Good morning. Happy Sunday!
Another hard week, and I have to say, it is getting to me. At one point (yesterday) I considered, and even went so far as to write and post a blog giving up the church farm blog. I later deleted it, because I am not absolutely sure that is the right path to follow.
So here I am, stuck in this dark place, wondering how do I pull myself out? Certainly the petty concerns of living off grid in a camper are bringing me down while I forget to look at the bigger picture and focus on the goals.
What are the goals? I ask myself. Why are we here? The Horse led me here, but then it seems I was left alone to figure it out myself. The spirits have been quiet, but maybe I am not communicating with them either. It is always a two way street and communication takes both parties. I will try harder.
When we envisioned ourselves in this place, we saw an oasis in the desert, built from our hands, hard work and lots of love given to the Earth, to one another and to the plants and animals we bring into this space. We never anticipated the roadblocks we would encounter, or that the money would run out, or that we would not be able to get shelters built before winter set in. Sure, we knew it would be hard, be we didn't really understand how difficult it is for four people to live in such a tiny space, with little privacy or alone time.
And still, we want to retrofit a cabin/shed into a tiny house, knowing we will have to overcome and work out our issues with each other. It is a teachable/learn-able situation and I am grateful for the opportunity to become stronger and more compassionate with myself and with others. I do worry that I will even be able to do this thing.
We are growing Industrial Hemp, because we believe this one plant has the ability to save the planet and mankind. It can provide energy, building materials, food, medicine, clothing, bedding, fuel, and on and on the list goes. It is a miraculous plant that comes to us in dire times, when we need it most. I'd like to see everyone growing hemp. It neutralizes the carbon we are putting out into the atmosphere. If we let it, and use hemp as intended, we can turn this train wreck (humanities eminent extinction) around. Lets' be honest though and take the ego out of the equation, and fear along with it. Cannabis (yes the THC variety) also has many, many beneficial uses, the most important possibly is its ability to cure dis-ease. It also brings people closer to spirit and closer to each other in a path of love and harmony.
I had hoped that our Eco-based environmental church would begin to take off, but honestly, I'm not sure where to start with that. Perhaps we should hold some kind of ceremony here and invite local people to come and participate. That presents yet another problem. I am an introvert and am afraid of drawing much attention to myself. I am not sure why I feel called to create this church, except that my love of this planet far exceeds my fears (at least in the abstract). I have been disillusioned by religion for most of my life and could not reconcile my disbelief of most western religions with my desire to live a spiritual life.
Now, I understand the focus of the belief is less important than how people actually live their lives. I'm not concerned with what god figure people worship, as long as we all learn to live in love and have compassion for one another and for our Mother Earth. Drastic changes have to be made if humanity is to move forward into the next generations. I do not want to leave my children with this sick and unhappy planet. I do not want to leave my children with the monumental task of cleaning up after previous generations who were so eager to deplete the planet of all resources at any costs. At any costs.
I began this church, and Richard lends his support, in the hope that people could turn their spirituality into one that includes and perhaps focuses on healing the planet we live on. We must learn how to live in harmony with nature, and yes, that also includes living in harmony with each other. All people have equal value. I don't care where you live or what you do. I don't care about your past and the future is untold. Everyone writes their own story. I do care about my children (all children are my children, as they are yours) having a future with clean air, clean water, clean food and a beautiful place to live. I care about transforming this world of hate and competition into one of love and compassion. I do care about teaching everyone to live more simply and take less from our Mother Earth. I do care about the survival of the human species, as well as the thousands of other species mankind is pushing to extinction. I do care about the plants being pure and natural and about the food we eat being chemical free and unaltered from the form Nature intended it to take.
This church is my attempt to bring people together--people who also feel the strong pull to make a difference and a change as humanity moves forward. This is a church based in love--love for all people and all things, including the Earth, the Universe, and All That Is. This church is a sanctuary for people to just come and be and learn and teach and do what small things we can to heal each other and the Earth we live on. This church exists online to join people together who are not in physical proximity, but still want to form a fellowship around Eco-spirituality. This church exists in the physical to allow people to join together to learn and teach and experiment with methods that will help humanity learn to live in harmony with Nature. This church exists to serve as a reminder that the Earth is our Mother and without our precious, life-giving and life-sustaining planet, we have nothing left. We will all simply cease to be, and as humanity walks itself down the road to extinction, it will not be pleasant. There will be suffering, there will be so much pain and unhappiness. There will be countless, unnecessary loss of life. It does not have to be this way. This church is just one small effort to lend my own energy, and anyone else's energy who wants to join, to this monumental effort to save the planet and to save humanity from itself.
Join me. Join us. Together we can make a difference. Together we can learn how to live and move forward with our focus on love and compassion and living in harmony with respect for our Great Mother Earth.
Become a part of Green Desert Sanctuary. Lend your voice to our cause. Teach us. Come and learn with us. Let us be One in our efforts and let us share our good energy as we work towards creating a planet of love and compassion where clean air, clean water, clean food, adequate shelter, and education are available to all. These are human rights, for all peoples everywhere.
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Love to all!
~Rev. Kerry
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Sunday, July 20, 2014
Appreciation and gratitude (7.20.14)
Good afternoon. Happy Sunday.
It's been a long and trying week. Today let's just practice appreciation and gratitude, shall we?
Sometimes it's difficult to really appreciate what you have, especially when the Universe is throwing some major tests at you. What can you do? Sit back, relax a little bit, disconnect from ego and enjoy being the witness. Not really as easy as it sounds, is it?
Gratitude puts us in another frame of mind. When we stop and become grateful for what is going right, for the things we do have, for the goals we have reached and the wonderful people in our lives, it puts our ego in an awkward position and kind of leaves it speechless in a way. Gratitude allows the storms to calm and when we begin to see the things we appreciate about ourselves and our lives, we begin to notice even more things. It's like a snowball of good feelings, getting bigger and bigger and pushing out that little self that always seems to demand more.
Today, notice the little things that bring you joy. And really appreciate them. You know you created that ...that joy, that thing bringing a smile to your face. When you notice and appreciate, you say thank you to yourself and to the Universe for being such great co-creators! Good job!
Gratitude allows us to suspend our negativity and see all of the wonderful things coming forth. By focusing on the positive, of course more positive will follow.
Appreciation. I appreciate the clean air I breath, the wonderful views of the mountains I experience every single day, the food in our cabinets, the good health of my family and friends, the dreams I still have....
I am grateful for this life, this time, this space to just be. I am grateful to experience all that I do in this human form. I am grateful for learning opportunities that allow me to grow and expand into something bigger than my ego....
What are you grateful for? What can you appreciate today?
Enjoy life. Share love. Remember, what you focus on expands, so make it good.
Love to all.
~Rev. Kerry
It's been a long and trying week. Today let's just practice appreciation and gratitude, shall we?
Sometimes it's difficult to really appreciate what you have, especially when the Universe is throwing some major tests at you. What can you do? Sit back, relax a little bit, disconnect from ego and enjoy being the witness. Not really as easy as it sounds, is it?
Gratitude puts us in another frame of mind. When we stop and become grateful for what is going right, for the things we do have, for the goals we have reached and the wonderful people in our lives, it puts our ego in an awkward position and kind of leaves it speechless in a way. Gratitude allows the storms to calm and when we begin to see the things we appreciate about ourselves and our lives, we begin to notice even more things. It's like a snowball of good feelings, getting bigger and bigger and pushing out that little self that always seems to demand more.
Today, notice the little things that bring you joy. And really appreciate them. You know you created that ...that joy, that thing bringing a smile to your face. When you notice and appreciate, you say thank you to yourself and to the Universe for being such great co-creators! Good job!
Gratitude allows us to suspend our negativity and see all of the wonderful things coming forth. By focusing on the positive, of course more positive will follow.
Appreciation. I appreciate the clean air I breath, the wonderful views of the mountains I experience every single day, the food in our cabinets, the good health of my family and friends, the dreams I still have....
I am grateful for this life, this time, this space to just be. I am grateful to experience all that I do in this human form. I am grateful for learning opportunities that allow me to grow and expand into something bigger than my ego....
What are you grateful for? What can you appreciate today?
Enjoy life. Share love. Remember, what you focus on expands, so make it good.
Love to all.
~Rev. Kerry
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Coyote Song (7.13.14)
Good morning. Happy Sunday!
Coyote sings to me this clear morning and reminds me that we are being way too serious in our daily lives.
The insects here are diminishing along with other trivial annoyances.
My morning walks allow me to reconnect with myself and Spirit. It is in these quiet moments of solitude that I can clear my mind and simply be in this time and space. There is only me, Mother Earth and Father Sky. I am held forever in my eternal and infinite ancestry. I am primal. I am returning to my indigenous self. I am becoming One.
As we enter into spaces of discomfort, we begin to form bonds with our spiritual selves, and in the case of physical discomforts, we allow a connection with Nature to occur. If we are too cold, we are aware of ourselves and the space around us, and when we warm ourselves, we appreciate and become grateful for that warmth. Living simply creates the space to find ourselves. We find ourselves in the connection to Spirit and the connection to All That Is. When we choose to give up our addictions to modern comforts and conveniences our egos rebel in predictable ways:
We are irritable and grow impatient.
We want to give up our endeavor.
We see the old "mainstream life" as being more favorable. (We want to go back to what we knew before.)
We sabotage what we have already accomplished and seek to dismiss our hard work. (Thereby discounting our chosen withdrawal from society and our attempts on self-reliance.)
We procrastinate important tasks. (It then becomes easier to "give up" when things are not done and ready on time.)
We simply ignore the voice of Spirit. (Wasn't it Spirit that called us to do this thing?)
It is not an easy thing to be in a space where you have to really confront yourself. Do I have what it takes to make this work? You might ask. Can I get this done in the time required? You might wonder.
Sure, a lot of our activities of importance have these same concerns, but when your life depends on the answers, things begin to change in your mind. It almost becomes a battle of wills -- the true self vs. ego. And we are again back to the same problem that plagues us regularly. What is ego based and what is spiritual? Who is ego in the face of discomfort? Will our ego save us or drive us mad with second guessing?
I have to wonder if Henry David Thoreau encountered these same sorts of ideas when he chose to give up his modern life and live in a cabin in the woods for a year?
Certainly there is something found in the solitude, and in the quiet and in the peace. There is an unbreakable bond that forms with Spirit and/or Nature/God/Creator. When confronting oneself, one has the opportunity to grow and expand beyond the thresholds of ego and into a space that is infinite. The power lies within as we begin to overcome our fears and our own bad habits that would seek to undo our attempts to find a bliss that can only come when we let go and let it all unfold.
As ego begins to quiet we open our eyes to a new way of seeing the Universe and our place in it. The bigger picture begins to come into focus. We listen to Coyote's song and find wisdom in the foolishness of it all. We are fine. The Universe will take care of us all. There is abundance enough for everyone. We are all in this thing called human life, both separately and together. We are All One.
Love to all.
~Rev. Kerry
Coyote sings to me this clear morning and reminds me that we are being way too serious in our daily lives.
The insects here are diminishing along with other trivial annoyances.
My morning walks allow me to reconnect with myself and Spirit. It is in these quiet moments of solitude that I can clear my mind and simply be in this time and space. There is only me, Mother Earth and Father Sky. I am held forever in my eternal and infinite ancestry. I am primal. I am returning to my indigenous self. I am becoming One.
As we enter into spaces of discomfort, we begin to form bonds with our spiritual selves, and in the case of physical discomforts, we allow a connection with Nature to occur. If we are too cold, we are aware of ourselves and the space around us, and when we warm ourselves, we appreciate and become grateful for that warmth. Living simply creates the space to find ourselves. We find ourselves in the connection to Spirit and the connection to All That Is. When we choose to give up our addictions to modern comforts and conveniences our egos rebel in predictable ways:
We are irritable and grow impatient.
We want to give up our endeavor.
We see the old "mainstream life" as being more favorable. (We want to go back to what we knew before.)
We sabotage what we have already accomplished and seek to dismiss our hard work. (Thereby discounting our chosen withdrawal from society and our attempts on self-reliance.)
We procrastinate important tasks. (It then becomes easier to "give up" when things are not done and ready on time.)
We simply ignore the voice of Spirit. (Wasn't it Spirit that called us to do this thing?)
It is not an easy thing to be in a space where you have to really confront yourself. Do I have what it takes to make this work? You might ask. Can I get this done in the time required? You might wonder.
Sure, a lot of our activities of importance have these same concerns, but when your life depends on the answers, things begin to change in your mind. It almost becomes a battle of wills -- the true self vs. ego. And we are again back to the same problem that plagues us regularly. What is ego based and what is spiritual? Who is ego in the face of discomfort? Will our ego save us or drive us mad with second guessing?
I have to wonder if Henry David Thoreau encountered these same sorts of ideas when he chose to give up his modern life and live in a cabin in the woods for a year?
Certainly there is something found in the solitude, and in the quiet and in the peace. There is an unbreakable bond that forms with Spirit and/or Nature/God/Creator. When confronting oneself, one has the opportunity to grow and expand beyond the thresholds of ego and into a space that is infinite. The power lies within as we begin to overcome our fears and our own bad habits that would seek to undo our attempts to find a bliss that can only come when we let go and let it all unfold.
As ego begins to quiet we open our eyes to a new way of seeing the Universe and our place in it. The bigger picture begins to come into focus. We listen to Coyote's song and find wisdom in the foolishness of it all. We are fine. The Universe will take care of us all. There is abundance enough for everyone. We are all in this thing called human life, both separately and together. We are All One.
Love to all.
~Rev. Kerry
Sunday, July 6, 2014
Talking to trees (7.6.14)
Good morning. Happy Sunday!
This week I had the assignment of talking to trees. This is for my Shamanism class, of course. Now, I have talked to trees before, or maybe just listened, but this week I am at a loss because there simply are no trees around me. So I spent a few days lamenting my lack of trees and then I realized the trees have been talking to me since we moved here. Mostly they are telling me to plant more trees. I did have a nice conversation with the young Aspen we planted in the corner of our garden. Her name is Joy, I learned, and she told me to bring her some friends.
You don't have to talk to trees to feel close to nature, but have you ever tried it? It is wonderful. I have stood among the tall pines and let their energy soak into my bones, swaying in the wind gently, like they do. I have hugged trees, smelled Ponderosas (they smell like strawberries), and stood in awe of an old Elm that spread its branches out into the sky in a park near my childhood home. I have always had a pretty good relationship with trees. I have always felt close to them when I am in their presence.
Here in the Alpine desert, I live among the salt brush, chamisa, prickly pear and various wildflowers. They speak to me too, in subtle ways, mostly by displaying their seasonal colors like pretty outfits they all put on to complement each other. The greens are amazing, believe it or not, and with a discerning eye, one can pick out the subtle variations between the plants. The prickly pears are blooming yellow flowers, and an occasional pink flower stands out like a surprise against the dull sand. There is purple knapweed blooming everywhere, and another yellow flower that takes over the open spaces in harmony with the knapweed. There is a primrose, with white blooms, and another purple flower with a delicate, star shaped flower on the end of its stems. There are several varieties of grasses and other desert plants hidden between the salt brush. I have yet to identify all of the plants that live around me, but I am ever conscious of them and the beauty they lend to this desert palette.
No, you don't have to talk to trees to be close to Nature. Nature shows her colors in many different ways and beckons us to take part in the beauty around us. All living things have their own voices and if we stop, be still, and simply listen we can hear some of the amazing things they have to say.
What is Nature saying to you?
Love to all.
~Rev. Kerry
This week I had the assignment of talking to trees. This is for my Shamanism class, of course. Now, I have talked to trees before, or maybe just listened, but this week I am at a loss because there simply are no trees around me. So I spent a few days lamenting my lack of trees and then I realized the trees have been talking to me since we moved here. Mostly they are telling me to plant more trees. I did have a nice conversation with the young Aspen we planted in the corner of our garden. Her name is Joy, I learned, and she told me to bring her some friends.
You don't have to talk to trees to feel close to nature, but have you ever tried it? It is wonderful. I have stood among the tall pines and let their energy soak into my bones, swaying in the wind gently, like they do. I have hugged trees, smelled Ponderosas (they smell like strawberries), and stood in awe of an old Elm that spread its branches out into the sky in a park near my childhood home. I have always had a pretty good relationship with trees. I have always felt close to them when I am in their presence.
Here in the Alpine desert, I live among the salt brush, chamisa, prickly pear and various wildflowers. They speak to me too, in subtle ways, mostly by displaying their seasonal colors like pretty outfits they all put on to complement each other. The greens are amazing, believe it or not, and with a discerning eye, one can pick out the subtle variations between the plants. The prickly pears are blooming yellow flowers, and an occasional pink flower stands out like a surprise against the dull sand. There is purple knapweed blooming everywhere, and another yellow flower that takes over the open spaces in harmony with the knapweed. There is a primrose, with white blooms, and another purple flower with a delicate, star shaped flower on the end of its stems. There are several varieties of grasses and other desert plants hidden between the salt brush. I have yet to identify all of the plants that live around me, but I am ever conscious of them and the beauty they lend to this desert palette.
No, you don't have to talk to trees to be close to Nature. Nature shows her colors in many different ways and beckons us to take part in the beauty around us. All living things have their own voices and if we stop, be still, and simply listen we can hear some of the amazing things they have to say.
What is Nature saying to you?
Love to all.
~Rev. Kerry
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