Honoring the Land

2020 is in full swing. What a wild ride it has been already!

Between the coronavirus outbreak and the continuous political rumblings and posturing in the US, there is never a shortage of things we are told we should worry about. 

For me, it has been really important to consciously decide how I will show up for all of this, and how I will respond to what is going on around me. 

I am responsible for what I get upset over. It’s so important right now to be discerning about what deserves our attention and what does not.

I can’t imagine getting through all of this without my contemplative and spiritual practices. When the culture is fear-mongering, I go increasingly to a devotional practice, choosing love over fear. 

One of my favorite practices lately is honoring the land and the ancestors of the land. 

I’m writing to you from my beloved Hatteras Island, one of my favorite places, and one where I feel especially connected to the land. The picture above is of the sunrise the first morning I was here. Magical!
I’ve been coming here every year for about 13 years now, and only in the past few years did I think to start honoring the land rather than just enjoying it. 

I was coming from my blind spot of privilege, assuming I had certain rights. Now I see it quite differently and take a more humble and reciprocal approach.   

Once I started having a more reverent relationship, I felt so much more deeply connected, supported and at home here. It changed the whole experience and made it richer and more intimate.

The land eventually started giving me gifts too, but that is a story for another time.  

I encourage you to give this a try and honor the land where you are. You can start right in your own home. 

The Inner Work of Honoring the Land 

The first part of this honoring is internal. It can be in a meditation or in a ceremony. 

If this is a new concept for you, I would keep it simple. Just sit in meditation (you don’t have to be outside), drop your awareness into your heart, and rest here for a few minutes, allowing any feelings of appreciation or affection to naturally arise.

As you breathe in and out, allow your awareness to expand to include the physical land upon which you are sitting. 

Feel into your connection with this land, all that gifts that it offers to you. Rest with those feelings for a few minutes. Try to have this be a heart-centered experience more than just thinking about the land. 

Next, you can ponder all the other beings (the ancestors) who have lived on this land. You can’t know for sure, but perhaps there were native people at some point. 

Maybe there were other wild animals there, or ancient trees, or creatures that are now extinct. 

Just invite your heart-centered awareness to offer acknowledgment and wishes for peace to all these other beings. 

 The Outer Work 

In addition to the honoring, another great way to pay respect to the land that is supporting you is to ask yourself what gifts you can offer. 

Think about this from the perspective of the land. From a shamanic point of view, the land is alive and has a spirit. From a biologic perspective too, land is alive. 

How is the land being burdened and what might be a sweet and thoughtful gift?

I love giving gifts to the land, and one big gift I can give every day down here is picking up the loads of trash that I find on the beach!
Every day I go out with my trash bag (the same one, I empty it out and re-use it 🙂 and pick up all the trash I find. 

This is a gift not only to the land, but also to the winged ones and aquatic ones who will not get tangled in it. 

To me, this feels so great to be able to give back a tiny bit. And it costs me nothing. 

The earth and this land give me so many gifts each day: food, shelter, air to breathe, clean water to drink, electricity, clean clothes, nourishing food, and the list goes on. 

Even if we try to live simply, we consume a lot in the west. We are becoming increasingly aware of the toll that all this consuming is having on the earth and the other creatures. 

Additionally, we are all living on land that has likely experienced trauma of some kind. Just like a person who has experienced trauma has residual effects, so too does the land and the ancestors of that land. 

Each gentle, loving gift to the earth is so important right now in healing the collective trauma. Your gifts will be lovingly received. 

So let me know how it goes for you with your land! You can ask in meditation what your land might need or want. 

I’d love to hear.  

🌱Free Summit Starting Soon

Another gift I give to the land is eating a plant-based diet as the data show that this does the least amount of harm to the ecosystem. If you’re curious about this, there is a free summit starting soon where you’ll hear from some of the country’s leading experts. 

I am a bonus expert doing a session on creating inner peace and empowerment. You can check it out here.  You can also check out my new on-demand class: 

Caring for the heart of a vegan: cultivating peace and empowerment  in a violent world 

The first week is free right now.

May all beings be safe and protected from harm and may we all live in peace. 

much love,