Holistic Earth Stewardship

Let’s remember and re-instill our role as caretakers and stewards of the Earth! Physically tending to ecosystems is critical, and to be caretakers in a holistic sense we have to tend to the spiritual dimensions of those ecosystems as well.

How do we do that?
Great question, I’m so glad you asked!

If you are like me you are not indigenous to this land and don’t have countless generations of ancestors whose culture developed within the context of a mutually beneficial relationship with the Earth here. We don’t have the language, the songs, or the ceremonies that arose within that relationship, and it would be counterproductive for us to simply try and appropriate aspects of another culture to connect with the land and to our place within it.

The indigenous people who lived and continue to live with reciprocal stewardship practices are a guiding a light for us all, but it is not their responsibility to singlehandedly hold that role for the rest of us.

Even though we may no longer live a subsistence lifestyle where we get our needs met through direct interaction with the Earth, it doesn’t mean we can’t embody a deep, visceral connection with the place we live and the elements that give us life. We do this through the process of giving back to the Earth, reciprocating some of the blessings that we receive through our gratitude, prayers, and various offerings of our transferred energy. When we do this for the Earth we benefit because we are literally a part of the Earth, and we are helping to restore the life-affirming energetic design woven into the fabric of the Universe.

BUT WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN??!! And what exactly does it look like?

The spirits of the land, those both with a physical embodiment and without, are the teachers that are available to us all, who have been calling and waiting for us to reclaim our seat at the communal table. We are tasked to re-engage with our role of working cooperatively with the good spirits of the land and all those that guide, bless, and protect us to positively affect the world around us through our thoughts and actions.

We will go outside and call on these spirits, greet them, bring them offerings, ask for their help and guidance, spend time getting clear and grounded so we can hear them over the chatter of our minds and egos, and thank them for helping us.

The spirits there usually know us better than we know ourselves, and seeing our reflections in their eyes and how they see us reminds us of who we really are and how we fit in. The spirits in nature hold the memory of the prayers and loving care of the humans who lived here before, and the knowledge of our collective role as caretakers and stewards of the Earth.

When we show up open and in service, putting aside any belief system that negates the possibility of an expanded spiritual awareness, we can communicate with the spirit of the land and its inhabitants. We can learn what they are experiencing and why, what they need and are asking for, and how we can help.

Then we can initiate that healing and restoration process of the land, our relationship to it, and to each other by following through on those instructions. This can happen in a myriad of ways. It can be as simple as praying for the water of the creek and presenting offerings for the spirit of that water. Sometimes there is a song that comes through for us to sing that resonates with the place, enlivening it and inviting the spirits to dance there and bring joy. Sometimes there is a desired movement that frees up the energy to flow across the land, like a massage that releases knots in our bodies. Sometimes a stillness is the medicine for an overwhelming amount of movement from hundreds of passerbys.

We don’t need to be medicine people to do this, and we don’t need to call ourselves shamans when we do it. It’s just a matter of being still and listening in a sincere way. Whether we know it our not, we have carried the pain in our hearts of collectively not having the connectedness of a reciprocal relationship with the Earth, and it shows through the harm caused to the environment and the people in our society.

Our intuitive faculties are a very normal part of being human, and there’s nothing “extra-sensory” about them. There has been a large scale “spell” that has been casted and a belief system imposed across the land that demonizes and negates our natural abilities to tap into and trust our intuitive channels of receiving information and communicating. Generations of ridicule, torture, executions, and genocide have reinforced this, embedding it into our DNA and encouraging us shut down those aspects of ourself. We are in a different time now, and are being called to remember and embody the fullness of who we are for the benefit of the planet.

Again… not for upliftment of our egos, but to use our gifts to help in ways that we can.

SO WHY WOULD I PARTICIPATE IN THIS?

A holistic reciprocal relationship with Earth is necessary to move towards a truly sustainable model of living.

When we are blessing the land, we bless ourselves in relation. It’s about reconnecting, healing, and enlivening.