June Sabbath for Abundance

Today is my sabbath. I've had a week of abundant cleaning, active play, and fruitful meetings, and I'm ready to settle into a sabbath frame of mind. My sabbath might be on Saturday or on Sunday, or part of both days. My perfect sabbath is a celebration, a holiday. I keep it holy with my attitude: I do not rush, complain, or worry. 

Keeping a sabbath day is a personal thing. For me, it's a day with a slow pace, and everything I do has a flavor of peace. I schedule some work, but it's work I find fulfilling, or uplifting. Simple is a great word to describe my ideal activities for the Sabbath: Simple tasks, simple foods, and an undemanding schedule.

Agenda today:

1. All day abundance meditation

2. My Earth-Quaker path

3. Earth Walking

4. Creativity practice

1. All day Abundance Meditation:

My theme this month is abundance. To attract abundance to the world, I need an abundance consciousness: That is, I need to be aware of the abundance already in my life, connect with it, feel grateful for it, and be open to receive more of it. I need to remember that we are limitless beings, and our world has an infinite supply of blessings.

Today I pray for an abundance of peace and justice in our world.

I've decided to visualize abundance all day long. It's what people call "prayer unceasing" (which is not something I'm good at because I'm too impatient). I'm trying this re-focusing practice: I've set a bell alarm for every 60-minutes, and I'll stop whatever I'm doing and picture in my heart an abundant peace in the world, equality, order, respect - all the best things - growing and expanding to enfold us all.

2. My Earth-Quaker path:

One of my new Year's resolutions is to "delve deep into Earth-Quaker understanding". The title Earth-Quaker is a marriage of my deeply held Quaker spirituality with my Nature Religion leanings. I first heard the term "Earth-Quaker" last winter from Carl Magruder, who calls himself an Earth Quaker, and I enjoyed the play on words!

This year I've been trying to discern and define what being an Earth-Quaker means to me. I want to strip away my ego-based need for comfort and self-actualization (success, pride, and fulfillment), and be open in a deeper way to what exactly I am called to do (and what I am not called to do).

This is my personal Earth-Quaker manifesto so far:

1. When I sink into expectant worship, I open my heart to Love, the Light of Truth, and all of Creation, and wait for new insight or guidance.
2. I practice this same opening (when I remember) as I go about my day - holding my questions and observations up to Love, Light, and Creation and re-seeing them in a new way before I respond.  
3. I am called to seek unity with the Earth and all of Creation in everything I do, as I do with my human community (listening for the Earth's needs and wants), and act accordingly.
4. Love is not hierarchical; Love for my family and community does not outweigh my love for the earth and all other creatures.

3. Earth Walking:

I'm re-reading a book by James Endredy called Earthwalks for Body and Spirit. In the introduction he says, "These walks have the ability to move energy in very precise ways that lead to personal transformation and healing for both yourself and Earth by allowing yourself to see your life and actions from the perspective of the natural world."

Wow! That's what I'm talking about. This book is a masterclass in finding unity with nature.

Today I'm going to start a practice of Attention Walks, around my yard and neighborhood. Last time I read this book I thought I could only take these walks in "nature", so I didn't get very far. Really, this is a practice for how to walk through life at all times,  on a healing path, walking "into and out of lessons" as they appear. The author calls walking the endless school: "It is the truest form of movement that we have been given ... Through walking we can look at our lives and our place in the grand scheme with new eyes while in communion with everything surrounding us."

What follows in the book is a lot of details about how to walk with intention, "in a way that is as fluid as the water in a flowing river ... This state of being can be applied to all aspects of life and can spread from you to all those around you." 

(Since it's raining like a river out there today, I should have no trouble with flowing.)

4. Creativity Practice:

Creativity is one way to prime the pump of abundance. I have been pretty minimally creative so far this year, but now that my studio space is clearer and cleaner I think that will change.

I've got a few projects that I'd like to work on in the next week - some painting, some crafts, and some toddler art playing.

Yesterday I had a little re-start ceremony, burnt some sage, set out my supplies and started some painted rocks. Today I will finish them!