natural rythmns

Survival

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Dear readers this post is from the archives of AskGCW.

Rumors of the demise of Mother Earth have been greatly exaggerated. This planet will endure, she will continue spinning on her axis, orbiting the sun. Day will follow night. The sun will rise in the East. The ancient cycle of seasons will endure, the moon will wax, become full, wane, then begin again in darkness.

Full Moon

The ancient cycles will endure even if humans are no longer here to witness the beauty, to name the seasons, and study the stars

Humans are slowly committing suicide as they ignore the warning signs of the stressed and overtaxed environment and atmosphere. I ask you to slow down and listen to your Great Grandmother the Earth. Learn her language. Pay attention to her signs, symbols, her distress call.

When you learn her language, the language of the web of life, you will learn the ancient ways of survival on this planet. You will learn to respect the amazing intelligence built up over eons of time within every living thing and every living system.

Tuning in to the messages and intricate interconnections of the web of life and hearing the voices of all living things here on this planet still means survival.

Technology in your pocket, shiny objects, expensive homes will not save or buffer you from the reality that you are a part of this web of life, a part of nature. We survive together!

Take action to divest yourselves and your human cultures of greed and corruption. Stop over-consuming our precious resources and hoarding wealth for only a few. These things damage the web of life.

Learn to use only what you need. Learn to be humble. Learn to love each step you take on Mother Earth, each breath you take into your miraculous body, each beat of your heart.

Wake up and embrace your precious life on this precious Earth!

Choose life! Slow down, live simply.

In this moment

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Take a moment to celebrate the fullness of your life. Know that all is well in this moment.

Your heart beats in your chest, your in-breath expands your lungs, the out-breath releases and contracts, the slow and sweet rhythm of life flowing and ebbing like waves on a beach.

You have been given the simple yet miraculous gifts of sunlight, fresh air, birdsong, eyes, hands, ears… the senses through which you experience life in your body.

Robin in late winter

If you are a worrier, anxious, fearful or regretful, you might miss the perfection of this moment here and now, the still point between breaths, the simple yet most precious gift of life.

Bring your awareness to your now. Yes, life here on our planet can be difficult and dangerous, fragile, fleeting, unjust, and heartbreaking. Please do not allow fear grief and anger to steal the fullness of this moment here and now as you partake in the beautiful mystery of life on Earth.

Let your mind rest and bring full awareness to the perfection of this particular moment. In this moment, you are safe, you are alive.

Allow yourself to enjoy and appreciate the most precious gift you’ve been given. Life on Earth in a human body.

Heat got you down?

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Nature’s wisdom and rhythms suggest a nice rest, a siesta today until the sun is lower in the sky and you can move around the yard and neighborhood with greater ease and comfort as the evening cool settles in.

Wilted and drowsy plants wait for the cooler evening to perk up. Animals seek their cool and dark burrows, or the dense shade under trees and brush.

The height of summer is upon us. As your ancestors have been doing since time began, seek the shade and breeze, rest and nap during the intense heat, wait for your second wind later in the day as the air cools. Then you can get things done when your body regains energy.

When you act in harmony with nature’s rhythms your life flows more easily.

Harmony with nature

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Perhaps you fear the power of storms, avalanches, earth quakes, lighting, tornadoes… hurricanes…bob cats, mountain lions, bears…

Nature is not your enemy!

You are not here to conquer and subdue nature, but to observe and learn her ancient language, understand her patterns moods and rhythms and live in harmony with her.

Flooded creek

To respect nature is to live in unity and accord with the forces and seasons of the natural world, reading her signs, staying clear of any dangers you perceive, taking shelter when needed, paying attention to her slightest cues and hints of what is to come.

These signs will touch your early warning system: your intuition that is born of your existence on this planet. You must pay attention to what is around you and how that resonates in your body heart and mind!

Living in harmony with nature can mean nurturing the plants and rooted growing beings from the towering trees to lush shade loving ground cover, learning their ways, what they need.

Hosta in bloom

Living in harmony with nature can mean caring for your domesticated animals, letting them teach you, observing their ways. It can also mean a kind and healthy balance between the habitats and habits and needs of wild creatures and those of the human world.

As you commune with the spirits of nature, you will know your place in this harmonious web of life and learn to exist in peace with all conditions and all creatures.

Full moon

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We write this on the day of the full moon, a time to rest and bask in the fullness of her silvery light. Don’t try to get anything done today, unless it is to fill yourself with light and color and sound and love and plans for the waning phase of our beautiful moon.

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Relax, observe the pause in nature’s in-breath on the day of the full moon before the out-breath and action of the waning moon. Absorb her beautiful light and energy into your being and feel her blessing shine through every cell of your body.

She lights your way in the dark.

Get to know the connection between your energy and the moon phases. Pay attention! Observe! It is no use trying to resist the age old rhythms that predate life on this planet.  Surrender!

We (humans, trees, plants, animals, and all living things) have evolved over millennia to respond to the push and pull and pauses of the moon, to the time of planning at the new moon, then, as she waxes, of filling, taking in, planting; then resting at full moon.  Next comes the emptying, releasing and action, the carrying out of plans, the time of harvest as she wanes again.

 

 

Late summer

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Growing things seem to pause now. Deep green leaves of ash, maple, and oak hang still in the humid air.  Butterflies frantically feed, flit and dance among late summer wild flowers…

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Late summer prairie grass

The new growth and excitement, the twittering birdsong of spring is a memory.  Now the grasses bend, top heavy with seed.  Dragonflies dart and zip above the prairie, sunlight reflecting from their glassy wings.

The new bird generations have all fledged and flown – Empty nests all around.  The insects sing their late summer songs, the chirp, the buzz, the whine of cricket and cicada, the tempos slowing as nights grow cooler.  The tree frogs chorusing their trance like rhythm into the wee hours, night after night.

Flowers that were bright with summer’s colors just a few weeks ago now fading, browning,  going to seed.   Still blooming, the magnificent plumes of goldenrod, masses of them,  swaying gently in the breeze.

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Goldenrod plumes

All the green rooted things hold their breath,  soak in the light of the  southward sliding sun, before the final days, the yellowing, the browning, the final dropping of seed and leaf, the dying down to the roots, the cooler autumn wind that will soon come and bring frost with it, and death.  The great letting go, before winters long nap…

Stand here on the cusp of change, knowing what is passing, knowing what is to come.  It is time for a late summer  rest.  Lie back under a friendly tree, soak up this still and timeless, day, this moment, before the sun turns to autumn once again.

 

 

The Moon

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My dears have you looked to the sky at night and bathed and danced and delighted in the moonlight?

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Moon at dusk

You would do well to study her rhythms and phases, to align your life’s ebb and flow, fullness and emptiness with her age-old patterns.

As the moon waxes, fill yourself with goodness, love and light. Prepare, gather in.

At full moon, open to her light, give thanks for what has manifested in your life!

Then as she wanes, let go, release all those thoughts ideas, energies that have served their purpose. Let go of those physical objects you are ready to release. Clear out, make room.

At new moon, the dark night of the month, honor the death of the old, make plans for the new, yet again.

All living things on this planet have evolved to be sensitive to the gentle rhythms, the pearly light of our beloved moon mother. You are no exception. Let the rhythms of your life be guided by our ancient night companion.