deepening a personal connection to nature grounds us in our collective human journey..
Reconnect with land, reconnect with self.. sit spots, wandering, journaling, deepening our observation, listening and tracking skills, growing connection with place, learning about the relationships, and getting to know the plants and animals as individuals more than just species, learning and sharing the stories of the land..
In reconnecting we acknowledge our connection to all things, this is community, there is no separation. We breathe out the very air that the trees breathe in and they do the same for us.
the Land is the Law
“The custodial ethic.. emerges from an ancient reciprocal relationship with nature; an ethic of looking after, stewardship, caring for, and the obligation to look after Land that nurtures.. Reciprocity is a vital, creative element in all relationships including between humans; such a respectful relationship with both Land and Place becomes the template for human relationship and social structure.”
deep ecology in the Bradley Method..
“In the Bradley Method.. human is not the hero, proudly planting thousands of trees, reclaiming the desert, healing the Earth. Rather we are humble in the face of the super-human intelligence of Nature.. the rejection of anthropocentrism has sometimes been termed ‘deep ecology’. One of the understandings of deep ecology is that.. we are Earthlings, we BELONG here. We have evolved on this planet for 4000 million years of organic life and are made of Earth.”
“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
~Howard Thurman
Praction* you can try:
Practise daily gratitude for clean water and fresh air
Go outside, ie. off this screen(!) - tune into sounds of nature, warmth of sunshine, cool of night
Learn ya locals - who is living in your garden / local natural environment?
Tune into local environmental and cultural actions eg. bush care groups, cultural gatherings and earthy events
Activate yourself, family and friends to lobby for ecological justice
Reconnect to your creativity; give yourself space and rest
*praction = practice + action and describes “applying an action for the wellbeing of people, in a way that is culturally in tune with the natural world. An action that is applied to benefit the Country and, in return benefit ourselves.” .. a term coined by Elder George Musgrave, Awu-Laya Country ~ Victor Steffensen
medicine for the earth
“A healthy landscape.. engages land not as a machine but as a community of respected non-human persons to whom we persons have a responsibility. Renewal of relationship includes [non-polluted] water that you can swim in and not be afraid to touch. Restoring land without restoring relationship is an empty exercise. It is relationship that will endure and relationship that will sustain the restored land. Therefore, reconnecting people and the landscape is.. medicine for the earth.”
“When I’m on a high mountain looking out over country, my Unggurr [life-force] flows out from inside my body and I fall open with happiness.”