Wild Kingdom

Winter Slow Down

I have been taking a few hours each morning since the beginning of December to rest and reflect and allow myself to go against the grain of busyness typical at this time of year. To sit with my coffee as I meditate or think, allowing the day to start its unfolding.
While I enjoy the quiet time of reflection each morning, as we move deeper into December, I am finding the rush of the holidays beginning to intrude into this space. Yesterday morning, before I even sat with my coffee, I was thinking of all I had to do and this morning, I was greeted in much the same way. Thankfully, as I gazed out my window, I noticed the pond and how it was beginning to freeze over with the cold weather we are having.
Grabbing my camera and venturing out into the cold in my pajamas, I headed down to the pond. The water of the pond locked into place, immobile, forced to slow down, reminded me that I need to slow down during this time of year too. The air had a refreshing bite and getting out of the house to snap some pictures of the ice on the pond allowed me to focus on something more important than my to-do list.
Back in the warmth of the house, my mind in a better place, I sit and notice the cardinals and chickadees out my window. The majestic blue heron in the trees along the pond. This moment, this place, right now. What a beautiful day. I am glad the natural world spoke to me, encouraging me to slow down...

Looking for god in all the wrong places...

I have always been looking for structure in my faith, wanting to come up with my own personal theology on who or what god is, when really, I don't think any of that matters. To me, what matters more is to determine what my principles are and use them as pillars to stand on while searching for and opening myself up to all of the beautiful mysteries of life. When I don't limit my beliefs to my definition of them, but rather open myself up to the possibilities, I allow myself the opportunity to find god in many different places in my life.

I flinch as I type the word god above because I fear even that word is limiting. Depending on where you live in the world, god takes on a certain definition. For that reason, I think I will give up on god. The word, not the idea.

Last night, at my UU church while taking a class that talked about faith, we were asked to define our own personal version of god. What god was and what it wasn't. I really couldn't put a finger on my god. It just felt so elusive, so hazy, so undefinable. And somehow, last night, that feeling of not knowing became OK as I decided it was the search for meaning that held all of the value for me. The unfolding. What comes about as I witness the Spirit of Life in all of its beauty.

Nature Spirituality Resources

Because Nature Spirituality is a new area I am just newly investigating and learning about, the lists below are not complete. I will be making additions as I go along and welcome any suggestions you may have. Thanks.

NATURE SPIRITUALITY BOOKS:

Integrity, Ecology and Community: The Motion of Love

"Kamana One: Exploring Natural Mystery" by Jon Young

"Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature" by Young, Haas, McGown

"Handbook of Nature Study" by Anna Comstock

"Nature-Speak" by Ted Andrews

"Becoming Animal" by David Abram

"Mother Earth Spirituality" by Ed McGaa

"Why I Wake Early" by Mary Oliver

"Gift From the Sea" by Anne Morrow Lindbergh

"The Earth Path" by Starhawk

"Little Stone" by Wanless

NATURE SPIRITUALITY BLOGS:

-Dirt Worship

NATURE SPIRITUALITY LINKS:

-Starhawk's Tangled Web

-UU Ministry for Earth

-Working with Oneness

-Turn Toward Life

-Token Rock

-Resurgence

-Regenerative Design Institute

-New York Open Center

-Temenous Retreat Center

-Pendle Hill

-Swarthmore Healing Center

-Molly Young Brown

-Joanna Macy

-International Community for Ecopsychology

-Genesis Farm

-Earth Literacy at Home

-Earth Light

-Crystal Spring Earth Learning Center

-Center for Ecoliteracy

-Center for Wild Ethics

-UU Rowe Center

Dark Moon, New Moon

Despite having very little knowledge of how the cycles of the moon influence our lives, I have been acting over the last several days, just as one would act when the moon is in its dark moon phase. Thinking, reflecting, contemplating, processing.

I didn't make the connection to how my mood and energy appeared to be in line with the phases of the moon during the last few days until I was doing some research on moon phases this morning and discovered the moon just went through its dark phase. As the moon was dark, I was in the dark as I wondered about nature and how it relates to my life.

The moon is in its dark phase for about three days before the crescent of the new moon shows up in the night sky. In Astrology circles, the dark moon period is seen as a time for inward thinking, contemplation. A chance to lean us toward our deepest self and the longings of our soul. Spending time resting and listening to the messages received from the universe is a great way to spend time during the dark moon.

The new moon began yesterday. Astrologists feel the new moon is when you set forth your intentions- what you would like to create, develop, cultivate and commit yourself to. All of this work then culminates during the full moon when you celebrate your accomplishments.

All of this is very interesting to me. I have placed a moon phase gadget on my sidebar so that I can pay better attention to the impact the phases of the moon plays in my life.

Arboretum Walk

Despite the cold day, I stayed warm with a brisk walk through our local Arboretum today, looking at nature's version of a holiday display.

Getting to Know Trees...

Today I wandered about my yard and took pictures of the bark of some of the different trees I came across. Many of these trees are familiar to me and I know how to identify them, but I don't really know them. As in the human world, just knowing someone's name, doesn't mean you know them. The same is true with trees.
Ted Andrews in his book "Nature-Speak" tells us to take time to meditate and reflect upon different trees. Sit quietly with them. Hug them.
Note their fragrance. Examine their leaves and bark. Pay attention to how each tree makes you feel. Ted suggests you do this with a different tree each week in order to open your communication with many different kinds of trees.
The photo above is a picture of the bark of one of my favorite trees, a Beech. Silver gray and smooth, towering above all of the trees in my side yard, this tree calls to me because of its size, reaching heights of up to 120 feet. I also love the way Beech trees hold their orange-yellow leaves long into the fall, brightening up the winter forest. Ted says in his book, "the energy of the Beech tree can awaken old knowledge and new expressions of it. It awakens the soul quality of tolerance, and its essence helps align the individual with the higher self." I will have to think on his words awhile to understand what they may mean to my life.
Ted says, "every tree is a source of energy, healing or creativity in its own unique way. Some trees are healers, some are guardians, and others are keepers of knowledge and wisdom. By opening to the spirit of the tree we invite the energy of the tree itself into our life more strongly. If patient, tree spirits will share their energy and their knowledge of the universe."
I am really curious to see what will come my way as I explore getting to know trees more intimately. Going beyond just knowing their name...

Interpreting Nature's Signs...

Like I said yesterday, there is something about trees that pulls at me. Especially the bare branched trees of winter. In the photo above, taken on a walk around the pond behind my house today, trees fill up all that I can see, both reflected in the water of the pond and rising up into the sky of the woods beyond. I felt a deep satisfying peacefulness not found in many places as I raised my camera to capture the picture. But why trees? And are there other aspects of nature that call to me? In an attempt to answer this question, I have been reading Ted Andrews book called "Nature-Speak". In his book, Ted explains that in order to interpret nature's signs we must remember that whatever catches our attention in nature is related to some element of our own life.
Ted's book tells me that I must consider landscapes and terrains as well as habitats before I can even begin to understand the meaning behind what specific plants like trees mean to me. When explaining why landscapes are important, Ted quotes Carl Jung by saying, "Landscapes are living mandalas, filled with symbols that stimulate those primal inner sources imprinted upon the deeper levels of our consciousness. The landscape is a psychic transformer, helping us to connect through its symbolic characteristics with our missing parts."

When considering natural landscapes or terrain, Ted asks you to think about what types of surroundings outdoors make you feel good, or bad? He tells you to think about the emotional response you feel in relation to a landscape and to take a moment to just breathe and sense how you are feeling.
Ted says that if you notice or are drawn to abrupt changes such as the transition from grass to woods shown in the picture above, you may expect abrupt changes in your life. If you are drawn to a landscape that has barrenness, then you may have some things missing in your life. A cluttered landscape could mean cluttered emotions or state of mind. A balanced, healthy landscape would mean a balanced outlook on life.

As I read Ted's book and thought about what sorts of landscapes I have been drawn to over the years, I notice a pattern. I have always sought out woodlands and the multi-layered effect found in a healthy forest. Wildflowers on the ground, shrubs, understory trees and then the bigger trees towering over it all. Obviously I like balance but with an emphasis on the big towering trees of the forest. I am going to have to do further reading to determine what it all means.

Why Are Trees Calling Out to Me?

I recently noticed that I regularly photograph the bare branches of deciduous trees. They can be found everywhere on my blog and just today I deliberately walked around my yard and began to photograph large stands of trees, both of the conifers above and the deciduous in the picture below. The crazy thing is, I have felt drawn to trees for a number of years for some unexplained reason. Something about them has pulled at me. As luck may have it, while out on another errand today, I happened into a store that specializes in Native American goods. There in the reading section, I found a book called "Nature-Speak, Signs, Omens & Messages in Nature" by Ted Andrews. I was immediately drawn to the section on trees and wanted to know why they have been calling to me. After a few minutes of reading in the store, I realized that this read was one that needed to be digested over several days and would make for a great resource, so I purchased it and have spent several hours with it here at home.
While I have not read enough of the book to know for sure why trees pull at me, I do know that this book is going to help me figure it all out. I look forward to discovering a new way of relating to nature through the use of this book. I will post my findings as they come together.

Catching Rain

I caught rainwater in buckets as a young child and that was a relatively easy task compared to catching rain on film. While heavy rain is visible to the naked eye, it becomes elusive when you step outside to photograph it. The rain started early this morning when I tried to catch it falling from the sky but instead just captured the effects of rain and wind upon the pond.
The impact of rain can be seen as spirals of water in a puddle as each raindrop falls into it.
Raindrops on my windshield as I enter the drive to my son's school, but still I find I am unable to capture sheets of rain falling from the sky.
Finally, success, just before noon as the rain fell so hard it was easy to capture on film.
Can you see it here too? The raindrops upon the road? Off I go back into the house to listen to the the pitter patter of water onto the roof, soaked to the bone despite the use of an umbrella.