Dear Yoga Student,
This week, although I’ve had to spend many hours in front of the computer, I’ve been really feeling the effects of my connections with Nature. Through Nature walks and chatting about our shared garden with neighbours, I’ve been plugging in to the community and the vibrant life force that is in everything.
Prana is in us and all around us. It is in the air, water, earth, the food we eat, the plants, flowers and trees that bring us such joy. Prana increases when we experience heart-centred warmth and connection in Nature, which we can feel if we pay attention to the present moment. We desperately need to come to our senses and create deep change in our communities, customs and consumption habits so we can experience more of this vibrancy. The beauty of creating regenerative communities is that we don’t need to go anywhere or spend much. This is an exciting project that we can all participate in and benefit from.
One way of creating this kind of deep change is to immerse ourselves again and again in Nature. At the moment, I’m actively enjoying the ways in which I commune with Nature. The immersive, sensory experience of smell, taste, sight, touch and hearing allows us to feel that we ARE Nature, not separate from it. This kind of immersion counterbalances my long hours at the computer, which my body does not enjoy so much. The more we connect with Nature, the more hope, inspiration, bliss and connection we can create for ourselves and for others. It is my passion to spread this kind of Nature bliss to enable us all to halt this crazy race to destruction.
I know of many people, from many different backgrounds, that are already working with nature in this way. Although they don’t get much air time on the news programmes, there are many people worldwide who recognise the wisdom of Nature and the utter insanity of our current extractive systems. The old world order is crumbling and we need to work together to create new regenerative systems. This is not going to come to us on a plate, top-down, we will have to create the new from the bottom up.
Some ideas:
- Getting to know the plants and trees in the local area (going on a foraging walk or plant ID walk is a great idea)
- Harvesting some blackberries (or other plants if you know them well)
- Eating seasonal fresh vegetables and fruits
- Drinking loose herbal teas (so much stronger, wilder and wiser than tea bags!). Find them here.
- Planting, tending and nurturing nature. If you don’t have your own garden, can you tend a garden for a friend or neighbour? Looking into Permaculture… free course here.
- Spending time barefoot on the grass or laying on the grass (laying face down with your heart and belly resting on the Earth can be particularly grounding)
- Gazing at the sky and allowing your mind to drift with the clouds
- Meditating with a favourite tree or herb
- Becoming an Earth Protector, involves recognising Ecocide as a crime in international law (sign the petition on the website) and Crowdfunding the important legal work in this area. The more people sign, the more seriously this work will be taken by international bodies so please sign and share
- Get involved in the upcoming Extinction Rebellion to demand an end to fossil fuel subsidies and investment. Fossil fuels are extractive, polluting, drive the climate crisis and we must switch to alternatives ASAP. There are ways to join the rebellion from home as well as out in the streets!
With love and good wishes,
Julia
