I’ve been worried about the trees lately. All this warm weather has got to be confusing to them as temperatures flirt with the 70s before the Vernal Equinox. I’m watching some try to bud, falsely thinking that spring is here ahead of schedule. Is it? Is this the new rhythm of nature now?
Friends with knowledge of such things tell me not to worry. The trees have their own wisdom. They are heartier than I give them credit for. They too are adaptable and, unlike us, do not have to navigate the vacuous terrain of social media and politics. They are not losing sleep worrying about the genocides, fascism, and whether their kids are going to be ok. They have the mycelial network to rely on. Each tree connected through its root system to its neighbor, sharing resources, assessing which one is lacking sufficient nutrients at any given moment and redirecting out of its abundance to the one in need. Trees are confident that the network will support them when their turn comes and they are the ones reaching out for support. They don’t let their pride, arrogance, or ego keep them from either giving or receiving. They understand their interdependence. They rely on it to survive. We have a lot to learn from trees. Be like a tree. Stay grounded. Connect with your roots. Turn over a new leaf. Bend before you break. Enjoy your natural beauty. Keep growing. ~ Joanne Rapits Blessings on your journey, Louisa
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If you’ve lived nearly anywhere in the United States the last few weeks, you may have been reevaluating your relationship with winter. The entire country has been plunged into below average temperatures due to shifting weather patterns. I just recently flew out of the Nashville airport in unusual blizzard conditions. That’s right, Nashville, Tennessee was getting a crash course in de-icing a plane. (groan, if you must)
In some ways, extreme weather seems further evidence of our desired dominion over nature. We insist on remaining undeterred in our plans for travel, business, or normal activity, whatever the weather brings. Aided by technology, we see that even the childhood magic of the snow day is under threat, moving us toward continued productivity without respite. This is a very modern and capitalistic way of thinking. We feel we must keep the economic wheel turning with as few disruptions as possible. But perhaps we’re missing the point. The gift of winter historically has been an invitation to slow down, to turn inward and use the fallow time to prepare for the hard work ahead in the coming spring. Now, with the advent of electricity and HVAC systems, we can be productive 365 days a year. Never mind rising and retiring with the sun. Not to worry if the wind chill is -35 degrees or the heat index reaches 110. Press on. Just because we can, doesn’t mean we should. Yes, productivity is important. But so is rest. So is unstructured time and the occasional disruption to regularly scheduled activity. We need the quiet, the dark, the seemingly non-generative time to be efficient when the time for hard work returns. Perhaps the next bitterly cold day might serve as reminder of our more animal nature, perhaps we will hibernate, or build pillow forts with the kids, rather than give into our mechanistic, consumer leanings. Blessings on your journey, Louisa |
AuthorLouisa has always enjoyed writing and is thrilled that she now has a way to share her musings with a larger community of like-minded seekers. Her writing is often an extension and exploration of the struggles she faces in integrating her own spirituality, scholarly study, life experience, and nuggets of brilliance from her teachers in the hopes that it might alchemically transform itself into something approximating wisdom. Archives
January 2024
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