Mount Baker

My Dad's name is Dale, if you want to know. He and I went up Mount Baker, known by the natives in the area as Komo Kulshan. You can find the fascinating legend of Komo Kulshan here:
http://home.online.no/~arnfin/native/lore/leg268.htm

The mountain looked a bit different to me, and I realized I have never been on the mountain at this time of year. At sea level, it is summer (even though it hasn't been very warm!). But on Mt. Baker, it is spring. Snow is melting, but surely not gone. We couldn't go all the way to the top of the highway because there was deep snow. There were people snow shoeing and cross country skiing.

We did, however, go to Nooksack Falls. The native people have a legend about that too, though I cannot tell it. The falls are beautiful anytime, but this was the best experience I have had there. The river is swollen from the snow melt run-off, and the place was full of rainbows.

There is a shallow cave at the bottom of the falls and just inside it, there was a huge rainbow. It was more pronounced than the other rainbows, I suspect because of the contrast to the dark behind it. It was lovely, and a great counterpoint to the last trip my Dad and I made up the mountain.

That was in the deep winter, and the mountain had feet of snow. The trees were decorated with it - so beautiful! As we went up the mountain, a young man waved us down. He and some friends had been back-country skiing down the mountain and hitching rides back up with people headed toward skiing. By the time Dad and I were going up though, there were few to no other cars heading up. We gave him a lift, and got to see the beauty near the top. That too was lovely.

The mountains are important in the shamanic tradition of Peru, in which I have been initiated. We go to the mountain to renew our mesa - a kind of medicine bag. Because this mountain is the nearest to where I live, it is my teacher, and I give it thanks.

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!