Sweetness of the Earth
Today is Earth Day. Today is the day to celebrate this planet we live on. Our home.
Today, like we should do everyday, we should consider how we treat this sacred space we call Earth. Today is a day we should be thinking of ways we can improve life here. It can be something as simple as placing an empty soda can into the recycling bin. Choosing to not purchase items made of plastic. Composting biodegradable materials. Picking up litter on sidewalks, beaches, hiking trails and river banks. Refraining from feeding wildlife, even though those creatures look so cute.
Today is a day to thinking about how beautiful our earth is. Truly, it is a wondrous place full of natural beauty. How this beauty came to be from a, once, fiery place of molten rock, poisonous gases and uninhabitable space over a period of billions of years, to a place teeming with life, beauty and majesty all around is something to be thankful for. A space where we gaze at tides lapping at our favorite beaches, marveling at sunrises and sunsets, meteor shower gazing on mountain passes, trails winding through green forests bubbling over with the call of our avian friends as rushing streams wind their way through. A smile should be on our face as we celebrate the natural wonders of this beautiful place we call home.
Sweetness of the Earth. Has a beautiful sound to it, doesn't it? The name of the blog is the name of a favorite song of mine from one of my favorite artists; Anugama. I have mentioned him before in other blogs and how one song in particular (Healing Earth) seems to play when I need it the most. The final 500 feet to the Mount Whitney summit, the final quarter mile to the summit of Mount Tallac (a place I never thought I could clear the negative vibes I had with) and an unnamed peak deep in the Eastern Sierra as I scrambled up a class 3 crux before encountering a magical summit. But this blog today, is about the Sweetness of this Earth. I encourage you to cue up the music and allow yourself to be immersed in its wonder preferably while you stand outside.
This Earth of ours shows her colors often. From the azure waters of the the oceans to the fiery majesty of the Aspens in the mountains. Beauty is all around us. Magic on this Earth. It's sacred waters give us life. Its plants and animals fuel our bodies. The wind and air fill our lungs. So connected to the Earth we should be, as the Indigenous peoples were/are. Somewhere along the way, mechanization became more important that connection with Spirit. We lost the ability to see the beauty and gifts around us and admire what Gaia has placed here.
Gifts.
The gift of color during the seasons. The vibrance of autumn all over our lands. The pureness of white on the land in the form of snow as winter allows the ground and trees to find rest. The renewal of things during spring and all the lushness that finds its way back to the land. To the bounty of summer and all of its crops full of color found in juicy fruits and vegetables. We laugh as we spit watermelon seeds into the soft ground and hope to see sprouts. We taste corn and harvest beans in the way the original peoples of our lands did as the summer sun sets and we welcome the gentle night. We honor you, Mother Earth, and thank you for the colors you give.
What is Earth Day to you? What does it mean? What should it mean? We as humans like to say (most of us) that Earth Day should be everyday, but who actually lives that? We all should. We should all make a conscious effort to take time each day to help our Earth heal. To pick up refuse we see on the ground instead of passing over it. To recycle what we can. To cut down on buying things made of plastic and using products derived in a manner incompatible with the health and well being of animals. To become better stewards of the vast resources this planet contains.
Respect.
Respect for our Mother Earth on this, her day. We thank her for the calming waters which give us life. Waters which cool us off on hot and humid summer days. Waters which contain fish to feed and nourish our bodies. Waters which cleanse our bodies from sweat and toil and also wash away internal pain which can at times afflict us. We honor you, Mother Earth, and thank you for the waters you give.
Plants surround us in our yards, homes and offices. Do we truly see these plants and admire their beauty? Do we gaze at the flower and the tree and be thankful for allowing our day to be more beautiful because of it? If not, we should.
All around us there is life. All around us, our Mother Earth shows us her love with her gifts of flora and fauna. I can think of no better way to share my feelings on the beauty of flowers and trees than with a piece of poetry:
Flowers are the music of the ground.
From Earth's lips
Spoken without sound. - Edwin Curran
The Earth offers us beauty through gifts of flowers and trees. When we gaze upon them, we can thank our Mother for allowing us to have this beauty in our world. We honor you, Mother Earth, and thank you for the plants you give.
Wind moves us. It can be gentle like a summer breeze or violent like a storm. It moves sails, clouds and kites alike. It ruffles our shirt collars and brings whitecaps to waves on bodies of water. It invigorates us as we climb hills, dales and mountains. Mother Earths exhalation as the wind allows us to feel her all around us. We marvel how wheat sways in late summer as if Gaia's hands themselves are gently caressing the golden strands. We sit on summits after hours of climbing enjoying the rush of the Northern winds cooling our bodies as we take in the landscapes below. We stare in slack jawed amazement at wind surfers honing their craft as they ride the breath of our Mother Earth effortlessly.
We honor you, Mother Earth, and thank you for the winds you give.
Wilderness adds a sense of adventure to our lives. We, the hikers, wanderers, adventurers and wild souls, find comfort in these spaces. We seek them out as they are a temple to us where we go to cleanse our souls and honor our Mother. Where we take part in the grand opus of wild spaces, unable to be tamed by man. Unhindered by anything as our boots find their way across mountains and valleys. We find peace in these places. The spires of mountain tops that call to all of us to come, and climb, because "they are there". We venture to these spaces, not to conquer, but to find respite. To seek solace from the everyday. To find oneness with our Mother Earth and appreciate all her gifts to us. We run our hands over gnarled bark of thousand year old trees, we speak to the spirits surrounding us and guiding our feet, we take refuge in the stillness where the voices of other humans is noticeably absent.
We honor you, Mother Earth, and thank you for wilderness spaces you give.
The Sweetness of the Earth, our Mother Earth, is all around us and on this day, her day, we give her thanks. We thank her for all of her gifts and all she is. I hope we offer her a promise to protect her, help her heal from the damage we humans have wrought and do our part to honor all the fruits she bears for us.
We honor you, Mother Earth, and thank you for the gifts you give.
I hope you all find peace in your own way as you celebrate Earth Day and all the beauty which surrounds us.
Om Mani Padme Hum. I send blessings to you all. May Lung-ta, the Wind Horse, carry them, swiftly, to you and to all sentient beings throughout this earth.
"Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures, kill nothing but time."
Namaste, friends.
