Everything is in flux… not only the shift of seasonal change, but the whole vibratory force of a changing world. Consciousness reveals, everything we think about or imagine becomes real somewhere so, therefore, we can balance how we see the world and how it affects us, even indirectly and not let destructive forces rule.
Allowing consciousness to shift elegantly takes more than just prayers and dreams. Action is needed and, with us knowing who we are, implementation despite challenges from others, who may be uncomfortable, because change is confronting on any level for many.
If we are uncomfortable in emptiness… filling it with anxiety or restlessness, we will naturally refill the space with the same content… so rather sit in the empty until, by choice, embracing the magick of change, we renew the space with our deepest needs for wellbeing.
Nature doesn’t stop… she breathes in and out in cycles and seasons… we take her in with every inhale and release her again, taking into our body all it needs before letting it go. This can be applied to life in so many ways. When we are filled with anxiety, we forget to breath and so our bodies are depleted. Sitting in nature we can refill and reenergise ourselves on every level… it’s not just food we need to fuel us. Becoming familiar with all our senses is a way to remember what keeps us moving forward… what fuels us and what depletes us…
Senses stir
Ruffled fur
A bird floats
on a thermal
it cannot see
but feels
lifting its wings
A breath of air
A scent on the wind
A salty tang
An ozone explosion
Changing leaves
A changing song
A sultry breeze
Ripples on a dam
A falling feather
Forgotten bones
A place where
one feels the need
for silence
A chill on the skin
Ancestral walks
with kin
Trees whisper
in words
no longer understood
in the
forgotten language
found
in the dappled light
in the sacred wood
in the dreaming pool
of life itself
Wellbeing is something we have greatly misunderstood, I feel… thinking through things instead of feeling through things or a better yet, a balance of both. We cannot think straight if our adrenals are on overload… it’s our fight or fight mode that can leave us exhausted if not addressed with appropriate rest.
We clear so much that clogs our system through breath. Nothing fancy, just deep belly breathes and when we do this in nature our brain/mind/body all respond, to give us the sense of letting go, even when we’re unaware what we’re letting go of or even that we were hanging on at all.
Peace comes when we let go, when we stop questioning every little detail because when we don’t we lose momentum and miss tiny encrypted messages sent from the universe…
Humans have a constant need for answers that they can never truly find solutions to. If we were meant to know we would but, this said, perhaps being less reliant on what the internet tells us might be the place to begin; turning inward instead, to what our brain/mind/body is telling us all along… instinctively, intuitively and without embellishments.
Does a tree, mourn its leaves when first they change colour and fall; do they feel relieved of weight shed from the bough or do they just allow the ebb and flow of life?
There are moments in a day when things become translucent… when light falls specifically on one blade of grass, a water droplet, a bee’s wing, ripples on a pond, a fragile leaf… the world slows down, stills and the electronic white noise falls away… this makes simple sense. Do we need to know more or just be overawed by the fact that we are here to witness it all. Then, all that’s left is the ebb and flow of life… a heart beat song.
Live life
like the birds
Sing awkwardly
out of tune
raucously
dishevelled notes
feathered warbles
trilling dips and
soaring heights
deep multi-tones
wing-drummed drones
hooting cries
taloned moans and sighs
squawk your sound bites
screaming for human rights
with no sense of time
yell an orchestra
to the indecipherable sublime
entice the gentler gods
into the rhyme
of your heartbeat’s
outraged symphony
Walk softly… let things flow, toward and away… Awen /|\
We dream… we all dream, sadly mostly of ‘one day when,’ with little appreciation of today, this moment and the fact that we’re here, alive, sentient and uniquely individual and that we can make a difference wherever we are on this beautiful earth home by needing/wanting less…
Naturally, there are those things we need for basic comfort and safety… a roof over our head, clean water and fresh food, loving relationships, community and family friendships… this goes without saying but objects do not bring lasting happiness.
Just for a moment, in that ‘wherever’ space you reside in this moment, stand still. Close your eyes and simply focus on your breath… then consciously shift to a four count breath in and eight count breath out, which allows the lungs to clear the stale air from the bottom of the lungs fully. You may feel a little dizzy if you’re not used to truly emptying out your lung capacity but then there should come a sense of euphoria at being in ‘clean, full breath’ mode…
When we find this space on a more constant level, we begin to relax into our day more easily and no matter where we travel through the day, we remain more and more in this space of awareness until we no longer have to think about the getting there, we just are there.
The hum of bees can bring you that same feeling… the purr of a cat, wind in the trees, the tap, tap, rhythmic tap of a branch against your window, the mournful cry of curlew… even a gentle snore of a close partner can soothe and relax the diaphragm and release breath deep from within… stress held in our very bones…
Water colour and ink 🐝 @ Penny Reilly
Today’s stresses puts a burden on us… changing our way of being constantly in angst and easing the way to a more conscious approach leads to simply being… in our work, in relationships, family crisis… all emotions are better handled… more kindly and intuitively handled, when we come from a place of inner peace, leading us on into inner strength.
With our mind clear, we better know what action to take rather than acting on impulse in sticky situations from a base of fear.
🐝 vibrations
Simple thoughts and actions and yet, simplicity is the key to everything, whittling down complexity into bite size pieces. Tackling the frustrating need for things, perceived to be out of reach… realising objects are mostly on a want not need basis, especially if they don’t come under the simpler needs of life, which in turn releases the fear lack.
All around me is life…
This is the space within, from which I write and/or paint. Connected to nature allows a quasi download of information to flow. I recognise it by the ease of it and by not needing to stress about the process or worry that if I don’t get it down quickly, it will disappear. Thoughts disappear but this space remains. It’s a combination of seeing and listening that goes beyond stressing about a particular context. Editing comes much later, after the whole piece is written.
To be in this space most of the time here at home on the farm amongst the wildlings, is where it all begins and ends. It can be naturally triggered by a sight, a scent, a sound or a fleeting feeling of something ‘other’ occurring. An image can trigger words and words can trigger an image to form in my artwork… nothing happens in isolation and thus, we find a wholeness in all of our senses combined and individually. When we apply this to our ability to dream, we create whole new possibilities for understanding our existence, which includes acceptance of the fact that we are creating our own life and purpose… hopefully giving us the reason for being rather than constantly asking the universe to tell us what to do or to make our ‘purpose’ known to us.
in this space we get to decide and create that purpose…
Deep within the wild dreamer stirs awakening from slumber as change occurs Be willing to sense how your own needs are met Stay awake… be aware lest your dreams you forget You are the dreamer and you are the dream One and the same it’s within to be seen You have slept long enough wake up human-kin Awaken the wild dreamer find your truth find your magic …within
Walk softly… edit the dream when it no longer describes your purpose… Awen /|\
Lughnasagh came and went… autumn equinox dawned and sped away. We had a really dry spell but this week a cold, wet front came through and everything is immediately green again as if a switch was flicked into icy cold overnight.
Our air up here is so crystal clear, sunsets are legendary and already the first frosts are making themselves felt rather early this year. Our twenty rolling acres are green again.
Now, as we hurtle towards Samhain nights are becoming longer, daylight hours shorter. At this time I always feel as though I get so much more done in these shorter days because its cooler to work outside but snug and blissfully warm in both studio, barn-house and the new greenhouse. It seems after waiting so long for the second one to be built, suddenly in moments planting began and seed trays are germinating in their little seed raising unit. What a bonus to add space and length of time to our growing season.
Our haven, our bolt hole, away from the noise of even our small local town, is frankly, bliss.
Some folk are made for city living, seeking out the dubious thrill, noise and the appearance of an abundance of choices as to how to while away the time when not working the proverbial 9-5 in TikTok time. I guess I see that more like filling in time, frankly.
Food and fashion fads prevail… influencers tell people how to look, think, speak, what to eat or not eat and how to be in the world to be seen, to be recognised. It’s a trap, because really… you don’t need anyone’s recognition if you know and accept who you are. I firmly believe my work sells because the right people find it, not because I’m putting myself out there as ‘special,’ but rather different, as we all are and uniquely so. Isn’t it more positive to be different than to believe we all have to follow the masses and be the same as… the natural progression of that would, possibly, be cloning!
Food has also in my eyes, as a one-time restaurateur, serving simple but wholesome food, become a rude and elitist business with crazy fads and prices as people seek new flavour experiences, constantly. We all need to eat but what goes on a plate as a serving size of food is often obscene and much is wasted, particularly when we know some can’t make ends meet and that one meal would be several servings for them. On the other hand, high-end restaurants serve tiny portions of foam and schaum with splashes of this and that and a sprig of green. I wonder how many people, still hungry after paying a small fortune, end up buying a takeaway to fill their near-empty belly.
It doesn’t feel as if many are truly looking at the naked truth of food… it’s to feed the body and if we have choices in flavour and selection, it’s a privilege to be so well fed. Food should be blessed and savoured but for me, simple is best, where each element of the meal is full of the true flavour of the original item. A fresh bean or tomato, picked still warm from the sun makes me wonder, other than the obvious need to keep food fresh, why cold food has to be freezing, robbing it of flavour and vitamins? (That said, food miles are another huge issue in keeping foods fresh and vitamin rich, but that’s another story.)
Then there are those who avoid the plastic glamour of it all to grow the city-folk food that then becomes no longer ‘in’ enough anymore. Farmers multitask their crops and growing seasons to suit the latest fashions of food-faddery, and it’s hard enough growing large crops as it is. First Kale, then Chia, Wheatgrass, Blueberries, Cranberries, rare fruits and mushrooms etc., became the thing to keep one young and vibrant… dubbed superfoods, too much of any one of them can be toxic to many.
What happened to less is more? Potatoes, and dairy are spurned… only to find that kale has more tannic acid than rhubarb… calories and proteins are needed to build muscle, unadulterated dairy for strong weight bearing bones and a moderate balance of all food groups is the key. Skinny does not necessarily equal healthy, either.
In my experience, veganism can often equal elitism… would we be so fussy if there were only potatoes, meat and dairy available because crops of the “in-foods” had failed? Something, even a tiny, humble bug, is killed or displaced when we harvest plants and would that fat rabbit, feral pig or deer, be ignored if hunger knocked at the door? It strikes me as worth thinking about, what a human would eat to prevent starvation.
After a good table grape harvest this year, the surplus is dried for raisins… a wonderful supplement for snacks, on a cheese platter or reconstituted in curry sauces. So much food goes to waste and it’s preventable… don’t throw your surplus or leftovers away… dry, freeze, preserve, every little bit. A full pantry is a joy to have and no food waste is the result.
Hens supply our unfertilised eggs, (no rooster) they eat our kitchen scraps and get to clean out the greenhouses at the end of a season… they provide manured mulch for us to add to our grow beds to grow yet more food each year… a natural cycle.
Our hens are loved as part of our tribe and they have a huge expanse of orchard garden to find natural proteins and greens, and also clean up windfall fruit and any bugs that damage them, supplemented by a complete layer mix of seed and dry grasses in winter. We protect them by only letting them free range when we’re outside with them and lock them away from predators at night. They are a huge part of the garden workings and their eggs are sublime. We don’t eat our hens but as stated before, if anyone is starving, well?
Self-sufficiency is not about squirrelling food away for times of lack, but there’s an immense satisfaction in a simple way of being that focuses on seed to shoot, to bud, leaf and fruit that is grown in abundance to share around a table with friends and family. Contrary to those who would rather buy from the supermarket because everything’s there in one place, the taste is beyond any store bought foods… and vitamin rich, as we’re sticklers for keeping our soil healthy too.
What would happen
if we all wanted less
less mess, less stuff
less electricity
less commuting
driving, travelling
What if
we stayed put
for a while…
grew our own food
as much as
the local climate allowed…
traded what we couldn’t grow
recycled, repurposed
redesigned stuff
that otherwise
goes to landfill
What if
puffed up lips
fingernails like talons
and “perfect”
designer figures
were no longer
a must have
to suit
someone else’s ideal
What if
muscle and lean flesh
came naturally
from working in nature daily
What if
hopping on planes
to sit in the sun
elsewhere
was replaced by
sitting in the sun
talking with
a lonely neighbour
locally
What if
instead of complaining
that “they”
should do something
about the carbon footprint
whilst driving to the shops
to buy that new
influencer-touted item
that will change your life
made in sweatshops
on the other side
of the globe
What if
YOU
were to do
all you can
…and then, within it all we’re surrounded by the creatures who inhabit the land and we do all we can to keep that happening as a natural progression. We live with and interact with them… they have huge tracts of forest and wetlands around but they choose to be here in close proximity to us.
I refuse to prescribe to humans as a a virus or an oversight in nature… it’s a strange way of seeing ourselves as superfluous to the equation. Yes, we have done extensive damage to many lives, many creatures, with our selfish view of development at all cost and are paying the price with climate change and the extinction of millions of species, as we delude ourselves into thinking that we are more important than any other life form. In so doing, we have upset the natural balance of a planetary, multilevel ecosystem and are paying the price for greed.
We work with nature and the creatures around us and I’m happy to see a growing movement of people aspiring to return to a simple way of living in balance with, rather than in domination of nature. We preserve life here but also protect our gardens and the food we grow because we have an equal right to live and eat. This way every living thing is fed and nurtured…
Listen
to the sounds
between the notes
howling stark
through rising dark
and whispers soft
…born from stillness
spun aloft
on fierce winds
that bring
the song
of life and death
carried on every breath
through eons
…across time and space
in a wild
cosmic movement
leaving nothing
in place
only the illusion
of separation
hidden
in the music
between the notes
…listen
Walk softly… be aware of all of life as equal… Awen /|\
Penny Reilly Artist Beyond the Gate 
You must be logged in to post a comment.