|
WildernessLiving
|
read my profile
sign my guestbook
Name: WildernessLiving
Gender: Female
Interests: Wilderness (!), nature photography, yoga, backpacking, kayaking, hiking, swimming, scuba diving, snorkeling, reading, writing, and watercoloring. Solitude. Connecting with others. Spirituality, soul, sobriety, sensitivity, serenity, mindfulness, compassion, kindness, sensuality, intimacy, love, tenderness, deep ecology, conservation, creativity, coping effectively with depression and anxiety, finding meaning, authentic and simple living, gratitude, and experiencing great awe, wonder and joy.
Message: message me
Member Since:
11/4/2006
 Premium
|
|
SubscriptionsSites I Read
|
|
|
|
| Watching Wild TurkeysI feel so incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity yesterday to watch a flock of wild turkey right outside my kitchen's big picture window! I was filled with awe once again at the incredible miracles of nature and the joy and wonder I experience living amid this wonderful forest. There were at least ten of these grand birds working their way across the hillside within about 30 feet of the cabin, scattering leaf litter broadly aside with their big strong feet and arching their necks down to eat acorns and other goodies they uncovered. The wild turkeys here are so skittish that I have had few chances to observe them this closely, so it felt like such an amazing gift to be able to watch them so nearby and for so long without spooking them!
In between periods of grazing, they would periodically stretch their wings or fluff their feathers, and call to one another with messages in turkey-speak. They were clearly very alert, and would frequently pause in their activities to scan their surroundings. As twilight set in, I was delighted to find they had decided to stay by the cabin for the night! Gradually, one by one the turkeys would get up a running start and then flap with great focus to ascend into the treetops to roost. It seemed to take some time for them to select just the right spot on just the right branch, and involved walking along branches or fluttering between branches along with vocalizations expressing I don't know what! Some of them would rub their head and legs on the branches, and most spent some time stretching their wings and fluffing out their feathers before finally settling down.
As darkness fell, I could still make out their silhouettes, and I was thrilled seeing them up in those massive oaks right near the cabin, that they'd chosen to stay close and they were safely tucked in for the night. I was really disappointed given this turn of events that I had committed to attend a potluck that night, as I worried that my going out would disrupt their sense of security. I feel such a kinship with nature and I am so very grateful for each day spent in such close proximity with her and her other beings. It feels so timeless and so natural and so honorable and so humbling and so healthy to be immersed like this in the natural world on a daily basis, and to soak in and radiate back the awe and wonder and solace and inspiration it brings to me.
I know that many people appear to have adapted so much as to prefer modern "civilization" which insulates on all levels from the "raw" natural world, and now find nature in the raw uncomfortable and unappealing. But for someone like me, a life too insulated from nature stifles, numbs, and alienates while one immersed in nature like this frees, soothes, and inspires. I now have a very loving connection with someone I adore who loves nature but is more comfortable than me in modern life. I am very grateful for the opportunity to share such a deep and loving connection, and am venturing out more and more to spend time with this wonderful woman. The primary challenge for me is finding adequate overlap and compromise in lifestyle. I am trying to trust in the universe that we will find a way to together live that balance so we can thrive together, and I welcome all prayers and good energy for healthy living and loving.
Happy Valentine's Day!
| | |
| Snowy Canvas in the OzarksWinter returned in force this week, depositing a spectacular 5-inch thick shimmering white blanket across the forest. The first two inches are tiny little ice pellets that formed a solid underlay for the 3-inch top coat of soft feathery snowflakes that sparkle with brilliance in the afternoon sunlight. This is the thickest and most beautiful white coat I have seen drape the forests in my five winters in Missouri. The soft powder topping the denser base reflected and refracted the abundant afternoon sunshine in a captivating manner, and provided an richly sensual surface for walking upon - soft and cushioning with a very gentle crunch. My dog May would have loved to accompany me as I traipsed through the unbroken snow, and I would have loved to watch her romp and play and celebrate unreservedly nature's endless wonders. I had a walking stick with me as I wandered, absorbing the breathtaking majesty of the trackless snowy forest, and without premeditation I instinctively attempted to draw a picture of May in hopes that her spirit might share more directly in my earthly sensory celebration. The drawing looked to me more like a deer with an unusually long tail, but I think May would understand my intent...
Hieroglyph of my recently deceased but still beloved dog May
| | |
| A Break from WinterI am feeling so incredibly fortunate and grateful to be living here in this little cabin in this peaceful forest. Today we here in the Missouri Ozarks had one of our reprieves from winter, with a high in the low 60's - quite a difference from last week's low of 5. It was also a day filled with glorious sunshine, and I worked outside in the forest all day long feeling the deep sense of peace and balance and connection with nature and spirit I have so often found here out in my wooded sanctuary. I did some maintenance work on one of my trails, made some brush piles for the critters, and cut firewood from some of the massive branches that came down in last year's ice storms. I use simple hand tools for all these tasks: a light leaf rake, pruners, and a handsaw. Today I regained an awareness of various muscles in my arms, shoulders, and back I'd not been using much recently.
I like using simple hand tools rather than more powerful tools or power tools for a combination of reasons:
1. They are blessedly, blissfully Q-u-i-e-t
2. They are way more eco-friendly to operate
2. They are more gentle on soil, plants, and trees
4. They are conducive to slow and meditative work
5. They encourage me to be in close contact with Earth
6. They afford a more "timeless" connection with ancestors
Part of what I love about being here is that I cannot see or hear any other human activity or development. Instead, the sights and sounds are of nature and I feel so privileged to share this intimacy with mother Earth. The cabin, while small and rustic, provides for my basic needs. I feel so blessed to be able to step outside and commune with flora and fauna surrounding me. I love to listen to the often subtle symphony of nature and gaze upon unbroken forest as far as the eye can see. I love to breathe slowly and deeply of the open air here that feels so clean and fresh, and to smell the earthy scent of the leaves and soil. I love to touch the varied textures of bark, moss, and rock. I love to lay my body right down against the breast of the Earth, to get as close as I can to the source of so many miracles, to entrain my spirit with the rhythm of the Earth. When I do this, so often my soul fills right up with peace and love overflowing. I feel the magnificence of Gaia then, of how it feels to be in balance as a part of the greater whole. I did this today, and I felt this today, and I am so grateful to be fully conscious and alive.
| | |
|
