Spirit Bird
Before I tell you about my latest retreat to my backyard with stones, shells, sage, cedar and sweetgrass, let's talk music.
Potency in rhythm and lyrics.
I first heard the phrase Pockets of Peace in a song by Xavier Rudd, whose music is medicine of the highest order. It stuck, and I've been using it ever since.
Xavier Rudd is a musician from Australia who often plays multiple instruments at once, his didgeridoo and drumbeats calling to the soul. I had the honour of seeing him live, back in the day, at the Boot in Whistler. I was right up front, next to the stage, dancing and cheering, celebrating with friends...
A memory to be cherished.
I listened to the album Food in the Belly on many a mountain road trip, and now hearing it brings me back to windy roads, mountain lakes, tree-covered hillsides, and glacier-capped peaks.
These days, one of the songs that resonates with me the most is Xavier Rudd's Spirit Bird. I've been practicing it on guitar and just singing it.
I don't know if I've made it through a full take once without crying.
Honesty. Grief. Love. Strength. Integrity.
There is so much in this song that speaks to the cycles of humanity.
Sometimes, it gets to be too much.
I have to walk away.
Disengage.
When I go outside and breathe, and return to myself, return to nature, it helps me remember to focus on what I can control. To focus on enjoying this precious life for however long I have it.
We create our own pockets of peace.
Grounding in Nature
A few days ago, I took a basket of goodies outside. Leather and stone, sage, cedar, sweetgrass.
I sang, and I listened.
I prayed and I cried.
I laughed and I played.
I stroked soft leather, calming myself.
I soaked up the sun, healing myself.
I listened to the birds, finding humility.
Reminding myself that I am but one drop of water in an infinite ocean.
Ceremony grounds me.
Medicines from the earth.
Medicines from the ancestors.
Medicines for the present, for the future.
I am far from the ocean, but she still holds me.
She still sings to me.
I know she feels me, that she will always bring me home
I hold a broken shell, and I am awash in love.
Nature nurtures me, so I give back.
With gratitude, with flower petals, with bits of chocolate and tea and smoke and song.
This is what living is about.
This connection.
If I teach my children anything, may it be to choose love.
To return to nature again and again.
To return to the truth that sings in our souls.
To me, this ceremony, this form of meditation is the highest form of self care. It unplugs me from the chatter of too many voices and opinions. It plugs me in to what is real.
Here. Now.
What about you?
What helps you return to yourself?
What helps you feel grounded?
What helps you recharge?
Even closing my eyes and imagining myself on a beach, I can hear the ocean's waves. Smell the salty air.
Or I can transport myself to a mountain, and overlook a lake. I can feel the crisp wind. See an eagle soar above.
Nature holds us, even when we are inside our homes. All we have to do is turn to our breath, to our essence.
Deep breath in...
Slow breath out...
—
I ordered the leather, sage, and cedar from Tribal Spirit, an Indigenous owned online store with so many goodies. 💖 Check them out!
Peace @Katrina-Ariel / @LeiaTalon
All photos mine.
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There are some songs which we would listen to and we will continue to think about it everytime. And I also saw that you played the guitar wow. love having nice time with my fellow instrumentalist even though I play the piano
Music is such a powerful force. I hope to learn piano at some point. :)
Are you still planning on learning it?
Yes! I have a keyboard, it's a matter of making practice time a priority. I'm hoping over the winter...
If you can just create time the learning is easy
For me, it's fishing or a long hike into zones where cell phones have no service.
Yes! When I hike, I tend to leave my phone behind and try to leave everything else behind, too. Some days it works better than others. ;)
Just remember that each drop will make a wave that will reach the shore, have an impact on the sand, which will shift ever so slightly, cushion a child's fall which will make them cry just a little and force them to remember to bring their child(ren) back to that same beach someday where they added drops to the infinite ocean.
Oh, my heart. I love this so much! 💖
How lovely your words are.
Why thank you! 😁
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Wow! That's so cool. Thank you!
You're welcome @katrina-ariel 😊👍 Congrat's!
I feel very connected to the point you make here. I can relate on a very deep level. I've been enjoying lately the energy of clear rushing water. It's powerful. Very cleansing. It has a potent effect on my heart rate and blood pressure. We aren't crazy for finding our medicines in nature. But we might be ahead of our time.
Wild water is so healing, whether it's rain or a creek or the ocean or a lake. So glad you're finding natural medicine where you are. I am so grateful for the transformation you've created in your life!
Oh I know you didn't write 666 words by accident 😁
🤣🤣🤣omg I totally did. That's hilarious.
Lovely, @katrina-ariel.
These practices don't come easy to many of us, but you are very inspiring!
Hi @katrina-ariel! The last couple of days has marked my return from an extended hiatus away from The Chain. What a lovely post to find upon my return. It has been an intense couple of years for me; not only with the upheaval of the pandemic but my infirmed mother moved in to my home to share the last of her 96 years with me during that period as well.
One of the biggest groundings during that period was putting in about 10k of biking a day. There is nothing like good exercise to flatten those emotional curves. Being unjabbed the isolation seems to be growing instead of lessening with the introduction of medical passports up here in the Confederation of Canuckistan. One wonders how many breaths it will be before a semblance of normal returns.
Namaste!
✌🏻 💛
Agreed on the isolation bit. I'm glad you had time with your mother before her transition, as well. But yes, it's been intense. I agree that exercise can be such a help! I do yoga each day, and walk when I can, but more would be good. Thanks for the thoughtful comment and for re-connecting! I wish you all the best!