When I was a young girl, I sought refuge in the crooked arm of the oak tree in our backyard. There I would read a book, get lost in thoughts, cry painful tears, or dream about climbing to its crown to touch the sky. No matter what I needed, it didn’t discriminate, it held me.
It offered me wisdom in its roots, courage in its core, possibility in its branches – trust in its strength. From here, now, I would call this faith.
Faith is lost when we are rooted in the belief that we have power over nature – that nature is here for us to manipulate, rape and possess without consideration of how these actions will affect the world – our future. And, when we action ourselves from this fixed mindset, there’s something to defend – it’s easy to fall into the fear that there may not be enough – that we must get it now before there’s no more – that our actions are urgent because we are answering the call of manifest destiny.
In fear, there’s so much hidden from ourselves and the world; hubris, greed, addiction, self-righteous behavior that’s downright dangerous, and which distorts our ability to envision the ramifications of these choices – that keeps us from dreaming of a beautiful world.
If there is one thing we can learn from nature it’s that it knows how to do this thing called ‘life’; it’s regenerative, accepting, resourceful and connected to a higher power called the universe – cosmic and divine!
The Earth and the Sky (Gaia and Uranus) reflect our true nature in that we have the cognitive power to be resourceful – to create and to destroy. Indeed, we are a part of a larger system, in relationship with our world and affect the whole … what we breathe out trees breathe in, and what trees breathe out, we breathe in.
We need each other!
Whether trapped in the clouds of an anxious mind or in the soil of our darkest moments, when we take the time to recognize and release ourselves from the identity of our mistakes – when we willingly RISE from our mistakes and when we trust that we have what it takes – we allow the emotion of the journey to pour down over us – into the charnel ground of our being – to nourish the roots of our choices and to continue to grow.
Then fear shifts to fearlessness and we remember to relax: ‘Ah! There’s enough,” … we remember that the acorn needs to do nothing to grow into an oak, only to remember, ‘Ah! I am an oak!’
And we exhale and nature inhales!
And together we are mighty!