All the Way Out

Greetings. It has been some time since I have made a post. There are times when we run on what we know, and times when we have to go out and seek new learning, find new rivers and streams to explore. This has been such a time for me. While this post really has nothing to do with this journey, the finding of inspiration is the river that runs through it all. And I wanted to share something that deeply inspired me this morning.

A friend forwarded a link to an exquisite piece about Hermann Hesse by Maria Popova. It is about Hermann’s insight into what trees have to teach us. Please check it out: http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/09/21/hermann-hesse-trees/

My post has nothing to do with trees or what Hermann Hesse had to share. It was inspired by this remarkable line written by Maria as she introduces the piece.  I was really stuck by these words, “…life does not await permission to be lived.” That is a powerful statement, something to meditate on.

At times in my life, I awaited permission. I waited and waited and waited. And permission never came. Then one day, I stole the keys to the castle and set out on a great adventure. In time I returned from the adventure a more mature person, a man. Yet, in time, old patterns reemerged. I found myself waiting for permission again. And I waited and waited and waited, only to find I had to set out on the adventure again. Finally I realized the adventure has to be continuous. The adventure is one of relationship, of opening, of learning and sharing, embracing the constant change that is life. And here I stand, in the middle of wonder, in the midst of Nature, watching change, engaging in the dance of life. And I finally realized (not just thought – the emotional component of this is huge), Nature created me for living, not waiting and needing permission to be a part of this world and the ecosystem I dwell in.

There is power in life. There is power in living who we are, fully, openly, wakefully. Doing to this requires great courage. Living powerfully with any sense of grace requires cultivating a generosity of spirit. Living powerfully with a clear sense of ethics requires loyalty, wakefulness to our interdependence, our true nature of zero separation. Courage, Loyalty, and Generosity are the foundation of what our ancestors knew as Honor. We don’t need permission to live a life filled with honor. It is our heritage. It is our birthright. It is what it will take to heal the wounds of history, colonization, and exploitation. It is one of Nature’s great gifts to our human consciousness.

And this is what I wanted to share this morning. We are the creativity of Nature. Nature doesn’t make mistakes. We were made for a reason. Our obligation in life is to be who we truly are.

I will end this with this quote and encourage all of us to meditate on places where we hesitate out of fear; where there are dynamics that cause us to feel we need permission to live; where we are waiting for humanity to accept who we are; where we are selfish in spirit. It is time as a Pagan people to bring ourselves out and learn to walk with grace and honor in this ever changing wonder that is life.

“”Whatever is you happens just once. So bring yourself out, all the way out.” ~ Sean Faircloth

Blessings of mist and mud,
Snowhawke /|\

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