His bright eyes were wide and alert…absolutely focused on the beyond. His tall ears seemed even taller…dishes of perception and reception. No doubt the minute hairs deep inside those ears were quivering at attention.
The wild world in all its manifestations…all its forms in the more than human realm is alive and constantly offering its invitations…not just to my dog or other dogs, but to all of us.
Later when we walked in the brisk autumn air on this quiet Sunday morning I noticed suddenly, my lack of attention to all that lay beyond the current news in my brain…all the to do’s, the judgements, the plans for a distant tomorrow. I lifted my eyes to the horizon in every direction. There in the tips of the towering ponderosas, the dramatic tawny mounds of granite rocks, the cobalt blue sky, I was suddenly reminded of the rest of the story....again. Oh how alluring the overly full day world of plans is to our always wanting to be busy mind and then there is the rest of the majestic world that is just beyond the reach of our thoughts… the vastness available there is subtle and imbued with and in beauty, and is patient beyond belief. She waits….and waits…that Mystery, that god woven world of utter magnificence. The natural world waits for us to wake up and pay attention.
In my guiding world there is a song we sometimes sing at the threshold as the uncertain and frightened questers step away from the familiar and into the arms of the natural world. The chant says “She’s been waiting, waiting. She’s been waiting so long. She’s been waiting for her children to remember to return.”
It is a simply yet poignant chant that invites us to consider that there is a “home” beyond what is familiar and regular and habitual to us…one that may actually be just waiting for us to remember.
Last week I was blessed to be in Colorado with a group of CEO’s who joined a vision quest designed particularly for such an audience, with all its inherent challenges and gifts. It was a golden fall equinox morning as we opened the way for them to head out alone for their time of living without the company of other humans while consuming only water….a challenge in and of itself. This time we used the words of the 13th century poet Rumi to send them off;
“The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you, don’t go back to sleep…. ….you must ask for what you really want…. Don’t go back to sleep.”
Our chanting and drumming and encouragingly fierce voices they heard as they walked out towards that mysterious and frighteningly honest world beyond the familiar under the weight of all they carried. ”Don’t go back to sleep….Wake Up!…..you must ask for what you REALLY want…” echoed in the distance as they headed into the hills.
These words stuck with them and later, upon returning to their lives in the cities, they created a Slack Channel with an an acronym to remind them to WAKE UP!!
We all recognize the imperative to wake up.
There is a magnificent world out there just beyond our thoughts that is waiting for us to return….to remember…to wake up.
In these times of such consistently overwhelming and difficult news, it is important to remember the beauty and mystery that also abides here….just waiting for us to offer our attention to it.
The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
Don’t go back to sleep.
And for those of you who long to connect more deeply with the great beings of the sea, and the sea itself…say yes to a once in a lifetime soul excursion…kayaking and island camping in the Sea of Cortez with whale/dolphin watching and communication, snorkeling, soul dives, council and more!