Though our current experience has made the celebration of Spring a bit different this year, still the Earth is alive and sharing her gifts. Here in Georgia, flowers spring forth from the ground. The days are sunnier and brighter. Spring presents us with the fresh winds of change and opportunity—an opportunity for connection with the Earth.
This is a time of re-emergence and renewal, and there are fresh opportunities for us to return to true center individually, in our relationships and in our community. In this article, we’ll explore ways to connect more deeply to our home on Earth and learn from her by connecting with the heart of nature, considering community and belonging as expressed in nature, and cultivate ideas for sustainable living.
Perhaps a new revelatory experience is taking place, an experience wherein human consciousness awakens to the grandeur and sacred quality of the Earth process.
Thomas Berry
Connect with the Heart of Nature
How we connect with the heart of nature—or do not take the time to do so—reveals so much about our relationship to the true self. When we see with the eyes of the True Self, we begin to see the world as whole and integrated, connected to all living things. Take time this month for reflecting on the heart of who you are as you find simple ways to connect with the natural world.
Some questions to consider and actions you might take this month to connect to the heart of nature:
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- If you have access to outdoor space where you can practice social distancing guidelines, take a walk in the woods and remain present to how community is revealed through nature
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- Watch a nature documentary with the intention of learning something new about nature
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- Get out your journal and consider your current connection to the natural world and how you might cultivate that more deeply in this season of your life
Consider Community and Belonging in Nature
In our transition into spring, a reconnection to the Earth and the natural world naturally helps us to experience a greater sense of community and belonging. Activities like forest bathing are introducing more people to the amazing truths about community and belonging revealed through intentionality and communing with nature. Even when we are alone in nature or observing it alone, we find connections to True Community.
Some questions to consider and actions you might take this month to return to true community through nature and enhance your connection with the Earth:
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- Get outside for 30 minutes and simply observe the natural world. Notice how things are connected. Record your observations in a Nature Journal. If at all possible, make this a practice for the next 30 days. Connection with the Earth can teach us so much about who we are and where we belong.
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- During your time at home, take an hour to learn about ways first nations and indigenous people related to nature and the natural world. Consider how you might take one idea and make it a part of your life.
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- Notice the living things in your current environment (plants, animals, etc.). Consider ways you could bring nature home to remind you of the nature of true community and wholeness. Begin to practice intentional connection with your environment and celebrate the gifts of community through a connection with the natural world.
Cultivate Ideas for Sustainable Living
A commitment to embrace more sustainable ways of being connects you to your True Nature. This month, look for ways to be a good steward of the natural resources and gifts of the Earth. Begin right in your own corner of the world. Look at the gifts of the land you live upon and consider ways to cultivate gentleness and gratitude.
Some questions to consider and actions you might take this month to connect your true nature and be a good steward of natural resources:
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- Give consideration to ways you, your family and your community practice good stewardship. In your journal, consider how you might take these actions a step further and create a plan for doing so.
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- Create a Nature Mandala made up of found objects from nature. Place it in or near your home. Let this mandala be a visual reminder to replenish the Earth and not just take from her gifts. As you think of new ideas and inspirations for doing this creatively, add notes to your mandala. In this way, you take small steps that will lead to great change and demonstrate your gratitude for the gifts of nature.
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- Notice what natural resources or gifts of the Earth are being wasted or not fully used in your home and community. Take 10 minutes to envision all the possibilities for change at the local level. Then, take one action to share your idea or start a conversation with a friend or on a neighborhood social media platform.
Connection with the Earth and with nature is a powerful way to move into the space of the heart’s wisdom, where you can access your creativity and come up with innovative ideas and solutions to even the most challenging and complex of circumstances.
Eve Willson
Be sure to check out Eve’s recent book, Wholly Connected.Along the Spiral Path of Connection, we connect to the Pathway of Nature and we enhance our connection with the Earth. This section of the book includes 21 questions for deeper reflection and core practices for connecting to nature.
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