield and step into the flow of nature.

Life seems to fail us because we do not make new space for ourselves. … life is a continuum of things being ‘broke’. Unless you are willing to take a new stance, walk a new path, find a new answer, develop a new character, build a new body, express in new terms, and see through new eyes, everything will remain the same. … Nature moves down two pathways. One assures equal balance on the planet. The other leads to a natural development and advancement of all living things.  Gregge Tiffen (It’s Springtime! Flow with the Power of Nature – March, 2007)

Spring! The earth spins and the season of new growth begins here in the northern hemisphere. Half of the globe is springing into newness and light. The other half ‘falling’ into the season of harvest with the darkness of winter just beyond.

But no matter the season, life has changed drastically for all of us. We have the power to decide how that change will emerge. As nature moves down her two pathways, balance and advancement, will we step into her flow, listen deeply to her voice, reflect on her cries, and pivot to create new ways to live on our precious planet?  Or, will we simply pause, rest, entertain ourselves in the hope that life will soon return to ‘normal’? Which will I choose?

Do we have the courage to challenge the thinking of scientific materialism that has taken us further and further from nature, our mother? Do I?

Are we willing to be honest with ourselves about the destruction we each cause in our daily participation in a culture that values science and the material world over spirit, not understanding that the two are not separate? Am I?

Might we examine the life we call ‘normal’ knowing (even complaining about) the stresses that it creates in our bodies, our relationships, and all of life? Might I?

Our children who haven’t yet lost their connection to nature are asking and, rightfully, demanding. From Greta Thunberg, to the Sunrise Movement (www.sunrisemovement.org), to your own children and grandchildren as voiced by this young person’s question to ‘mom’ over breakfast posted by a colleague yesterday on Facebook:

Mom, we’re doing our part and staying home from school, not seeing our friends, not going outside. We are doing this even though Coronavirus won’t kill us. We’re doing this to help the adults and the older people to live longer and healthier lives. So, when this is all over, will they repay us by making changes to save the environment? So that we will be able to live longer, healthier lives when we are their age?
Because, you know, that seems fair to me.

How will we respond? How will I?

Will we simply hit the ‘play’ button when this pause is over and scramble to return to life as it was or as close to that as we can make it? Or will we use this time to think deeply and pivot to creating a culture and systems that recognize and use both spirit and science/material things, that honor the ways of nature and acknowledges that we will not control her?  Will we boldly demand a culture and systems that respect ALL life?

As I watch the snow fall in the woods out my window my heart knows that these are questions. And, as history has shown us time after time, a ‘war’ on the problem is not the answer.

Use this time wisely. Rest. Take extraordinary care of yourself and those you love. Hold those whose choices you loath in light and love for they too are on a journey of learning just as each of us. Muster the courage and willingness to think deeply and honestly about your life. Build upon that courage to pivot to walk through life anew.    

The calendar says ‘Spring’. Mother Nature says ‘not yet’.

Elk, Meadowlark and the Setting Moon

Almost Full Moon Setting on Spring

Springtime.  It is the season to shake out the metaphysical carpet and throw off the heavy, winter blankets that may still seem so cozy even as the fresh breeze calls us outside. It is time to let our mind and spirit, still groggy with winter stories and pictures, move out to embrace the fun of spiritual adventure and inner blossoming. Gregge Tiffen (It’s Springtime: Flow with the Power of Nature – March, 2007)

Happy spring! Although snow is in our forecast overnight, today is the first full day of spring for those of us in the northern hemisphere. I may throw off the heavy winter blankets, but it will be a while before I pack them away. And, yet spring is in the air: warmer, longer days and the first hints of green grasses and wildflowers breaking through the ground into the light of day. The hard, frozen ground is giving way to the softness of sand and soil.

I too am opening to spring’s softness, breaking through my own cozy wrap of winter and beginning to envision how I’d like to see the next few months unfold.  As I do so, several tweaks to my home as well as business ideas have my attention – all in the planning stages now, but activity will soon ramp up.

And what, you might be wondering, does that have to do with elk, meadowlark and the setting moon?

Yesterday an early morning drive to take a friend to catch the daily bus to Denver gave Luke and me the opportunity to hike a trail that we love, but only do so occasionally.  Although the morning was cold (a chilly 13 degrees Fahrenheit) and the sun had yet to crest the 14,000 foot peaks, I was happy to have a special walk on this day of spring’s arrival.  I was curious to discover what would get the attention of my senses so that I might later reflect on any meaning and messages to consider.

On our trip to the bus stop we were heading west, observing the almost full moon as it gently moved toward the horizon. By the time Luke and I reached the trail, it was hazy and just beginning to meet the treetops. I sensed that this beautiful, almost full moon was setting on winter and calling forth spring.

Strength, Power and Nobility Embodied

As Luke and I set out on our walk, our first encounter was a large elk herd 200 yards or so from the trail. I stopped, watched and listened as they became aware of our presence and began to chatter. Their high pitched voice belies the strength and power of these amazing creatures. We watched them as they watched us. Those closest moved away, closer to the rest of the herd.  Luke sat patiently as ‘mom’ snapped pictures.  The herd settled, seemingly judging that we were not a threat, and I assessed that it was safe for us to continue.

A bit further along the trail I heard the unmistakable cheerful song of meadowlark.  Again, I stopped, listened and looked, but never spotted this cheerful character whose voice never fails to give me a smile. As the loop trail turned and we were headed back toward the car, a ray of sunlight hit the snow on one of the peaks. Such beauty!  I suddenly realized how cold I felt in the early morning shadow of the mountains. I picked up my pace and Luke happily followed suit as we trotted toward the car and its promise of warmth (and, for Luke, a treat!).

I felt deeply blessed by the presence and gifts of the moon, the elk and the meadowlark song, knowing that as I reflect more deeply over the coming days, the spiritual part of the journey will continue as the gifts of inner blossoming will show themselves ever more clearly. For now, I’m content with my curiosity – wondering how this experience will inform me as I spring into the projects ahead. Happy spring!

First Rays Hit the Peaks

Autumnal Celebrations

The planet does not need more successful people. The planet needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds. Dalai Lama

One of the first keys of learning how to get along here unusually well is to remember, whether you like it or not, manifestation is going to occur. Gregge Tiffen (Learning Without Experience Is A Bell Without A Clapper – September, 2008)

Autumn, the season of harvest, is upon us. Fall arrives around 4 pm Eastern time here in the U.S. tomorrow, September 22.  My heart is heavy that much of our harvest is that of natural disasters. When will we come to understand that every thought, word, deed matters in ways far beyond our immediate reach?

What chaff do I need to release in order to contribute only peace to our planet? That is the question I take into my quiet reflection as I welcome the new season. ‘What habits do I carry forward?’ I ask as I walk the labyrinth as the sun rises over the mountains this early morning.

Today is International Peace Day, a day to celebrate the possibility of peace, and first declared by the United Nations in 1981. This year’s theme: Together for Peace: Respect, Safety, Dignity for All. May we harvest peace whenever we can and may we daily plant seeds of peace in our thoughts, our words, our actions. On Tuesday the moon entered a new phase in the sign of Libra, a sign that emphasizes greater cooperation and graciousness. Each new moon represents a time of new beginnings. In the midst of threats of destruction by world leaders, I found the irony of this timing stunning.

This week also finds two of the world’s religions beginning celebrations.  Navrati, the nine-day Hindu celebration of the Goddess Durga, the divine feminine, begins today as does Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, celebrating ‘the head of the year’ with the belief that “just as the head controls the body, our actions on Rosh Hashanah have a tremendous impact on the rest of the year” (Chabad.org).

Religious and spiritual celebrations are important times of reflection. What reflections will you bring to this time of harvest?