Sharing Soul Essence
with
The Natural World
Mount Shasta Moments: Plant Spirit Medicine at 5pm
Join Julie Caldwell and I as we discuss the writings of Steven Harrod Buhner
and when Human yearnings to remember our ancient selves blend with the excitement of a new dawn in 2012
Journey with Julie Caldwell into Tree Medicine and Lore
Learn about our Standing Brothers and Sisters
Trees as the Foundation for Spirituality
Trees in Mythology and Music
Breathing with the Trees
Devic Beings and Hidden Worlds
Tree Medicine
We are experiencing a time of great change, and with change our landmarks often disappear. I have talked to so many people over the past two months, who are watching old, familiar paradigms dissolve before their eyes.
Many of us are moving outside of linear time, as the habits, practices, daily routines, and cultural norms fall away. Knowing what day it is or what time it is seems less important, as we look at the more relevant questions … like, “How am I feeling?” “Is this thing I am doing, or this group I am a part of a harmonious experience, or is it feeling like a limitation?”
More people each day in the industrialized world, have the luxury of asking these questions … and more people are looking for inspiration rather than stability … expansion rather than predictability.
Some of the cultural norms that are disappearing have to do with old concepts about how we define ourselves in the third dimension. As we wake up to the fact that we are multi-dimensional, vibrational beings … we naturally discover that beliefs about choosing a lifetime career, or even a lifetime partner, may be far too limiting for people who are bursting with creativity and a longing for a better world.
The personal pursuit of “success” has now evolved into seeking personal expression in a way that prospers the self and others … creating collective expansion as well as individual achievement.
What creative gifts do you have that you have longed to express? How can those gifts benefit others? What limiting beliefs do you have about what is possible for you to create and how that creation might support and sustain you?
In America, we are taught to believe that we live in freedom … and compared to many places in the world, this is very true. Personal freedom though, is a different experience, and it would amaze you to realize just how many limitations we put on our freedom of expression every day. These are the limitations of beliefs … the boundaries of “no you can’t” …
You can write your life story; everyone does. The myth is that we are meant to jump inside each other’s stories and try to re-write the parts that don’t resonate. As long as you are living inside someone else’s story, you are limiting what you can create.
And if you, like most people believe that you have a right or a responsibility to jump into someone else’s story and try to contain it or control it … even with the best of intentions, you can never attain the peace and prosperity you desire.
In the next few months, we will be witness to many points of reference changing or disappearing altogether. This can be very disorienting, unless we recognize that it is the pause between two notes … the space between breaths, where creation is possible.
Watching the stories other people are creating can be very distracting. It is best to allow them their stories and focus on the creation of your own. Each moment is an opportunity. When we move our awareness outside of time, everything is in the eternal NOW.
This means creation is always possible. No matter what has happened before, outside of time there is no past, so there is always a way to expand from where you are.
I recently received the Mosoq Karpay ceremony from a Q’ero elder from Peru.
Thirty-three people came to Mt. Shasta for the Karpay and Community Despacho.
Don Humberto chose Shasta for this Karpay because of the balance between male and female energies in Mt. Shasta and Mt. Shastina, the two principle peaks here.
As we received this blessing that removes all filaments of connection with linear time and connects us to the 5th Sun, I realized that this is a time for all of us to be born anew. This is the time we have been waiting for, and we are the beings of light we have been seeking for so long.
The Q’ero say it is the time for us to become “Solar Heroes”. My friend Len Lobban, in Aberdeen Scotland says this is the time for us to remember our connection to the natural world and all the elements. The Hathors are saying this is the time to embrace curiosity and expect miracles.
I say that this Spring and Summer will bring great opportunities, portals opening that have never opened before … and some of them may not be noticed as opportunities unless we are willing to drop into innocence and curiosity again … becoming like children who expect positive outcomes.
We get to write our stories differently now … we can assume that we are capable of creating anything. We can say goodbye to the old beliefs that say “no you can’t” … “no you aren’t”. We can say goodbye to the dream-squashers and say hello to the possibility of personal and global expansion.
There is so much scientific research-based evidence of the existence of these possibilities now, that we have no “rational” excuse to deny it any longer.
Let’s become Solar Heroes. Let’s decide that we have freedom of expression and we have multi-dimensional gifts to give to the world. Say YES to your creative flow. Step up to who you want to be in the world. Find believing eyes and ears among your planetary brothers and sisters. Gather in groups of light-minded people and support each other’s dreams.
As paradigms and landmarks fade away, perhaps amid this chaos its a good time to say, “why not? what have I got to lose?”
The Clan Mother of the First Moon Cycle is Talks With Relations. She is the keeper of learning of the truths, and teaches that truth is understood through finding kinship with all of life. Her allies are the Four Winds of Change, The Cloud People, The Thunder Beings, The Creature Beings, The Tree People, The Plant People, the Devas and Fairies, The Stone People, The Clan Chiefs of Air, Earth Water and Fire and All other life forms. She reminds us that they are part of our Planetary family and our teachers as well. She tells us that to learn the truth, we must open ourselves to the vast worlds within worlds that make up all of the Great Mystery’s Creation.
Excerpt from The 13 Original Clan Mothers by Jamie Sams
This is the time of Quiet Season in the Northern Hemisphere where I live.
It is a time of deep introspection, kinship and sharing what has been learned by living the recent year.
Winter brings with it, the opportunity to go within … bundle up by the fire and tell stories. As we experience the transition from the active time of planting, growing, and harvesting to the time of rest and contemplation, we can take this opportunity to follow the example of many indigenous peoples across the globe, and enter into the magic of ancient wisdom through storytelling.
Before written languages developed, tribal wisdom teachings were transmitted through stories … often during the quiet season of winter. To this day, the tradition continues in many places on the Earth … in fact, in some groups, the stories are only told during quiet season.
Returning to the old stories that carry the codes of wisdom is a wonderful way to experience winter … to renew your fascination and inspiration with life on this wonderful planet … to move away from focus on drama, trauma and strife … and infuse your being with a remembrance of our connection to Mother Earth and to each other from a place of reverence and tolerance.
Tuning-in … becoming conscious of our connection to Mother Earth, helps us to restore balance and return to awareness of the rhythms of life on the planet … the cycles of creation, destruction, and rebirth.
The ancients knew that life is a wheel … and that the passage of time can be experienced as a wheel, with recurring cycles, predictable segments that we can align with and benefit from that alignment.
When we attune to the cycles of the seasons and the turning of the wheel of the year, we enhance our natural abilities, gifts, and resources. The cycles of the seasons are marked by sacred holy days … designed to remind us to be mindful of the gifts and opportunities offered by each place along the wheel.
In this moment, we are celebrating Samhain … the final harvest. We prepare for the coming Winter by reflecting back on the year that is passing … by feeling gratitude for all that we have received, and by practicing the art of allowing things that are no longer useful to fall away.
As the leaves turn, and Mother Nature paints her beautiful expression of endings, we can take comfort in that beauty as we also experience endings … releasing pain, old programs, relationships, situations and anything else that has served its purpose and is now ready to move back into potential for rebirth.
Making room for the new is an important aspect of Samhain season. We are entering the in between time … the old year is dying and the New Year is not ready to be born. This space between cycles is also a space between dimensions.
Many speak of this time as a moment when the veil lifts and we are able to perceive the presence of beings in other dimensions, including those who have left their Earthly bodies and traveled to the realm of non-form. Communing with loved ones who have crossed over is very easy during Samhain.
The element of fire is a symbol of this time. Ceremonies of release and transformation are particularly powerful now, and working with those intentions in the presence of fire amplifies and strengthens those intentions.
If we deliberately intend to move with the rhythms of the Earth during this time, we will find ourselves in the flow … moving with the currents of energy shifting on the planet … rather than struggling against the current.
Sometimes I find it difficult to let-go of Summer … especially here in Mt. Shasta, where the hiking season on the mountain is precious and short. As the leaves begin to turn, and the cold wind blows, I feel resistance … wanting to say “stop … just wait a little longer”, and when I do, the struggle is tangible … uncomfortable. People in town begin to speak of snow, and are hushed by the many who want to hold on to the cherished time when we can roam the mountain meadows and delight in the wonder of her magic.
After a while, I realize the beauty of the changing season … it is always the brilliance of Mother Earth’s palette that brings me back into alignment with the need to honor the cycles and move with the rhythms of change
. I count myself fortunate to live in a place where this brilliance is so evident … so close … and I wonder how my brothers and sisters in the cities are faring … what calls them into the rhythms and cycles … how are they moving with the seasons … and I wish that everyone could witness the stunning beauty of autumn …
This time between is the place of infinite possibilities … of living without limitations. Experiment with the idea that you can explore your dreams and visions outside of time … outside of habits of thought … you can dream yourself awake and live the dream.
The Luminous Seed within all of us is the template for embodying our Source Consciousness while we live on the Earth. This seed can be activated now … in this between time. We can create anything as we allow the new year to be born.
In the next few weeks, take time to go outside. Breathe the air and feel the subtle energies of change that move on the wind. Look at the world with Beginner’s Eyes … look for the beauty, in the natural world and in the eyes of your brothers and sisters … see the common threads that connect us all. Use this time of entry into multiple dimensions … really pay attention and see everything.
Breathe consciously this week … follow the rhythms of your breath and connect with the rhythms of the Earth.
If you have been hoping to connect with someone who has crossed over … there was never a better time.
What are you grateful for? What can you honestly say you appreciate in this moment?
Samhain is a doorway …one of the two great doorways of the Celtic year. In ancient times, the year was divided into the season of light and the season of darkness. Beltane, celebrated on May 1st marked the season of light, and Samhain on November 1st marked the beginning of the Celtic night.
In the dark night, came the whisperings of new beginnings … the stirring of the seeds buried beneath the ground.
In ancient Ireland, people traveled to the ceremonial centers of the tribes on Samhain for the greatest feast of the year. The Feast of Tara was celebrated at the royal seat of the High King … the heart of the sacred land … and the point of conception for the New Year. In all the households throughout the land, hearth fires were extinguished while the people waited for the Druids to light the new fire of the year on a hill twelve miles to the northwest of Tara.
The gods drew near to Earth at Samhain, so gifts were offered in thanksgiving for the harvest. Personal prayers held in talismans symbolizing the wishes of the supplicants were cast into the fire. Those wishing for healings cast objects into the fire that represented the illness to be healed.
At the end of the ceremonies, brands were lit from the great fire to re-kindle all the home fires of the tribes, as at Beltane. As they received the flame that symbolized this time of new beginnings, people focused on kindling new dreams, projects, and hopes for the year to come.
As we pass through the Day of the Dead, we can create celebrations of life for those who have crossed over. The in between time is the best time for our limiting beliefs to drop away, making it possible for us to experience the presence of our loved ones.
You can cook the foods they loved to eat … listen to music they enjoyed … decorate your homes with colors and light and symbols of eternal life … joy … celebration. Create an altar with photos of your loved ones … decorate with fall flowers, leaves, colorful candles and fruits.
This is a time to honor the presence of the other dimensional beings who are always with us … to communicate with them and give thanks for their eternal natures.
Winter on the Mountain is Beginning
For those of you in the US, this is a long weekend … the last holiday of the summer, and many are traveling to favorite spots to enjoy the sun and celebrate with friends and family. Savor this time of togetherness and good times. Each day is a precious opportunity to choose joy … to consciously decide to see life from a positive perspective and create from that space. Take time to appreciate the things that are going well in your life … the people, the moments, the gifts you have received that you feel gratitude for.
When you find yourself having a positive moment, soak it in and then send that joy out into the world … to all those who need encouragement and support. Be a random source of joy … a smile millionaire.
Recently I spent a day hiking at a special secret spot here in Shasta, where natural hot springs bubble up from the earth … waterfalls cascade into deep clear pools perfect for soaking. This place is called Ney Springs. Trails lead deeper into the forest to a spot called Fairie Falls, which is named so because of the many nature spirits living there.
Here are some photos for you to enjoy, and with love I share this magical spot with you.
Upper Fairie Falls
Lower Fairie Falls
Dive In
Ahhhh
Today is a good day to consider what you are receiving in your dreams … there is wisdom and guidance available to you in your dream time. Set your intention before going to sleep, that you will receive loving messages in dreams and remember those messages upon awakening. Before you rise in the morning, take a few moments to write down whatever comes into your awareness … the symbols and ideas may not make sense in the moment, but later in the day, the pieces will come together into a story that holds special meaning for you.
On this day, as Mars moves into Libra, you may notice the part of you that wishes to take action, and the part of you that wishes to take the time to consider all the aspects of a situation … a bit at odds with one another. Embrace them both, and focus on a balanced blend of the masculine and feminine aspects within, creating a powerful partnership,
Go outside today if you can. Breathe in the fresh air … embrace any aspect of the natural world that is available to you.
On my morning walk ...
Mt. Shasta June 18th 19th 20th 2010
Solstice Rejuvenation Retreat
with Julie Caldwell & Karen Sheeks
P.O.Box 767, Mount Shasta, CA 96067
