Ave Maria

Franz Schubert’s song written in 1825 came onto my iPod this morning as I cycled. When I ride I choose to do a random shuffle of all songs and see what the Universe sends my way as I navigate the backcountry trails or highways at the beach. Today, Ave Maria came on and was immediately followed by another version of Ave Maria. I was already teary just opening my heart to nature and singing along so the second version opened an even bigger doorway to connect with Divine Feminine. Not a religious version….the true Feminine side of the whole…the equal balance to Divine Masculine.

Oh, how our world needs more of the receptive strength that balances the active principle of masculine energy. The centuries of conquering the land, other people, other nations and pushing for more at any cost is destroying our planet…that energy left unchecked is destructive. The imbalance is deadly.

So as I pedaled and listened and sang Ave….’be well’ to the trees and squirrels and lizards my heart opened to their hearts…beating to some Divine rhythm that is the Great Mystery. How can I cultivate the Divine Feminine within me? How can I keep opening and opening and opening….even when it hurts so badly to feel the destruction, the meanness, the disregard for life and lack of compassion exhibited by so many people, so many countries.

A while back I wrote a blog called Rise Up about empowering ourselves through opening to everything that’s happening rather than closing and building a wall within ourselves. I like to think of Mother Earth rising up through us, using our skills and talents, our compassion and love. She can only work through us if we are open. If we dare to feel what’s happening all around us.

How would Mother Earth work through you? Through me? How will we know unless we open and listen…in stillness and silence. When we take our openness to our yoga mats, meditation cushions, walking meditations….through any wellness practice…and surrender in service we become active participants in whatever healing needs to take place.

A Mary Oliver poem comes to mind….My Work is Loving This World.

My work is loving the world.
Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird –
equal seekers of sweetness.
Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.
Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.

Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?
Am I no longer young and still not half-perfect? Let me
keep my mind on what matters,
which is my work,

which is mostly standing still and learning to be astonished.
The phoebe, the delphinium.
The sheep in the pasture, and the pasture.
Which is mostly rejoicing, since all ingredients are here,

Which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart
and these body-clothes,
a mouth with which to give shouts of joy
to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,
telling them all, over and over, how it is
that we live forever.

_____________________

Ave Maria as performed by Beyonce

All photographs copyright Simone Lipscomb