Here’s a short (11 min) guided nature practice to help you celebrate the magic of spring!
Live in a state of gratitude for our Earth.
Nature’s abundance flows to those who adore and honor her.
If you must worship something, make it GREEN – the green of nature.
Fight against Mother Nature at your own peril.
Everything ebbs and flows. Learn to flow like the waves.
Look for Magic everywhere. Expect it. Watch for it.
Love heals most wounds. Love it all, every moment.
Honor every season of the Sun.
Dance with the rhythms of the Moon.
When things are shaky, scary or chaotic, go to ground.
Allow the Earth to hold you and support you.
Pause every day and listen to Nature. Wisdom abides there.
Each animal and plant has a wisdom of its own. Look for it.
Beauty is all around us. Pay attention!
Foment joy wherever and whenever possible.
Without joy, there’s no reason to be here.
Do not fear death. It is merely another adventure.
If in doubt, dance!
~Nancy Lankston
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An annular solar eclipse happens Sunday Feb. 26 as the moon begins anew in watery Pisces. Radical change and chaos is happening all around us — and no place is that more apparent than in the political arena. Fire is stirring up our inner emotional waters much like molten lava roiling up the sea. Now is the time to slow down and breathe!
Change is coming. Pisces, the powerful dreamer, can help us now. Dream often and dream big. Dream of how you want the world to be. Hold your dream for a beautiful new world close and love it into being.
At Sacred Earth Institute, we believe that if humanity hopes to survive, we must stop abusing and misusing this planet. Instead, we must LOVE our Earth deeply and joyfully. That’s why we started the EarthLove Project.
Please Join Us as we shower Mama Earth with LOVE! We will open our hearts and minds in LOVE, for this sacred planet. Join us on February 14th, 2017 for this simple yet powerful prayer – ritual.
When:
Tuesday Feb. 14, 2017
10 AM Pacific, 11 AM Mountain, 12 PM Central, 1 PM Eastern
How:
Dial In to the Conference (United States): (712) 775-7031
Access Code: 142-974-822
International Dial-in Numbers: https://www.freeconferencecall.com/wall/142-974-822#international
OR
Join Online Meeting:
Online Meeting Link: https://join.freeconferencecall.com/142-974-822
Online Meeting ID: 142-974-822
Simply dial in to the conference line at the time of the event. When prompted, enter the access code followed by hash (#). To join the online meeting, click the online meeting link and follow the prompts.
This Event is FREE.
At the beginning of February, we celebrate a strange and wonderful holiday known as Groundhog Day. We are told that if the prophetic groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, sees his shadow on this day and runs quickly back into his burrow, winter will last at least 6 more weeks.
The idea of waiting and watching for the first inkling of spring is not new. The ancient Celts celebrated Imbolc in early February long before Groundhog Day existed. Celtic stories tell us that the Cailleach—the divine hag Goddess who rules over winter and death—gathers firewood for the rest of the winter on Imbolc. If the Goddess Cailleach wishes to make the winter last a lot longer, she will make sure that the weather on Imbolc is bright and sunny, so she can gather plenty of firewood. But, if Imbolc is a day of foul weather, it means the Cailleach is asleep and winter is almost over.
The Cailleach was worshipped by the Celts as the sacred Earth Mother in her bare winter form. And she is not just a dark and evil hag who arbitrarily decides how long winter will be. The Cailleach is also the Bone Mother who collects the bones of the animals that die in the winter. The Bone Mother is said to sing or pray or sleep over the bones all winter long. She does this out of love, so that the animals will cross over and can return as new life in the spring.
The Celtic tribes lived in the far north where winter is a brutal season. They had to burn huge quantities of wood to keep from freezing every winter. They also had to rely on their own stores of food to get them through the long winter months when no crops could be grown or harvested. There was no corner grocery store to run to if they ran out of bread. Is it any wonder that the Celts were quite focused on the return of spring?
The Celts watched and waited for spring. And they noticed that the ewes began to lactate and prepare for the birth of their lambs in early February. The Celts saw this return of mothers’ milk as reason to celebrate. The flow of milk and the birth of baby lambs meant spring was definitely on its way. The harshness of winter would soon end. The Celts celebrated Imbolc because they understood that their lives depended on the grace of Mama Earth and her seasons.
There is a magic to Imbolc and the early days of February. It is there, running just beneath the surface. Can you feel it? Mama Earth holds the seeds of spring safe for us all winter. As the cold wind blows and the snow piles up, she holds them safe in her soil.
It is February, not quite time for the seeds to sprout. But the days are definitely lengthening. The wheel of the year is slowly turning towards spring and new growth. And beneath the surface of Mama Earth, the seeds are beginning to quietly stir. Spring is stirring in the ground beneath your feet. Listen with your heart. Can you hear the stirring?
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Imbolc is traditionally celebrated at the halfway point between winter solstice and spring equinox. In 2017, this halfway point falls on February 3.
Want a simple way to honor Imbolc and the turning of the year towards spring? Light a candle or two tonight, and offer up a simple prayer of gratitude in honor of Mama Earth and the return of spring.