Deer Vision II: A Parable

Stag, Wildflower, Floral, Boho, Flower

I find myself hesitant to post much at all during these times. I want to be positive and encouraging with this blog, and that is not always easy. I do not want to be merely Pollyannish but do want to contribute positive or at least neutral, inspiring messages as far as possible.

So let me relate a recent experience and look for its positive message. My dog Sophie and I were walking on a remote road nearby that bypasses a local cemetery. Inside the mostly fenced cemetery was a young deer. His mother was on the other side of the fence but the youngling did not yet know how to jump over the fence to join his mother. I decided to try to help. I walked with Sophie in a wide arc around and behind the youngling, hoping to urge it to move toward the open fence entry. At first the deer approached me and stared deeply at me, maybe thinking I might be his mother. But he recoiled in fear when he realized I was not a deer. Instead of allowing me to ‘herd’ him forth to am opening, the youngling panicked and threw his body sideways at the fence trying to get through but crash landing two or three times. Fearing he would hurt himself, I retreated slowly with Sophie back to the opening. Continuing our walk I called the sheriff because the animal control center was closed, and described the situation so they might be able to assist the young deer. But by t he time Sophie and I had looped back on our walk to the cemetery again, the deer was gone so I called off the sheriff. Probably the deer’s mother had come in and retrieved her youngling by leading it around to another opening in the fence.

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Several months back I blogged a piece called “Deer Vision,” about aiming to avoid hitting deer on the roads around here but also about assuming the sort of vision these beautiful, sweet white-tailed denizens of the woods around here have. They carry such positive energy, such loving and playful energy.

So what was my message from the experience at the cemetery as a waking dream? I believe it comes down to a simple postulate:

“Do No Harm.”

In trying to help the youngling, I was Quixotic in my quest; I did more harm than good. Nature takes care of Herself.  By interfering with the natural order of things, I put the youngling in danger of hurting himself.  I take this as a general message. Instead of trying to “fix” situations or beliefs or practices that I might think could ‘trap’ people into less than desirable positions (from my limited vantage point), I should avoiding acting in such manner as could cause strong reactions that could do more harm than good.

images are from pixabay.com

I do not want my vehicle (including this blog) to do harm. That is why it is important for me to try to remain neutral no matter what is happening in society or the world, wishing only the highest good for all in the bigger picture of life unfolding as it may for the better interests of all concerned, which often is beyond my human vision.

May the Blessings Be!

Release

 

My question this month is about releasing: how best to release my hold or grip to allow life/Spirit to take Its own course. After relocating, I find this is a necessary phase for moving forward with new life conditions.

The image I have is of a formerly wounded or captive eagle being released to the wilds after being tended to by a caring healer. After protecting the bird in a safe space to allow it time to heal, now the Healer first prepares the eagle for eventual flight and then the day comes for the eagle to regain its liberty.

Releasing an eagle or other animal acknowledges the Call of the Wild. The call of the open air and unbounded energy of the natural environment certainly appeals to a denizen of the wilds more than being held within a caged or domesticated life.

Currently three good friends of the past 26 (and more) years have been facing “terminal” illness conditions. One has passed two weeks ago, another is in hospice as I write this, and the third is prepared for moving on, sooner or later. Release is important, both for my friends and for their closest friends and family. Release from the confining limitations of an ailing body certainly is a Call of Spirit to transcend the earthly and bodily limitations to ascend to the freedom of pure Love (so I believe).

With summertime easing into Fall where I live in the Finger Lakes now, trees that have had rich green foliage begin to shade into yellows, reds and oranges as they prepare to release their leaves to the fertile ground and transition for yet another Winter.

images are from pixabay.com

Life energy flows through their roots and the veins of the leaves and so I ask, where does all that leaf energy go when it is liberated and converted into pure energy again?  The smell of Fall in the air carries their energies of transformation, pervading the atmosphere and reminding me, all of us, that All is Well.

Nature Nurtures!

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(Photo by Joshua Bertetta; see his blog

at  http://jbertetta.wordpress.com/)

While continuing to explore the value of the NOURISHER or Nurturer archetype in our lives this month, I am reminded that Nature is Herself a Nurturer! We are each embraced and supported by ‘Mother Nature’ constantly, from the air we breathe to the Sun’s gentle nourishment, to the water which makes up around 57-60% of our bodily substances.  We are immersed in and composed of the biochemical elements that compose the very world we live in; our bodies are vehicles created of these same elements for Soul to get about here, to grow and to thrive interactively with others composed of these same substances, nurtured by these same natural forces that convey and express our spiritual essence in this world.

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Reposted from Balaji Govindaraji’s FB page

at https://www.facebook.com/balaji.govindaraj1?fref=nf&pnref=story

(quote is from Spiritual Wisdom on DREAMS (pg. 4), by Sri Harold Klemp)

 I am grateful to have my buddy/dog Sophie to take for walks all around the region we live in and wherever we travel. All of the parks in my home town I have named “Sophie Parks.”  We especially enjoy exploring woodsy parks or trails. My heart lifts and breath expands and steadies even on these relatively short jaunts with Sophie. Nature is cleansing, healing, settling, balancing. And so, we can seek Nurture through Nature.

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Sophie

How do YOU integrate Nature as a Nourisher in your life?  How often do you allow yourself to do so with your current routines?  One thing any of us can do at any time is to step away from the troubles of the day or the situations in the family or world that may bear down on you. Take yourself and maybe bring someone you love to the Park, the Woods, the Open Space, the Trail into the Mountains, or row your kayak on the Lake, or walk the Oceanside, or camp. My sister Lee, a pastor for the United Church of Christ in Connecticut, walks along the Ocean near her home every day and posts daily photos on Facebook:

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Photos by Rev. Lee Ireland (my sister in Connecticut) from her FB page 

https://www.facebook.com/lee.ireland.1048https:

//www.facebook.com/lee.ireland.1048

Nature resonates with your own inner nature and allows your Inner NOURISHER to breathe and to calm you and to direct your attention to that which is permanent rather than transitory.

I welcome your insights and stories!

Teachers and Learners, An Alchemical Pairing

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I love being a Teacher, as I have taught now for 37 years, from 2 years tutoring and then teaching developmental English for inner city Buffalo students in New York to teaching for 13 years for Phoenix area community colleges and Arizona State University, to 22 years since 1993 as a professor at the University of Colorado—Colorado Springs. And, I love being a Student, as I have been from the very start and will always continue to be!

We learn through teaching and teach through learning, and those we teach are also our own teachers, too! So here I want to celebrate the Learners who teach their teachers how better to connect, to stay informed and current with contemporary issues, and above all, to better LISTEN to their learners’ needs and their hopes and dreams.  For being a Learner can be a daunting, brave act, especially when the student steps forth to ASK their pertinent questions and to personalize their QUEST for gaining grounds toward deepening their topical interests and toward fulfilling their individual life goals.

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Never settle for less than what is stated in the previous sentence.  As a Learner, you have the right and in fact the obligation to not just attend classes and complete assignments but to question, to expand your reading beyond that given, to critique perspectives presented and to elaborate and develop your unique viewpoint, sensibility and expertise.  There has never been in the entire history of creation another YOU (true for All), and your specificity of experience, feelings and outlook truly make of you a very special Learner—and Teacher, too.

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Learning takes many forms. It could be in a formal classroom setting but it does not need to be, and even when it is, it doesn’t really begin or end in a classroom. Nature might be your Classroom, or your Family might be the soil in which you are planted to gather and to share nourishment and understanding and love.

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Learning is the process of manifesting Better Endings, with any endeavor. We learn to drive a car, and this brings greater personal freedom along with greater responsibility and awareness. We read a novel, and whole worlds unfold before our imagination; worlds we never knew before but that are now realms we can return to forever.

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images from pixabay.com

As you learn, you gain invaluable lessons of experience; not just head knowledge but compassion and passion for serving others and for attaining the capacity to embrace and live your Dream!