Tonight there is a Blue Moon - as in "once in a blue moon". Of course the moon will not appear to be blue. However, it is rare - and gave rise to the saying. This one is even more rare because it comes with a partial eclipse of the moon. The blue moon together with an eclipse occurs only about every 91 years.
Today, on the Eve of 2010, I was directed to create an essence for this year. From the astrology of this New Year, I know we will all need to stay grounded and clear. As I asked for the specific essences to go into the combination for 2010, I was aware that the astrology tells a story of increasing energetic urgency. We, the children of the Earth, must transform ourselves and the way we live and the way we connect with each other, with the Earth we live on, and with Spirit. We can use all the help we can get. This essence will support us in doing exactly that, each in our own ways.
The essences in the Essence of 2010 are: Ayahuasca Essence; Herkimer Diamond Essence; Borage Flower Essence; Coast Redwood Essence; and Mother Water from around the world.
For a detailed description of each component essence, or if you are interested in purchasing the essence, go to http://www.dragonflyessence.com/Essence-of-2010.html
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
A TALE OF TWO CATS
There have always been animal companions in my life. However, there were two cats who grabbed my heart in their claws and refused to let go. Samantha taught me to communicate, and Misty taught me to go at life flat out, with gusto. Both of these cats had all the freedom I could give them. Both made their own choices about many things, including their manner and time of death.
Sam came to live with me in 1979, when I was going through big transitions. Sam accompanied me on my first shamanic journey, and brought me through kundalini awakening (which was very tough for me). She was a soul mate, and we had an ongoing conversation, heard only by the two of us most of the time. When she was 12 we moved out of the city to a place with 14 acres of gardens, pasture, meadow and woods. She was sure she was in heaven.
Less than a year after we moved I was helping a friend at her bookstore at a time she was giving away kittens. All of the kittens found homes except one, who told me emphatically that I was her person. Just as emphatically I said no – my housemate and I had too many cats already. However, after hearing her yell at me all night long I decided I would get more peace if I just brought her home.
She confidently walked right up to Sam, who was the senior cat in the house (how do they always know who that is?) and tried to make friends. Sam looked down her nose and told Misty that she was a good for nothing upstart and she had better mind her manners. Though they never fought, they were almost yet never exactly friends.
I hadn't done either Sam's or Misty's birth chart until recently. Astrologically speaking, the connections to my own chart are uncanny. I have been looking at astrological charts for 28 years and could have guessed the astrological connections were as strong as the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual connections.
Sam was a Leo (proud, easily hurt) with Gemini rising (two very different facets in one) and a Cancer moon (homebody), closely conjunct her Mars. What does that mean? We moved 8 times in her life and she was the star of the household – always! The Cancer moon gave Sam a loving heart.
Her Mercury was sextile (ease) to mine, so it was easy for us to hold the continuing conversation as we did for eighteen years.
Her Moon-Mars was at the same place as my Uranus (change). Plus, Sam's Cancer Mars was semi-square (confrontation) my own Mars-Pluto in Leo, which made for intense interactions and sometimes anger. Part of her work with me was to help me heal. And a very important piece of the healing was for me to realize how much anger (Mars) I had suppressed, yet still carried around with me. Sam was instrumental in that realization and healing.
Sam helped me through many big changes. For example, as I said earlier, she assisted me as I went about removing blocks and allowing kundalini to flow. This is a very Uranian process, and Uranus is all about change.
Her South Node was exactly conjunct my moon. She taught me how to feel deeply.
Now Misty was an Aries cat – she was born on the Spring Equinox. She was all about fire and change. At the same time, she was incredibly loving. The truth is that Misty and I were on an emotional wavelength I have seldom found, with human or animal. Her Pisces moon was only two degrees away from my own, while her Mercury was just 2 degrees on the other side of my moon. Our communication was less about words than it was about feelings.
Misty's Mars was 30 degrees from my Mars-Pluto conjunction (a volcano), with her Chiron (healing) right on top of my Mars. By the time Misty came to me, I had done a lot of work and releasing. Misty and I didn’t have to work through anger the way Sam and I did, though Misty could get fairly aggressive, especially when she was young.
Sam's moon was exactly trine (flow and ease) Misty's at 6 degrees Pisces, and just 8 degrees from Misty's Mars. All this was quite closely trine my moon. The flow of emotions among the three of us was quite remarkable.
Sam's Saturn was conjunct my own; her Pluto (death/transformation) was conjunct my South Node (karmic releasing). Sam spent about 6 months preparing for death, and the last night she curled up with me and sent a dream in which she poured out her feelings about her life with me. The next night she struggled through a cat door that was too high for her comfort (usually I opened the people door to let her out). Twice I brought her back in, and the third time I honored her choice (the truth of 3) and wished her ease in the dying. And then I cried myself to sleep.
Misty chose her death as well. Her Pluto was just 3 degrees from my Venus (beauty/love). She was an exquisitely skilled hunter, eating her daily mouse with gusto (except for the gall bladders). For the last 5 years of her life I lived in an apartment in town for the first time since she began living with me. She couldn't go out whenever she wanted - she needed me to let her out through two doors, and the management had been putting pressure on me to not let her out except on a leash. Can you imagine!
She had been sick and was tired of taking pills twice a day, just tired in general. We were staying for a few days in a friend's cottage, on a double lot backing on a green belt. We stayed there as often as possible, so Misty was familiar with the territory. There are deer, mice, rabbits, squirrels and birds in abundance. Misty had free access. Late at night she was still out and refused to come when I called and asked her to come in. About 1 a.m. I heard her cry just outside the bedroom window - short and cut off, and then a moment later a low growl. I ran outside and could not see or find anything. I went back to bed, somewhere deep knowing she was gone. In the morning I found her fur scattered in a wide circle about ten yards across. Though I searched, I did not find her (or her body). I did sit down and get quiet, and then I knew she was dead. I also knew she needed help to get out of limbo to the other side. Two of her friends who were on the other side of the veil, Sam and Shama, the dog, came when I asked and took her with them. She kissed my cheek as she left. I cried. With a Pisces moon how could I not?
Though it took a while, I have realized that Misty cooperated with the coyote (I think) who took her and ate her. A friend and I asked her what she felt about being eaten, and we felt her fierce joy in participating in the cycle of life. As native, earth-based people know, prey and predator are linked and communicate their willingness and needs.
For six months I cried every time I was alone and somewhat quiet. Misty always came to me, licking my face, trying to dry the tears. I could actually see her, feel her weight. She wanted to know why I was crying. Didn't I know she was all right? Of course I did – and I missed her.
These two amazing beings want to come back to me. I am working to make a wonderful place for them so we can continue to love and learn from each other.
Sam came to live with me in 1979, when I was going through big transitions. Sam accompanied me on my first shamanic journey, and brought me through kundalini awakening (which was very tough for me). She was a soul mate, and we had an ongoing conversation, heard only by the two of us most of the time. When she was 12 we moved out of the city to a place with 14 acres of gardens, pasture, meadow and woods. She was sure she was in heaven.
Less than a year after we moved I was helping a friend at her bookstore at a time she was giving away kittens. All of the kittens found homes except one, who told me emphatically that I was her person. Just as emphatically I said no – my housemate and I had too many cats already. However, after hearing her yell at me all night long I decided I would get more peace if I just brought her home.
She confidently walked right up to Sam, who was the senior cat in the house (how do they always know who that is?) and tried to make friends. Sam looked down her nose and told Misty that she was a good for nothing upstart and she had better mind her manners. Though they never fought, they were almost yet never exactly friends.
I hadn't done either Sam's or Misty's birth chart until recently. Astrologically speaking, the connections to my own chart are uncanny. I have been looking at astrological charts for 28 years and could have guessed the astrological connections were as strong as the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual connections.
Sam was a Leo (proud, easily hurt) with Gemini rising (two very different facets in one) and a Cancer moon (homebody), closely conjunct her Mars. What does that mean? We moved 8 times in her life and she was the star of the household – always! The Cancer moon gave Sam a loving heart.
Her Mercury was sextile (ease) to mine, so it was easy for us to hold the continuing conversation as we did for eighteen years.
Her Moon-Mars was at the same place as my Uranus (change). Plus, Sam's Cancer Mars was semi-square (confrontation) my own Mars-Pluto in Leo, which made for intense interactions and sometimes anger. Part of her work with me was to help me heal. And a very important piece of the healing was for me to realize how much anger (Mars) I had suppressed, yet still carried around with me. Sam was instrumental in that realization and healing.
Sam helped me through many big changes. For example, as I said earlier, she assisted me as I went about removing blocks and allowing kundalini to flow. This is a very Uranian process, and Uranus is all about change.
Her South Node was exactly conjunct my moon. She taught me how to feel deeply.
Now Misty was an Aries cat – she was born on the Spring Equinox. She was all about fire and change. At the same time, she was incredibly loving. The truth is that Misty and I were on an emotional wavelength I have seldom found, with human or animal. Her Pisces moon was only two degrees away from my own, while her Mercury was just 2 degrees on the other side of my moon. Our communication was less about words than it was about feelings.
Misty's Mars was 30 degrees from my Mars-Pluto conjunction (a volcano), with her Chiron (healing) right on top of my Mars. By the time Misty came to me, I had done a lot of work and releasing. Misty and I didn’t have to work through anger the way Sam and I did, though Misty could get fairly aggressive, especially when she was young.
Sam's moon was exactly trine (flow and ease) Misty's at 6 degrees Pisces, and just 8 degrees from Misty's Mars. All this was quite closely trine my moon. The flow of emotions among the three of us was quite remarkable.
Sam's Saturn was conjunct my own; her Pluto (death/transformation) was conjunct my South Node (karmic releasing). Sam spent about 6 months preparing for death, and the last night she curled up with me and sent a dream in which she poured out her feelings about her life with me. The next night she struggled through a cat door that was too high for her comfort (usually I opened the people door to let her out). Twice I brought her back in, and the third time I honored her choice (the truth of 3) and wished her ease in the dying. And then I cried myself to sleep.
Misty chose her death as well. Her Pluto was just 3 degrees from my Venus (beauty/love). She was an exquisitely skilled hunter, eating her daily mouse with gusto (except for the gall bladders). For the last 5 years of her life I lived in an apartment in town for the first time since she began living with me. She couldn't go out whenever she wanted - she needed me to let her out through two doors, and the management had been putting pressure on me to not let her out except on a leash. Can you imagine!
She had been sick and was tired of taking pills twice a day, just tired in general. We were staying for a few days in a friend's cottage, on a double lot backing on a green belt. We stayed there as often as possible, so Misty was familiar with the territory. There are deer, mice, rabbits, squirrels and birds in abundance. Misty had free access. Late at night she was still out and refused to come when I called and asked her to come in. About 1 a.m. I heard her cry just outside the bedroom window - short and cut off, and then a moment later a low growl. I ran outside and could not see or find anything. I went back to bed, somewhere deep knowing she was gone. In the morning I found her fur scattered in a wide circle about ten yards across. Though I searched, I did not find her (or her body). I did sit down and get quiet, and then I knew she was dead. I also knew she needed help to get out of limbo to the other side. Two of her friends who were on the other side of the veil, Sam and Shama, the dog, came when I asked and took her with them. She kissed my cheek as she left. I cried. With a Pisces moon how could I not?
Though it took a while, I have realized that Misty cooperated with the coyote (I think) who took her and ate her. A friend and I asked her what she felt about being eaten, and we felt her fierce joy in participating in the cycle of life. As native, earth-based people know, prey and predator are linked and communicate their willingness and needs.
For six months I cried every time I was alone and somewhat quiet. Misty always came to me, licking my face, trying to dry the tears. I could actually see her, feel her weight. She wanted to know why I was crying. Didn't I know she was all right? Of course I did – and I missed her.
These two amazing beings want to come back to me. I am working to make a wonderful place for them so we can continue to love and learn from each other.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Climate Change Affects Everything!
Just over 60 years ago I was born in Anchorage, Alaska. My parents and I left when I was two, so I have no memory of my birthplace. Most of all I would like to see where I was born. I know it is a beautiful place on the Earth.
I would love to see moose walking through the streets of my birth city. If I could see the mountains my mother saw through her kitchen window, I would be thrilled. Even the bears are a sight I hope to see. It would be awesome to see the glaciers.
The thing is, I am not sure it will be there in the future. The glaciers are receding at an alarming rate. Polar bears and other Alaskan animal species are endangered. And as the temperatures rise, there is a cascading effect.
Time is running out.
I have repeatedly called my Representative and Senators. I am lucky they often share my own views. I have emailed the President. He is more aware and active about this issue than his predecessors, and still it isn't enough.
The American Native teachers have told me that we owe EVERYTHING to Mother Earth. The only thing we have to give back is the way we live our lives. To the native tribes of Turtle Island, the Earth is sacred ground, and we must honor and care for her.
If we love the Earth, we will do what is necessary, and do it now! The clock is ticking.
I would love to see moose walking through the streets of my birth city. If I could see the mountains my mother saw through her kitchen window, I would be thrilled. Even the bears are a sight I hope to see. It would be awesome to see the glaciers.
The thing is, I am not sure it will be there in the future. The glaciers are receding at an alarming rate. Polar bears and other Alaskan animal species are endangered. And as the temperatures rise, there is a cascading effect.
Time is running out.
I have repeatedly called my Representative and Senators. I am lucky they often share my own views. I have emailed the President. He is more aware and active about this issue than his predecessors, and still it isn't enough.
The American Native teachers have told me that we owe EVERYTHING to Mother Earth. The only thing we have to give back is the way we live our lives. To the native tribes of Turtle Island, the Earth is sacred ground, and we must honor and care for her.
If we love the Earth, we will do what is necessary, and do it now! The clock is ticking.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Blog Action Day
This is Blog Action Day - we are going to pay attention to what is going on in our environment, and notice that the climate is changing. In my corner of the world we had unprecedented eighty degree weather in mid-October!
I have read that organic gardening alone would be a big help in solving the climate crisis. Apparently producing chemicals for non-organic fertilizers has a major impact on climate.
Then there is guerilla gardening: the act of cultivating someone’s land without permission. It has been going on for several hundred years! The home page is at http://guerrillagardening.org/
Finally, a while back, I watched a video about urban gardening in Cuba. It was necessity that drove this movement, when Russia collapsed and no longer sent food and other supplies to Cuba. So the gardens are all organic - no chemicals were coming into the small island country. They are near the people who consume the food so transport has less impact than in the U.S. What a wonderful thing. I think we could learn from their necessities before food becomes quite so dire an issue here in the States.
Thus, pushed by the recession and the high price of quality food and gas to get to the stores, two friends and I planted an organic garden this spring. A wonderful woman gave us almost all the seeds we needed and wanted, saying this is her way of being the change she wants. She saves seeds. Someone in our agricultural surroundings gave us goat manure for free as well. I have done some gardening before this, but it was mostly flowers and herbs.
I remember my roots: My dad's family always had a garden (and Dad still does); and my mom's dad was a dairy farmer. In his day the way to keep the fields fertile was to rotate crops and put manure on the fields. Did you know that chemical fertilizer wasn't available until the World War I era? It was a new way to fix nitrogen, and it was developed for bombs. Michael Pollan talks about it in The Omnivore's Dilemma ( a wonderful book to read if your are interested in how we get our food these days).
Fortunately for me, I have an autoimmune disease that gets worse when I eat processed food, sugar and grains. When I realized the medical model would have me taking immune suppressant drugs, I decided to look at my food very carefully. Now I eat LOTS of vegetables, some fruit, some chicken and fish, occasional turkey, eggs, nuts and seeds. I do NOT eat corn syrup - high fructose or otherwise.
Having an organic garden felt like going back to my roots.
So I planted a variety of seeds: basil dill chives, cilantro, lettuce, wax beans zucchini, tomatoes, snow peas and lots of flowers. All summer long I ate greens of several kinds, wax beans, onions, zucchini, tomaotes, and, of course basil. Basil vinagrette, fresh pesto, and just basil in what I made - from soup to salad.
When I went to my garden to water, weed or glean for dinner, I felt at peace. What an amazing thing - to grow my own food! It really is empowering. If you haven't ever planted your own garden, do it now!
I have read that organic gardening alone would be a big help in solving the climate crisis. Apparently producing chemicals for non-organic fertilizers has a major impact on climate.
Then there is guerilla gardening: the act of cultivating someone’s land without permission. It has been going on for several hundred years! The home page is at http://guerrillagardening.org/
Finally, a while back, I watched a video about urban gardening in Cuba. It was necessity that drove this movement, when Russia collapsed and no longer sent food and other supplies to Cuba. So the gardens are all organic - no chemicals were coming into the small island country. They are near the people who consume the food so transport has less impact than in the U.S. What a wonderful thing. I think we could learn from their necessities before food becomes quite so dire an issue here in the States.
Thus, pushed by the recession and the high price of quality food and gas to get to the stores, two friends and I planted an organic garden this spring. A wonderful woman gave us almost all the seeds we needed and wanted, saying this is her way of being the change she wants. She saves seeds. Someone in our agricultural surroundings gave us goat manure for free as well. I have done some gardening before this, but it was mostly flowers and herbs.
I remember my roots: My dad's family always had a garden (and Dad still does); and my mom's dad was a dairy farmer. In his day the way to keep the fields fertile was to rotate crops and put manure on the fields. Did you know that chemical fertilizer wasn't available until the World War I era? It was a new way to fix nitrogen, and it was developed for bombs. Michael Pollan talks about it in The Omnivore's Dilemma ( a wonderful book to read if your are interested in how we get our food these days).
Fortunately for me, I have an autoimmune disease that gets worse when I eat processed food, sugar and grains. When I realized the medical model would have me taking immune suppressant drugs, I decided to look at my food very carefully. Now I eat LOTS of vegetables, some fruit, some chicken and fish, occasional turkey, eggs, nuts and seeds. I do NOT eat corn syrup - high fructose or otherwise.
Having an organic garden felt like going back to my roots.
So I planted a variety of seeds: basil dill chives, cilantro, lettuce, wax beans zucchini, tomatoes, snow peas and lots of flowers. All summer long I ate greens of several kinds, wax beans, onions, zucchini, tomaotes, and, of course basil. Basil vinagrette, fresh pesto, and just basil in what I made - from soup to salad.
When I went to my garden to water, weed or glean for dinner, I felt at peace. What an amazing thing - to grow my own food! It really is empowering. If you haven't ever planted your own garden, do it now!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Magic in the Air
Brrr. . . .It's cold all of a sudden! I noticed the spider webs weeks ago, and then it got hot again, followed by rain and winds. Now it's just cold.
My garden isn't frozen - too early for that, thank heaven. However, nothing is growing except maybe the chard and kale. The tomatoes aren't ripening - I'll have to bring them indoors.
Usually I enjoy the autumn. This year is different, this year is a bit crazy and people are cranky: it's not just the economy, though that is a challenge sometimes. I believe it is the huge changes that are happening. It is the energy of it. We don't know what will happen, and many people have nothing to really trust!
I just turned sixty, and in the midst of all of the chaos in the world, had a wonderful party. There was magic in the air. Fortunately the rain stopped, and we had a sunny day, though a bit breezy and chilly. My birthday present to myself was to have a ceremony of stepping into maturity, with two friends who were also ready to take that step.
We held the ceremony in a friends large and secluded back yard. The first sign of magic was the three does hanging out peacefully at the top of the yard, just in front of the greenbelt. Three does side by side were enjoying the sunshine. They were in the yard for at least a half hour!
As we were getting started, a four-point buck wandered through, taking his time and munching, quite unconcerned about more than a dozen of us peering at him from the bottom of the yard.
The fire was magnificent, and as it was blossoming, the wind blew from all four directions - a wonderful sign from my viewpoint!
Later, when we were in the midst of the ceremony, a honeybee flew up beside me, hovered for a moment and flew away. Did I mention that one of my totem animals is the honeybee? One of the other women going through the ceremony had a visitor also.
The three of us - indeed everyone there - were filled to the brim with quiet joy.
Later I spoke with another woman I know. We agreed that we are well taken care of against all odds. She told me about burning her hand quite badly, and having her family do energy work on it. When they finished, the hand was pink but did not hurt.
Personally, I notice it when there is always enough money for me to pay the bills, buy groceries and repair my 1985 Honda.
In the midst of chaos, life goes on and magic and mystery thrive. I am so blessed!
My garden isn't frozen - too early for that, thank heaven. However, nothing is growing except maybe the chard and kale. The tomatoes aren't ripening - I'll have to bring them indoors.
Usually I enjoy the autumn. This year is different, this year is a bit crazy and people are cranky: it's not just the economy, though that is a challenge sometimes. I believe it is the huge changes that are happening. It is the energy of it. We don't know what will happen, and many people have nothing to really trust!
I just turned sixty, and in the midst of all of the chaos in the world, had a wonderful party. There was magic in the air. Fortunately the rain stopped, and we had a sunny day, though a bit breezy and chilly. My birthday present to myself was to have a ceremony of stepping into maturity, with two friends who were also ready to take that step.
We held the ceremony in a friends large and secluded back yard. The first sign of magic was the three does hanging out peacefully at the top of the yard, just in front of the greenbelt. Three does side by side were enjoying the sunshine. They were in the yard for at least a half hour!
As we were getting started, a four-point buck wandered through, taking his time and munching, quite unconcerned about more than a dozen of us peering at him from the bottom of the yard.
The fire was magnificent, and as it was blossoming, the wind blew from all four directions - a wonderful sign from my viewpoint!
Later, when we were in the midst of the ceremony, a honeybee flew up beside me, hovered for a moment and flew away. Did I mention that one of my totem animals is the honeybee? One of the other women going through the ceremony had a visitor also.
The three of us - indeed everyone there - were filled to the brim with quiet joy.
Later I spoke with another woman I know. We agreed that we are well taken care of against all odds. She told me about burning her hand quite badly, and having her family do energy work on it. When they finished, the hand was pink but did not hurt.
Personally, I notice it when there is always enough money for me to pay the bills, buy groceries and repair my 1985 Honda.
In the midst of chaos, life goes on and magic and mystery thrive. I am so blessed!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
African Union
Did you know that Africa has a Union? Of all the African states, only four are not active members. According to Wikipedia:
The only African country that is not a member of the African Union is Morocco, which left the AU's predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), in 1984, when many of the other member countries supported the Sahrawi nationalist Polisario Front's Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Morocco's ally, Zaire, similarly opposed the OAU's admission of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and the Mobutu regime boycotted the organisation from 1984 to 1986. Some countries have since retracted their support for the Sahrawi Republic.
Three nations are suspended: Guinea, Madagascar, and Eritrea.
What does this mean? It is political: the African Union can apply some pressure to states that are failing in human rights. It is commercial: peaceful cooperation means better commerce, and better commerce means an easier path to peace and prosperity for all. And it means Africa is coming rapidly into the 21st century.
Beyond that, I wonder if we are moving toward a World Union, that would mean peace for all. Is that even possible?
Perhaps one day the AU will complete the Cape to Cairo railroad, Cecil Rhodes'dream that has long been a symbol of colonialism. If Africa does complete the railroad, it will a major triumph. The terrain is not easy, there are three different gauges in the already extant rail beds, and then there is the political challenge.
Again, according to Wikipedia:
The concept of the Cape to Cairo Railway is not dead. While the current turmoil in Sudan is an obstacle to its completion, tangible concepts have been forwarded to complete the link between Sudan and East Africa for economic reasons. It has been suggested that such a link would facilitate trade between the Mediterranean countries and Europe and the Sub-Saharan part of Africa and be of economic benefit.
There is something about African freedom and prosperity that touches my heart. I pray for the day that all of us have peace, food, education, and health.
The only African country that is not a member of the African Union is Morocco, which left the AU's predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), in 1984, when many of the other member countries supported the Sahrawi nationalist Polisario Front's Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Morocco's ally, Zaire, similarly opposed the OAU's admission of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and the Mobutu regime boycotted the organisation from 1984 to 1986. Some countries have since retracted their support for the Sahrawi Republic.
Three nations are suspended: Guinea, Madagascar, and Eritrea.
What does this mean? It is political: the African Union can apply some pressure to states that are failing in human rights. It is commercial: peaceful cooperation means better commerce, and better commerce means an easier path to peace and prosperity for all. And it means Africa is coming rapidly into the 21st century.
Beyond that, I wonder if we are moving toward a World Union, that would mean peace for all. Is that even possible?
Perhaps one day the AU will complete the Cape to Cairo railroad, Cecil Rhodes'dream that has long been a symbol of colonialism. If Africa does complete the railroad, it will a major triumph. The terrain is not easy, there are three different gauges in the already extant rail beds, and then there is the political challenge.
Again, according to Wikipedia:
The concept of the Cape to Cairo Railway is not dead. While the current turmoil in Sudan is an obstacle to its completion, tangible concepts have been forwarded to complete the link between Sudan and East Africa for economic reasons. It has been suggested that such a link would facilitate trade between the Mediterranean countries and Europe and the Sub-Saharan part of Africa and be of economic benefit.
There is something about African freedom and prosperity that touches my heart. I pray for the day that all of us have peace, food, education, and health.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
My Garden
I love my garden. I have done some gardening before this, but it was mostly flowers and herbs. This year someone gave me the seeds for a food, herbs and flower garden. So a friend and I divvied up the space that neighbors tilled, and I goat hauled manure, which she dug into the garden space.
So I planted a variety of seeds: basil dill chives, cilantro, lettuce, wax beans zucchini, tomatoes, snow peas and lots of flowers. Lately I've been eating greens of several kinds, wax beans, onions, zucchini, and, of course basil. Basil vinagrette, fresh pesto, and just basil in what I make - from soup to salad.
The tomatoes haven't ripened fully yet, but they are beginning to turn red and yellow and orange.
When I go out to my garden to water, weed or glean for dinner, I feel at peace. What an amazing thing - to grow my own food! It really is empowering. If you haven't ever planted your own garden, do it now!
So I planted a variety of seeds: basil dill chives, cilantro, lettuce, wax beans zucchini, tomatoes, snow peas and lots of flowers. Lately I've been eating greens of several kinds, wax beans, onions, zucchini, and, of course basil. Basil vinagrette, fresh pesto, and just basil in what I make - from soup to salad.
The tomatoes haven't ripened fully yet, but they are beginning to turn red and yellow and orange.
When I go out to my garden to water, weed or glean for dinner, I feel at peace. What an amazing thing - to grow my own food! It really is empowering. If you haven't ever planted your own garden, do it now!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Women of Wisdom: the Book!
I have participated in a conference just for women, and have found it inspiring and strengthening. One of the speakers stands out for me - Angeles Arrien. She is a cultural anthropologist, award-winning author, educator, and consultant to many organizations and businesses. She lectures and conducts workshops worldwide, bridging cultural anthropology, psychology, and comparative religions. Her work is currently used in medical, academic, and corporate environments.
Here is a bit of what she said in addressing the Women of Wisdom some years ago:
When in your life did you stop singing? When in your life did you stop dancing? When in your life did you stop being enchanted by stories and particularly you own life story?
I am at home when I have fire; when I am deeply connected to what has heart and meaning, the heart's fire; when I am seized by a vision that I want to manifest and bring to the sweet face of Mother Earth. I know I am on fire when I have connected to something numinous and extraordinarily beautiful that can only be found when trusting in an unshakable part of myself, in a sacred refuge that I can find in my deep interior.
Well that set me on fire!
The annual Women of Wisdom conference began, of course, as a dream. Like any dream it took work and perseverance, and lots of sweat, laughter and tears. It started with Kris Steinnes' dream.
Here are a few words from the author and originator of Women of Wisdom:
Women of Wisdom is a journey through sixteen years of one of the largest women’s spirituality conferences in the world, a very unique conference that has impacted thousands of women’s lives. Authors Jean Houston and Margot Anand both exclaimed separately to me – “Kris there is nothing like this in the world” – and they have traveled around the world. The book will continue to impact women, as they experience the wisdom and gifts of the sixty contributors in the book.
The Women of Wisdom book gives women access to powerful, inspiring women leaders and their message for women to step into their power, own their feminine gifts, and learn to speak their truths. WOW provides role models who will inspire women to discover their dreams and their purpose.
Additionally the book shares stories from women whose lives have been changed by experiencing these women’s messages. Evocative art, poetry and experiential exercises enhance the book’s message, providing diverse ways to experience the spirit of the feminine.
The book Women of Wisdom by Kris Steinnes, will be offered beginning tomorrow, June 23rd, 2009 at 12:01 am. We invite you to go to this page - www.wisewomanpublishing.com/womenofwisdom.html - to access the order page and then go back to the same page and enter your order confirmation code and your email address. That will take you to the sign up page for the Women of Wisdom e-newsletter. Once you join the WOW book group you will be sent an email with a link to the bonus gifts that are available to people who buy the book on June 23rd. You can later opt out of being on the Women of Wisdom newsletter list if you choose.
Enjoy the read!
Here is a bit of what she said in addressing the Women of Wisdom some years ago:
When in your life did you stop singing? When in your life did you stop dancing? When in your life did you stop being enchanted by stories and particularly you own life story?
I am at home when I have fire; when I am deeply connected to what has heart and meaning, the heart's fire; when I am seized by a vision that I want to manifest and bring to the sweet face of Mother Earth. I know I am on fire when I have connected to something numinous and extraordinarily beautiful that can only be found when trusting in an unshakable part of myself, in a sacred refuge that I can find in my deep interior.
Well that set me on fire!
The annual Women of Wisdom conference began, of course, as a dream. Like any dream it took work and perseverance, and lots of sweat, laughter and tears. It started with Kris Steinnes' dream.
Here are a few words from the author and originator of Women of Wisdom:
Women of Wisdom is a journey through sixteen years of one of the largest women’s spirituality conferences in the world, a very unique conference that has impacted thousands of women’s lives. Authors Jean Houston and Margot Anand both exclaimed separately to me – “Kris there is nothing like this in the world” – and they have traveled around the world. The book will continue to impact women, as they experience the wisdom and gifts of the sixty contributors in the book.
The Women of Wisdom book gives women access to powerful, inspiring women leaders and their message for women to step into their power, own their feminine gifts, and learn to speak their truths. WOW provides role models who will inspire women to discover their dreams and their purpose.
Additionally the book shares stories from women whose lives have been changed by experiencing these women’s messages. Evocative art, poetry and experiential exercises enhance the book’s message, providing diverse ways to experience the spirit of the feminine.
The book Women of Wisdom by Kris Steinnes, will be offered beginning tomorrow, June 23rd, 2009 at 12:01 am. We invite you to go to this page - www.wisewomanpublishing.com/womenofwisdom.html - to access the order page and then go back to the same page and enter your order confirmation code and your email address. That will take you to the sign up page for the Women of Wisdom e-newsletter. Once you join the WOW book group you will be sent an email with a link to the bonus gifts that are available to people who buy the book on June 23rd. You can later opt out of being on the Women of Wisdom newsletter list if you choose.
Enjoy the read!
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
A Time to Heal
The astrology in this time is extraordinary. Mercury, moving direct in late Taurus, is now square (90-degree aspect) the alignment of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune in Aquarius. This is the last of Mercury’s three squares to the Aquarius alignment, and the most precise. If you don't know about astrology, squares move us into action. It is best if we are aware and actively using that square, because the square will push us if we aren't awake!
The conjunction of Neptune, Chiron and Jupiter is a focused, laser-like healing beam. Mercury in Taurus gives an earthy voice to all that is ready to heal or let go. It can be on the personal, or the collective. I have experienced both in the lead-up to the exact alignments.
On the collective level, I listened to President Obama's speech in Cairo, weeping through much of it. I am thankful for a President with both heart and brains. I could feel the audience that was there in the room opening their hearts and experiencing relief. He quoted the Koran (aptly) and yet also gave the message that we MUST learn to live peacefully - all humans need to have safety, food, health care, and so on. And we must respect each other's traditions, religion and culture. Wow!
On the personal level I experienced amazing healing. It hasn't been exactly easy, as the President said creating a peaceful world would not be easy. Yet it is necessary and there is support.
What came up for me was the opportunity to let go of old wounds. I was on a journey into the desert, with two very trusted friends. We picked a day that was cooler than usual, and because of the amount of snow this past winter, the usual trickle of a waterfall was lush and full. There were many plants in bloom. Lots of animals - deer, ravens, and other smaller creatures - were feasting on the abundance of food and water. It was a lovely spot for our prayer pipe ceremony.
I had a bit of a hard time clambering over rocks and with walking further than was comfortable. But the real inner push was an upcoming meeting where one of the participants is quite controlling. I had been talking about my feelings, not wanting to go yet knowing I needed to. And yet another woman in my life has been pushing that same button. On the way home, after dropping one person at her house, my other friend was driving. We both are trained in shamanic and energetic healing.
I told her I thought there might be some unconscious sorcery going on. We talked a bit about it, she reminding me that in this situation, there was probably some really old hurts coming up. Since she was driving, I looked inside and saw a dagger in my heart. I thought I would take it out. But before I could do so, my primary guardian and guide became visible to me. I know this guide well, yet had never seen her before. She was quite beautiful. And she pulled out the dagger. She also told me that I do need to go to the meeting, Partly because I could help in healing for the whole group, and there would be a gift for me.
That wasn't the end, however. When I finally sat down in my comfortable recliner at home, I realized that my mother had a fair amount of that controlling energy, especially when I was very young. It affected me deeply - I was very sensitive on a number of levels.
I am sure there is more work to do. What is interesting is how this whole process was so laser-like. That, my friends, is Chiron conjunct Neptune and Jupiter square Mercury!
The conjunction of Neptune, Chiron and Jupiter is a focused, laser-like healing beam. Mercury in Taurus gives an earthy voice to all that is ready to heal or let go. It can be on the personal, or the collective. I have experienced both in the lead-up to the exact alignments.
On the collective level, I listened to President Obama's speech in Cairo, weeping through much of it. I am thankful for a President with both heart and brains. I could feel the audience that was there in the room opening their hearts and experiencing relief. He quoted the Koran (aptly) and yet also gave the message that we MUST learn to live peacefully - all humans need to have safety, food, health care, and so on. And we must respect each other's traditions, religion and culture. Wow!
On the personal level I experienced amazing healing. It hasn't been exactly easy, as the President said creating a peaceful world would not be easy. Yet it is necessary and there is support.
What came up for me was the opportunity to let go of old wounds. I was on a journey into the desert, with two very trusted friends. We picked a day that was cooler than usual, and because of the amount of snow this past winter, the usual trickle of a waterfall was lush and full. There were many plants in bloom. Lots of animals - deer, ravens, and other smaller creatures - were feasting on the abundance of food and water. It was a lovely spot for our prayer pipe ceremony.
I had a bit of a hard time clambering over rocks and with walking further than was comfortable. But the real inner push was an upcoming meeting where one of the participants is quite controlling. I had been talking about my feelings, not wanting to go yet knowing I needed to. And yet another woman in my life has been pushing that same button. On the way home, after dropping one person at her house, my other friend was driving. We both are trained in shamanic and energetic healing.
I told her I thought there might be some unconscious sorcery going on. We talked a bit about it, she reminding me that in this situation, there was probably some really old hurts coming up. Since she was driving, I looked inside and saw a dagger in my heart. I thought I would take it out. But before I could do so, my primary guardian and guide became visible to me. I know this guide well, yet had never seen her before. She was quite beautiful. And she pulled out the dagger. She also told me that I do need to go to the meeting, Partly because I could help in healing for the whole group, and there would be a gift for me.
That wasn't the end, however. When I finally sat down in my comfortable recliner at home, I realized that my mother had a fair amount of that controlling energy, especially when I was very young. It affected me deeply - I was very sensitive on a number of levels.
I am sure there is more work to do. What is interesting is how this whole process was so laser-like. That, my friends, is Chiron conjunct Neptune and Jupiter square Mercury!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Heart of Aquamarine
Recently I had a big breakthrough moment, on a coaching call. The coach, Cinda, is not famous. She is a friend of mine, and she coaches writing at a community college. She is very good at it.
I already knew that I didn't want to attract disapproving attention from conservative Christians for what I do. I know that what I do is healing. Many clients have told me so. What do I do? I work with clients to let go of energy that no longer serves them. Sometimes it is energy that is actually damaging. Sometimes it is attached to a person and sometimes is in their space - home or office. I am very good at it.
I also communicate with other species, and help them to get what they need; help the people (who generally are the ones asking and paying for my services) get what they need. I am very good at it.
Plus I am writing a book about animal souls in life and death. It was stalled. I mean completely stalled - had been for months. At the same time, I was getting the message from all directions to FINISH THE BOOK!
So, when I talked to Cinda, we keyed in on the fact that I didn't want to be "seen." I already knew that, yet didn't know how to clear it. It felt important in my long dry spell with the book. How could I write a bestseller and not be "seen"?
During the session, Cinda went right for the manifestation in my body. In the process, with her guiding me, I let go of some old "stuff" from my liver and gall bladder. Interesting. I had been having pain there, and the wonderful alternative healer I go to (my experience is that he can heal anything) had not been able to budge it.
As I let go, I felt euphoric. We completed the session, and I went right to the computer. Within the next 24 hours, I took the book completely apart and put it back together in a way that made complete sense, and had five chapters done and three more outlined!
Very soon after I was sitting in my friend Tee's living room talking to her about the experience. Tee is a writer also. As I started, my hands were crossed over my heart. At one point I opened my arms, and Tee gasped. She said "There is a bright aquamarine light at your heart!"
I believed her, yet knew I didn't need to do anything about it. The next day, Tee sent me an email:
"Aquamarine is associated with the throat chakra, so unless your heart is in your throat, I'm not sure of the meaning behind what I saw this evening. But, geeminy, did I ever see a bright, glowing, spinning orb of aquamarine energy beneath your hands; when you moved them and revealed your chest, it was an amazing sight. After extensive googling, here's the only link I found between aquamarine and the heart:
Aquamarine can also work with the Heart Chakra by helping one to realize their innermost truth. Aquamarine facilitates the releasing of old patterns of behavior that no longer serve, and that actually inhibit one's growth."
How about that!
Energy moves, patterns let go and we move into greater coherence.
I already knew that I didn't want to attract disapproving attention from conservative Christians for what I do. I know that what I do is healing. Many clients have told me so. What do I do? I work with clients to let go of energy that no longer serves them. Sometimes it is energy that is actually damaging. Sometimes it is attached to a person and sometimes is in their space - home or office. I am very good at it.
I also communicate with other species, and help them to get what they need; help the people (who generally are the ones asking and paying for my services) get what they need. I am very good at it.
Plus I am writing a book about animal souls in life and death. It was stalled. I mean completely stalled - had been for months. At the same time, I was getting the message from all directions to FINISH THE BOOK!
So, when I talked to Cinda, we keyed in on the fact that I didn't want to be "seen." I already knew that, yet didn't know how to clear it. It felt important in my long dry spell with the book. How could I write a bestseller and not be "seen"?
During the session, Cinda went right for the manifestation in my body. In the process, with her guiding me, I let go of some old "stuff" from my liver and gall bladder. Interesting. I had been having pain there, and the wonderful alternative healer I go to (my experience is that he can heal anything) had not been able to budge it.
As I let go, I felt euphoric. We completed the session, and I went right to the computer. Within the next 24 hours, I took the book completely apart and put it back together in a way that made complete sense, and had five chapters done and three more outlined!
Very soon after I was sitting in my friend Tee's living room talking to her about the experience. Tee is a writer also. As I started, my hands were crossed over my heart. At one point I opened my arms, and Tee gasped. She said "There is a bright aquamarine light at your heart!"
I believed her, yet knew I didn't need to do anything about it. The next day, Tee sent me an email:
"Aquamarine is associated with the throat chakra, so unless your heart is in your throat, I'm not sure of the meaning behind what I saw this evening. But, geeminy, did I ever see a bright, glowing, spinning orb of aquamarine energy beneath your hands; when you moved them and revealed your chest, it was an amazing sight. After extensive googling, here's the only link I found between aquamarine and the heart:
Aquamarine can also work with the Heart Chakra by helping one to realize their innermost truth. Aquamarine facilitates the releasing of old patterns of behavior that no longer serve, and that actually inhibit one's growth."
How about that!
Energy moves, patterns let go and we move into greater coherence.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Bowser Update
My cat friend Bowser wasn't peeing. Actually he did occasionally pee on the carpet. Money being a bit more scarce, and reluctant to subject Bowser to a trip to the vet and pharmaceutical remedies, I asked him if he would be willing to let my friend Rose attune him to Reiki. Rose is a Reiki Master, and often attunes animals who need this tool to heal themselves.
Rose had done this for my friend Misty before she died. In the year or so after Misty received the Reiki attunement, she had healed herself of incipient kidney failure. Any doctor would tell you this isn't possible. Kidney function does not return. Besides the kidney, Misty healed her hind leg that had been shattered in a tangle with a car when she was 2 years old. Most of her life she had walked on all four legs, but had run on three legs. Not long before she died I watched her run flat out after a rabbit on all four legs.
Bowser was ebullient! He healed his bladder issue in just a few minutes, and now is back to normal. He has more energy too, and is pestering me more to play with him. He was very clear with Rose about what he wanted. Sometimes we think animals don't know very much. What I know is that they can be much smarter than we are about very practical matters!
Rose had done this for my friend Misty before she died. In the year or so after Misty received the Reiki attunement, she had healed herself of incipient kidney failure. Any doctor would tell you this isn't possible. Kidney function does not return. Besides the kidney, Misty healed her hind leg that had been shattered in a tangle with a car when she was 2 years old. Most of her life she had walked on all four legs, but had run on three legs. Not long before she died I watched her run flat out after a rabbit on all four legs.
Bowser was ebullient! He healed his bladder issue in just a few minutes, and now is back to normal. He has more energy too, and is pestering me more to play with him. He was very clear with Rose about what he wanted. Sometimes we think animals don't know very much. What I know is that they can be much smarter than we are about very practical matters!
All Things Green
Pushed by the recession and the high price of quality food and gas to get to the stores, two friends/neighbors and I are planning an organic garden. We are lucky - there is a large green meadow next to us, owned by the same organization from whom we rent our apartments.
We have a friend who has a tiller, and another wonderful woman gave us almost all the seeds we need and want. Hopefully someone in our agricultural surroundings will give us manure for free as well.
I sometimes remember my roots: My dad's family always had a garden (and Dad still does); and my mom's dad was a dairy farmer. In his day the way to keep the fields fertile was to rotate crops and put manure on the fields. Did you know that chemical fertilizer wasn't available until the World War I era? It was a new way to fix nitrogen, and it was developed for bombs. Michael Pollan talks about it in The Omnivore's Dilemma ( a wonderful book to read if your are interested in how we get our food these days).
Fortunately for me, I have an autoimmune disease that gets worse when I eat processed food, sugar and grains. When I realized the medical model would have me taking immune suppressant drugs, I decided to look at my food very carefully. Now I eat LOTS of vegetables, some fruit, some chicken and fish, occasional turkey, eggs, nuts and seeds. I do NOT eat corn syrup - high fructose or otherwise.
Having an organic garden feels like going back to my roots.
I watched a video about urban gardening in Cuba. It was necessity that drove this movement as well, when Russia collapsed and no longer sent food and other supplies to Cuba. So the gardens are all organic - no chemicals were coming into the small island country. They are near the people who consume the food so transport has less impact than in the U.S. What a wonderful thing. I think we could learn from their necessities before food becomes quite so dire an issue here in the States.
We have a friend who has a tiller, and another wonderful woman gave us almost all the seeds we need and want. Hopefully someone in our agricultural surroundings will give us manure for free as well.
I sometimes remember my roots: My dad's family always had a garden (and Dad still does); and my mom's dad was a dairy farmer. In his day the way to keep the fields fertile was to rotate crops and put manure on the fields. Did you know that chemical fertilizer wasn't available until the World War I era? It was a new way to fix nitrogen, and it was developed for bombs. Michael Pollan talks about it in The Omnivore's Dilemma ( a wonderful book to read if your are interested in how we get our food these days).
Fortunately for me, I have an autoimmune disease that gets worse when I eat processed food, sugar and grains. When I realized the medical model would have me taking immune suppressant drugs, I decided to look at my food very carefully. Now I eat LOTS of vegetables, some fruit, some chicken and fish, occasional turkey, eggs, nuts and seeds. I do NOT eat corn syrup - high fructose or otherwise.
Having an organic garden feels like going back to my roots.
I watched a video about urban gardening in Cuba. It was necessity that drove this movement as well, when Russia collapsed and no longer sent food and other supplies to Cuba. So the gardens are all organic - no chemicals were coming into the small island country. They are near the people who consume the food so transport has less impact than in the U.S. What a wonderful thing. I think we could learn from their necessities before food becomes quite so dire an issue here in the States.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Bowser
One of the reasons I have been feeding the birds is for the benefit of Bowser. Despite the name, Bowser is a cat, not a dog. He is a twelve year old rescue cat who loves to sit in the window and watch the birds. When I said yes to taking Bowser, I wasn't sure why I was needed. His front feet are declawed. The people who gave him to me said that at one time he escaped from the household and was gone for about six months. When he came back to his people he was very skinny.
They didn't tell me he was terrified of having his head covered - something I found out accidentally. I am pretty sure someone captured him in a bag or blanket that went over his head. He was almost always crying in his sleep. And then I realized he needed healing. Actually, the healing I've offered has been very passive (even though my work is energetic healing). The main ingredient is loving him and behaving in a way he can trust.
One remarkable thing in this story involves my mesa. The mesa is a medicine bundle, created over time in my work as an energetic healer. Mostly it consists of powerful stones from the mountains of Peru and Western Washington. Bowser loves to sleep on top of it. Because we are talking about stones wrapped in a layer of wool, it cannot be the kind of comfortable that cats usually enjoy. Aside from my mesa, Bowser generally picks the softest places to sleep: on my lap, on a pillow, on a very soft wool blanket . . . . You get the picture.
He began to cry less and play a bit more.
And then . . . Bowser wasn't peeing. Actually he did occasionally pee on the carpet. Money being a bit more scarce, and reluctant to subject Bowser to a trip to the vet and pharmaceutical remedies, I asked him if he would be willing to let my friend Rose attune him to Reiki. Rose is a Reiki Master, and often attunes animals who need this tool to heal themselves.
Rose had done this for my friend Misty before she died. In the year or so after Misty received the Reiki attunement, she had healed herself of incipient kidney failure. Any doctor would tell you this isn't possible. Kidney function does not return. Besides the kidney, Misty healed her hind leg that had been shattered in a tangle with a car when she was 2 years old. Most of her life she had walked on all four legs, but had run on three legs. Not long before she died I watched her run flat out after a rabbit on all four legs.
Back to Bowser - he was ebullient! He healed his bladder issue in just a few minutes, and it is back to normal. Bowser no longer cries in his sleep. He loves to play, and talks a LOT. He had been afraid of my next door neighbor, and now he loves his new friend. He has more energy too, and is pestering me more to play with him.
He was very clear with Rose about what he wanted. Sometimes we think animals don't know very much. What I know is that they can be much smarter than we are about very practical matters!
They didn't tell me he was terrified of having his head covered - something I found out accidentally. I am pretty sure someone captured him in a bag or blanket that went over his head. He was almost always crying in his sleep. And then I realized he needed healing. Actually, the healing I've offered has been very passive (even though my work is energetic healing). The main ingredient is loving him and behaving in a way he can trust.
One remarkable thing in this story involves my mesa. The mesa is a medicine bundle, created over time in my work as an energetic healer. Mostly it consists of powerful stones from the mountains of Peru and Western Washington. Bowser loves to sleep on top of it. Because we are talking about stones wrapped in a layer of wool, it cannot be the kind of comfortable that cats usually enjoy. Aside from my mesa, Bowser generally picks the softest places to sleep: on my lap, on a pillow, on a very soft wool blanket . . . . You get the picture.
He began to cry less and play a bit more.
And then . . . Bowser wasn't peeing. Actually he did occasionally pee on the carpet. Money being a bit more scarce, and reluctant to subject Bowser to a trip to the vet and pharmaceutical remedies, I asked him if he would be willing to let my friend Rose attune him to Reiki. Rose is a Reiki Master, and often attunes animals who need this tool to heal themselves.
Rose had done this for my friend Misty before she died. In the year or so after Misty received the Reiki attunement, she had healed herself of incipient kidney failure. Any doctor would tell you this isn't possible. Kidney function does not return. Besides the kidney, Misty healed her hind leg that had been shattered in a tangle with a car when she was 2 years old. Most of her life she had walked on all four legs, but had run on three legs. Not long before she died I watched her run flat out after a rabbit on all four legs.
Back to Bowser - he was ebullient! He healed his bladder issue in just a few minutes, and it is back to normal. Bowser no longer cries in his sleep. He loves to play, and talks a LOT. He had been afraid of my next door neighbor, and now he loves his new friend. He has more energy too, and is pestering me more to play with him.
He was very clear with Rose about what he wanted. Sometimes we think animals don't know very much. What I know is that they can be much smarter than we are about very practical matters!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The First Robins of Spring!
This winter has been crazy! It is cold, windy and snowing where I am and a few days ago it was sunny and the temperature was around 50 degrees. The birds are as confused as I am. There were four fat robins in the tree one morning a couple of days ago, huddling against the cold and blowing snow. Is it actually spring? Because it sure doesn't look or feel like spring.
As I meditate on the idea of spring I remember the maxim "Hope springs eternal." The word "hope" has been bandied about for the past two years. But isn't hope based on a real possibility? Nowadays we are hearing more about the time it might take to repair the damage of greed and an economy made of air and deception.
Still, spring does always come. We will do what we need to do to survive and even thrive in the midst of chaos and change - remembering the Chinese word for "crisis" includes parts of the words for "danger" and "opportunity". Many times in known history we have been on the brink of disaster. According to Malthus, for example, there are too many of us to actually feed. Yet somehow we are still here - all 7 billion of us!
We will find ways to live more in harmony with our beautiful Earth. Who knows, we may seed other planets in the future.
As I meditate on the idea of spring I remember the maxim "Hope springs eternal." The word "hope" has been bandied about for the past two years. But isn't hope based on a real possibility? Nowadays we are hearing more about the time it might take to repair the damage of greed and an economy made of air and deception.
Still, spring does always come. We will do what we need to do to survive and even thrive in the midst of chaos and change - remembering the Chinese word for "crisis" includes parts of the words for "danger" and "opportunity". Many times in known history we have been on the brink of disaster. According to Malthus, for example, there are too many of us to actually feed. Yet somehow we are still here - all 7 billion of us!
We will find ways to live more in harmony with our beautiful Earth. Who knows, we may seed other planets in the future.
The Odd Duck
After my last post I received information from a number of readers. What resonates is the word from a professional ornithologist that the "odd duck" was most likely a juvenile cormorant. It doesn't seem likely . . . but my neighbor did see a cormorant on her daily walk about the same time. Whatever it was, it was out of its normal environment.
Whenever I see something that strikingly out of place, and so blatantly communicating with me (the bird stared at me the whole time it was sitting in the tree outside my window - a couple of minutes ), I know there is a message for me. In this case, I remember one of the first rattles I made out of rawhide. I didn't know what I had done until a friend saw it and said "You've made a cormorant!" The bird-rattle head was lifted higher than the wings. Likewise, the cormorant flies with its head elevated, the only bird I know that does this. When I made the rattle, I had no knowledge that there was such a bird, let alone how it flies!
Since it has appeared in my life, I did look up cormorant, and found some interesting facts. They catch and eat fish underwater. They do the impossible, diving as deep as 100 feet because their bones are heavier than most birds, they swallow pebbles, and they squeeze the air out of their feathers. Long ago the Chinese and until recently the Japanese kept domesticated cormorants to catch fish. They tied a string or a ring around the necks to keep the birds from swallowing their catch of fish.
Ted Andrews in his book Animal-Wise says that when cormorant appears there will be a teaching or new opportunity that enable us to accomplish what doesn't seem possible. It is a reminder to me to do what I have been hesitating about. I am grateful for the reminder!
Whenever I see something that strikingly out of place, and so blatantly communicating with me (the bird stared at me the whole time it was sitting in the tree outside my window - a couple of minutes ), I know there is a message for me. In this case, I remember one of the first rattles I made out of rawhide. I didn't know what I had done until a friend saw it and said "You've made a cormorant!" The bird-rattle head was lifted higher than the wings. Likewise, the cormorant flies with its head elevated, the only bird I know that does this. When I made the rattle, I had no knowledge that there was such a bird, let alone how it flies!
Since it has appeared in my life, I did look up cormorant, and found some interesting facts. They catch and eat fish underwater. They do the impossible, diving as deep as 100 feet because their bones are heavier than most birds, they swallow pebbles, and they squeeze the air out of their feathers. Long ago the Chinese and until recently the Japanese kept domesticated cormorants to catch fish. They tied a string or a ring around the necks to keep the birds from swallowing their catch of fish.
Ted Andrews in his book Animal-Wise says that when cormorant appears there will be a teaching or new opportunity that enable us to accomplish what doesn't seem possible. It is a reminder to me to do what I have been hesitating about. I am grateful for the reminder!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Feed the Birds
Where I live we have had a hard winter. Yes, I know much of the United States had a hard winter. Where I grew up in the Midwest, we expected hard winters. Now I live in the Pacific Northwest, where we seldom have snow, and almost never have snow feet deep and lasting for more than a day or two. In the small town where I live the main street is the only one plowed. I haven't asked, but I suspect it is actually the state that plows that street - it is the end of a state highway and also leads right to a border crossing between the States and Canada.
After the snow, there were floods. My apartment was an island in the midst of water varying from 2 inches to 2 - 3 feet. Thankfully, nothing in our building was harmed.
However, I was thinking about the birds. I had put out a bird feeder before all the weather came on. But I decided I would add some suet. At the beginning, the birds were Juncos and Swallows eating seed. Then I saw Finches. Next there were two Flickers, pecking away at the suet. Soon after that, the Starlings found the feeders and descended in droves. And then today, I saw a Steller's Jay.
I love watching them, and so does my cat friend Bowser. He sits in the window a lot, sometimes making Akkk-aakkkk noises - you know, those sounds cat make when stalking prey. At first the birds would leave when he was visible, but by now they just ignore him.
There is one bird I have not been able to identify, despite looking not only through my two books (Sibley's and Audubon), but several others that friends had and a search on the internet. This was fairly early on. When I saw the bird, I thought "That is an odd duck!" Well, it didn't look like a duck, or any other bird I have ever seen. I had the uncomfortable feeling it was out of time and space.
This bird was slender, about two feet tip to tail, with a long dark decurved (downward arching) bill and a longish tail. I first saw it sideways to me and it was looking right at me - directly into my eyes. I saw its head and back, which were dark with greenish iridescence. Then it turned and showed me its whitish speckled breast. And flew away.
The only birds I saw in my research that looked at all like this bird were birds that do not live in the part of the world where I live: like the Little Black Cormorant, which wouldn't be perching in a tree anyway! None really looked quite like this bird. I am stumped. If you have an idea, let me know. I still think it was an odd duck - perhaps sending me a message that I have not yet decoded.
Please remember your feathered and furred friends. If we have had a hard winter, remember they had less shelter and more challenge in finding food.
After the snow, there were floods. My apartment was an island in the midst of water varying from 2 inches to 2 - 3 feet. Thankfully, nothing in our building was harmed.
However, I was thinking about the birds. I had put out a bird feeder before all the weather came on. But I decided I would add some suet. At the beginning, the birds were Juncos and Swallows eating seed. Then I saw Finches. Next there were two Flickers, pecking away at the suet. Soon after that, the Starlings found the feeders and descended in droves. And then today, I saw a Steller's Jay.
I love watching them, and so does my cat friend Bowser. He sits in the window a lot, sometimes making Akkk-aakkkk noises - you know, those sounds cat make when stalking prey. At first the birds would leave when he was visible, but by now they just ignore him.
There is one bird I have not been able to identify, despite looking not only through my two books (Sibley's and Audubon), but several others that friends had and a search on the internet. This was fairly early on. When I saw the bird, I thought "That is an odd duck!" Well, it didn't look like a duck, or any other bird I have ever seen. I had the uncomfortable feeling it was out of time and space.
This bird was slender, about two feet tip to tail, with a long dark decurved (downward arching) bill and a longish tail. I first saw it sideways to me and it was looking right at me - directly into my eyes. I saw its head and back, which were dark with greenish iridescence. Then it turned and showed me its whitish speckled breast. And flew away.
The only birds I saw in my research that looked at all like this bird were birds that do not live in the part of the world where I live: like the Little Black Cormorant, which wouldn't be perching in a tree anyway! None really looked quite like this bird. I am stumped. If you have an idea, let me know. I still think it was an odd duck - perhaps sending me a message that I have not yet decoded.
Please remember your feathered and furred friends. If we have had a hard winter, remember they had less shelter and more challenge in finding food.
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