Tag: Nature’s Teachings

Alive in the World

Alive in the World

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SimoneLipscomb (2)As tornadoes roared over Mobile, just 30 miles west, and Christmas day came to a close, I realized that we are witnessing more and more planetary shifts. The intense weather patterns give evidence to climate change. I sat gazing at the weather radar and imagined how this planet might have been when it was a babe, turbulent in its youth with dynamic and powerful changes that were constant. As it has aged, many cycles of change have presented but this time billions of humans are witnessing the shifting atmosphere and climate. In turn, there are social changes with people arising to claim freedom, love, peace and health.

I reflected back 30 years ago when environmentalists warned of over-consumption of fossil fuels….pesticides…chemicals….peace-lovers warned of the propagation of wars….and here we are moving through a most intense period of time where we are reaping the results of our carelessness, our ignorance. And during this time, which Joanna Macy calls The Great Turning, we are needed–more than ever–to be peacekeepers, earth stewards, promoters of good health, gardeners, artists….the talents and gifts we have will help us collectively move into a healthier place and help create a healthier planet.

SimoneLipscomb (1)If you are alive today, you are needed to help make this shift. Your gifts and talents are vital to the planetary transformation we are experiencing. This isn’t the time to sit on the proverbial sidelines. We are alive in the world and therefore we are necessary to its healing. None of us can do this alone. It will take all of us to make the leap to a more peaceful world, a healthier place. I am excited! How about you?

Enter the Light

Enter the Light

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Dawn 2012I stood in the chilly air awaiting the dawn. Not just of a new day but a new way. As I stood beneath old growth live oak trees, present with birds and cows awakening, I glanced over the metal roof of my home and saw a huge owl cresting the roof. She flew within a few feet of me as I stood in stillness. Silent was her passing, without a whisper of wind on wing.

Owls have amazing eyesight and can see in the darkest night. A timely reminder in this time of transition and spiritual awakening on our planet.

Bundled in warm clothes in the pre-dawn moments, I contemplated this auspicious day and remembered a conversation I had in the late 1980’s with a professor in graduate school. We were on a break and several of us were sitting around a table. The conversation turned to the end of the Mayan calendar. At the time, it was still 25 years in the future. He expressed fear and asked our opinion. I told him I thought it was simply a time of awakening, of moving from darkness into the light.

Dawn 2012

Through the years I have continued to hold that belief. And this morning I felt incredible excitement that people all over the planet were welcoming the light. Over the past few years there has been an apparent increase in darkness but what has appeared to be more darkness is perhaps light exposing the worst of humanity. Now, like the owl, we see more clearly the darkness and can make conscious choices to turn to the light.

With gratitude I saluted the Light and made my way back into my cozy kitchen for a hot mocha. Yes. This is the start of a new dawn.

 

Pelicans Up-River

Pelicans Up-River

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pelicanWhile we don’t have dramatic seasonal changes in coastal Alabama, if a person pays attention there are definite shifts that result from changing weather patterns. I notice these while paddling my SUP board on the Magnolia River.

When cooler nights and days became the norm and the winds shifted, pelicans moved up-river. They hang out on boat house roofs, on channel markers, piers and they have quickly learned that people = food. I’ve seen them begging fish from local residents who clean fish on their docks. This morning I saw several gathering around a pier where guys were sitting and visiting on their dock.

Another seasonal change is that the river water is clearer and quite a bit shallower as the north winds push water out of Weeks and Mobile Bays. Magnolia River, being a tidal river, flows outward and offers a challenge for me at low tide during this time of year as I paddle through large, submerged rocks.

Cormorants are constant companions as they dive for fish and do their running take-off on the water’s surface–winter visitors who fly south for a few months of warmer weather before returning to cooler climates to raise young.

No, there’s no snow and we haven’t had temperatures below freezing yet but the pelicans up-river are a sure sign winter is here.

Land-Locked No More!

Land-Locked No More!

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Awakening in the black of pre-dawn, I stood up and immediately missed the gentle rocking of the ocean. Sitting at my desk under the open windows beside the oak tree, birds singing to me, the entire house rocked me gently all day as I processed images and video. Or at least that’s what it felt like after a week on a boat.

During the many years I spent as a land-locked diver, I would always have a deep sadness at leaving the ocean and returning to the mountains. I love the mountains but the sea remains my constant, the core of who I am. And now, after dive trips, I find myself heading back to a coast and the joy is unmistakable. And the gratitude bubbles up in waves of heart-felt love for my beautiful home and the live oaks it’s nestled under….and the Magnolia River and the bays and the Gulf of Mexico–all a part of this life I inhabit.

The sights and smells of the rivers, bays and open water of the Gulf keep me grounded in pure ecstasy and appreciation for my wonderful home….yes, the outer home but mostly this inner home of beauty I discover as I open my heart and mind to beauty, to light….to unconditional love. I am free and the coast of Alabama mirrors this freedom to me, mentors my expanding efforts to bring all of who I am to this life.

And Then There Was Silence

And Then There Was Silence

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Today I was presenting a workshop on relieving stress through connection with nature. At one point participants were paired and were completing sentences given to them as cues. The room was lively as people shared about places they loved, animals and other nature-related themes. At one point I gave them the cue: What’s happening to our planet makes me feel….  The energy in the room suddenly shifted and it was quiet. Sad, depressed, scared….twenty-one individuals united for a moment by their concern about our world.

We need to get together, share our concerns and work together to create change. One thing is certain–if we do nothing, nothing will change.