Remember…

If anxiety walks beside you
like an insistent child,
if rested contentment is but a distant memory,

Take a deep breath.
Pat yourself on the back for paying attention,
for not looking away,
then go to ground.

Go to ground until the smell of moist earth
fills your nostrils with the comfort of home.
Until you can see in the darkness
the faint outline of […]

Oh, heart of mine,
were you beating in another’s chest
the words would come easy…
Be gentle, try to rest.
It’s ok to just be.
But beneath my own ribs

Put your feet on the ground.
Really.
Take your shoes off if you can.
Dirt is good or grass, rocks…even pavement.

Put your feet on the ground.
Close your eyes.
Tune in only to sounds that center you.
Feel the air against your cheek.

See if you can feel or imagine
the rich deep pulse of the earth
Notice how your own heart naturally shares […]

Is there a place you could go
where, standing among the trees,
you look up into a canopy of branches
still leafless in their winter slumber?

Where the silhouette shapes are framed
by vibrant blue sky etched with clouds?

If so, then go. Perhaps leave right away.
Take yourself to a place where branches paint the sky
and your feet are on solid […]

Trust your Wild spirit.
Tell yourself again and again
in whispers or fierce growls,
Trust your Wild spirit.

This is your most important task.

Feel the rhythm of the earth
beneath your feet.
Breathe with the wind
and the expanse of sky.
Sway with the mighty trees
that bend, but do not break.
And call these things by their name,
just as they call out to you…
Beloved.

Trust […]

Deep cold settles and smooths the river.
Waves are replaced with the dark, hushed calm of ice.

In the quiet of night, the moon shines twice—
in the sky and also shimmering on the dark mystery of Wild ice.
As if the moon and the ice-bound river
were greeting one another, saying ‘Namaste.’
“I see the light in you and we […]

For the peace and promise of a sunrise.
The quickening of breath that comes
when we take in the beauty of our surroundings.

For the mystery and humility
of daring to see how we are all connected.

For the opportunity, over and over again,
to choose joy.

For waking up every day to the unknown
and the courage to walk into that day.

For […]

Hold close your Wild spirit
as this nation churns.
Cup your hands around it
like you would a candle in wind,
preserving your flame.

That source—your Wild nature–

When the press of humans and our panicked frailty
are just too much to bear
and it feels as though nothing could break through
the chatter and commotion we cause,
there are portals quietly waiting for us to enter.

They take many forms, these openings,
these passages that take us beyond our usual understandings.

Portals are not free of charge
they ask us, […]

An opossum came calling last night.
Unfortunately, my dog answered the call.

He has a thing about opossums in his yard
and it’s not a very nice thing.

After some discussion, he agreed to go back inside.
And I was left to assess the scene.

Walking up to the rumpled opossum,
it looked like the story would end here.
But there was something […]