At Lent I allow myself to be slow, simple, and thoughtful. I spend time each day in focused study and prayer. And I choose something to temporarily reduce or cut out of my life, as a reminder that what I truly need is the nurturing of Spirit (I try to choose something to fast from that is a good symbol of how I am trying to grow). And I also observe Lent as a time of creative action, acting on what I learn. I've identified these
types of actions I want to take in the next 5 wks of Lent:
- Tending my garden (and letting it tend me);
- Building habitat for plant and animal people (and sanctuary for ourselves);
- Supporting and working directly on campaigns to defend the environment;
- Educating myself (growing in knowledge);
- Witnessing to others with writing, talking, and artwork.
March 13, Second Sunday of Lent-
1. Read: #51: Generosity. "Wealth among First Nations people has always come from what could be hunted, grown, harvested, and gathered from the abundance of the land. From an Indigenous perspective, that wealth was then considered to be a shared community investment as opposed to an individual asset."
2. Awareness
:
I wrote this circular mantra a few years ago to help me remember to extend love all day long:
SPIRIT - in sky, Earth, trees - I EXPAND
THOU - infinite, ultimate Love - I OPEN
ME - awake, grounded, present in this moment - I AM
(repeat)
3. Action: I'm leading a community bike ride today up to Hendrick's Park, where we will have a fire and walk in the gardens. It's sponsored by the group Climate Revolutions by Bike, of which I'm on the Hub Group (pun intended!). Our motivation is to "Meet great people. Share and support a bicycle lifestyle. Disrupt the status quo and build a revolution for the Earth."March 14-
1. Read: #52: Whole Reality, about the influence of Platonic dualism (named after Plato). "This dualism places more importance on abstract areas of our life like our spirit, our soul, or our mind and less importance on physical areas like the Earth or our bodies. ... Believe it or not, a whole host of other problems -- such as hierarchy,
2. Plastic fast: I've been using bulk dish soap, which I collect from my neighborhood store in a glass jar, but since the soap comes out of a giant plastic container at the store, I'm only handing my plastics problem to them. I've also tried bars of dish soap, purchased from Silver Falls Sustainability Co., which are nice, but I prefer liquid.
Today I read this article on the top zero waste dish soap brands. They have a recipe for making your own liquid dish soap!
Ingredients: bar of Castile soap, 1 tsp. washing soda, essential oils (optional).
(yield - about 16-18 oz. of soap)
- Shred the castile soap with a cheese grater until you have 3 Tbsp. of soap shreds.
- Pour 2 cups of water into a pot, turn on the heat (medium) and add the shredded castile soap.
- Once the soap fully melts, remove the pot from heat.
- Stir in 1 tsp. washing soda until dissolved.
- Cover the pot and set the mixture aside for several hours or overnight. (If the soap becomes too solid, blend it with a beater or whisk to liquefy it before continuing to Step 6).
- If you want a scent, stir in 15 drops of essential oil until mixed.
- The soap is done. Pour it into any desired container, bottle, or jar.
March 15-
1. Read: #53: Deconstructing Worldview. "Part of the problem with a Western worldview is that we spend too much time in our own heads, thinking and rethinking, but not enough time acting on our thoughts ... Spending more time in nature and developing new ways of expressing thanks through outdoor, Earth-honoring ceremonies could be a start. ... European people and others can rediscover what their own indigenous ancestors once knew. They can recall some of their own indigeneity once again."
2. Awareness:
The above reading hits the nail on the head for me. How can I reclaim what I've been separated from for 300 years? My ancestors abandoned their land out of desperation. They took flight to a new promise, and then they ruined it with greed and racism.
My healing (and the Earth's healing) requires action, ceremony, and reparations.
3. Action: I've often reached to Findhorn for a kind of New-Age Celtic indigeneity.
I'm going to experiment again with what they call attunement, which consists mostly of being quiet and taking time to listen within for direction and guidance, as well as making a mystical connection to the plants themselves. Part of the purpose of attunement is to align with the most peaceful way to accomplish something, and another is to offer myself to service for the earth.
Findhorn calls it partnering with the consciousness of nature, or co-creation.
Today I'm going to practice Peaceful Weeding in my garden:
1. See the plants as beings rather than things. Take the time to greet them all as the old friends they are (by name if I know it), and apologize for ignoring them lately. Soak up their presence and listen for their poetry.2. Pay attention to my intuition about which plants want to come out, and which ones are asking for more space.3. Offer them all love and gratitude. Findhorn advise says that maybe the weeds will be less aggressive if we are less aggressive to them, and that seems logical to me! Warn them that I'm going to pull, then pull gently. Thank them and put them into the compost.
March 16-
primal selves, we understood that surviving against bad weather, dangerous predators, warring clans, and other unforeseen odds stacked against us meant we needed to look out for each other. ... In the United States ... we might be the most individualistic society in the history of the world."
It's very powerful to ask to be surrounded and protected by a world and people filled with the love of God, and feel the Spirit of Love within and all around me.
"Respect is not a very complex value. Respect means treating everything else in creation as if it matters, as if it is important. ... Respecting others does not require deep thought. It's simple. I don't want to go without food, so respect calls out to me to feed those who are hungry."
1. Read: #56: Individualism. "One of the traits Western humans seems to have laid aside somewhere is cooperation for the good of the group - the common good. In our deep,
2. Awareness: One of my New Year's resolutions this year is to "Find ways to model and teach self-transcendence rather that self-fulfillment." I think this is key to saving the Earth. We have to get over feeling that we have a right to be safe and comfortable all the time, because that is simply not a human right! Things are going to get harder soon, and we need to become more resilient, and more cooperative if we hope to survive.
3. Action:
Today I'll make a plan for generous, cooperative actions I can take the week: Whole-hearted grand-baby projects and adventures, enthusiastic committee work, attentive garden care, and abundant preparations for a wedding shower!
March 17, St. Patrick's Day-
1. Read: #59: Extinction. "To continually take, I think, creates a sickness in us all. To refresh our spirits, we need to create more opportunities to give. We need to remind ourselves that everyone else, and everything else, is just as important as we are. ... It seems quite foolish that only after we have gone too far will we realize that no amount of capitol gains, no extractive economic system, and no modern convenience will be worth the price we will be forced to pay."
2. Awareness - Prayer of St. Patrick: Before you read this prayer, I need to explain how I translate the word "Christ". I understand it means the Chosen One; and I believe we are all chosen ones, with "that of God" within; that was Jesus' message to us.
Christ, shield me this day:
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every person who thinks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.
It's very powerful to ask to be surrounded and protected by a world and people filled with the love of God, and feel the Spirit of Love within and all around me.
3. Action:
In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is the traditional day to plant peas and potatoes (or so some people say). I've already got two plantings of peas in, so today I'll plant my onions.
March 18, Full Egg Moon and Holi-
1. Read: Today I read #64: Add Coffee.
2. Awareness:
The full moon shines a bright light on everything, and I might experience intuitive and creative breakthroughs. I might be shocked by the clarity of my insights.
Today I'm going to settle in to silence and access my intuitive mind - my connection to the Creator and the Inner Guide - by putting myself into a relaxed, trance-like state, and seeking a leading of the spirit with an open mind and heart.
3. Action: Holi is a Hindu holiday that marks the end of winter in India. It's sometimes called the Festival of Color, because on Holi everyone in India throws paint at each other!
March 19-
1. Read: Today I read #66: Wild Tending.
"The Indigenous people of the land are the original wild-tenders. ... A wild-tending worldview -- one that maintains a
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