Spirit Bird

Before I tell you about my latest retreat to my backyard with stones, shells, sage, cedar and sweetgrass, let's talk music.

Potency in rhythm and lyrics.

I first heard the phrase Pockets of Peace in a song by Xavier Rudd, whose music is medicine of the highest order. It stuck, and I've been using it ever since.

Xavier Rudd is a musician from Australia who often plays multiple instruments at once, his didgeridoo and drumbeats calling to the soul. I had the honour of seeing him live, back in the day, at the Boot in Whistler. I was right up front, next to the stage, dancing and cheering, celebrating with friends...

A memory to be cherished.

I listened to the album Food in the Belly on many a mountain road trip, and now hearing it brings me back to windy roads, mountain lakes, tree-covered hillsides, and glacier-capped peaks.

These days, one of the songs that resonates with me the most is Xavier Rudd's Spirit Bird. I've been practicing it on guitar and just singing it.

I don't know if I've made it through a full take once without crying.

Honesty. Grief. Love. Strength. Integrity.

There is so much in this song that speaks to the cycles of humanity.

Sometimes, it gets to be too much.
I have to walk away.
Disengage.

When I go outside and breathe, and return to myself, return to nature, it helps me remember to focus on what I can control. To focus on enjoying this precious life for however long I have it.

We create our own pockets of peace.

Grounding in Nature

A few days ago, I took a basket of goodies outside. Leather and stone, sage, cedar, sweetgrass.

I sang, and I listened.
I prayed and I cried.
I laughed and I played.

I stroked soft leather, calming myself.
I soaked up the sun, healing myself.
I listened to the birds, finding humility.

Reminding myself that I am but one drop of water in an infinite ocean.

Ceremony grounds me.

Medicines from the earth.
Medicines from the ancestors.
Medicines for the present, for the future.

I am far from the ocean, but she still holds me.
She still sings to me.
I know she feels me, that she will always bring me home

I hold a broken shell, and I am awash in love.

Nature nurtures me, so I give back.

With gratitude, with flower petals, with bits of chocolate and tea and smoke and song.

This is what living is about.
This connection.

If I teach my children anything, may it be to choose love.
To return to nature again and again.
To return to the truth that sings in our souls.

To me, this ceremony, this form of meditation is the highest form of self care. It unplugs me from the chatter of too many voices and opinions. It plugs me in to what is real.

Here. Now.

What about you?

What helps you return to yourself?
What helps you feel grounded?
What helps you recharge?

Even closing my eyes and imagining myself on a beach, I can hear the ocean's waves. Smell the salty air.

Or I can transport myself to a mountain, and overlook a lake. I can feel the crisp wind. See an eagle soar above.

Nature holds us, even when we are inside our homes. All we have to do is turn to our breath, to our essence.

Deep breath in...
Slow breath out...

^{All photos mine.}