Important: Nature

"I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order." ~ John Burroughs

Nature plays a very significant role in my life and is a core pillar of my Spiritual Path -- the heart and soul of my Customs.  Everything else in my Customs will change and evolve, shapeshift and modify -- but Nature?  Nature is the only constant.

Now, I should define what Nature is to me and what exactly I mean when I use the term capitalized.  Most would assume, given my Pagan faith, that I link Nature with "Mother Earth" or some "Earth Goddess" -- some spirit or deity.  But, me being the unconventional type, I don't.  At least, not in the way most Pagans do.

Nature has an energy -- a spirit to it, but nothing like a deity.  It's too raw, too elemental to ever be a deity to me.  She'll (I refer to Nature as female just for my own benefit here) accept no offerings -- I have nothing She requires.  And I like that.  I can respect that.  I meet Her on neutral territory and can simply enjoy Her company as She is.

Now, granted, Nature is brutal, and we humans are merely guests here.  She holds all the cards, and we would do well to remember that.  But nothing She does, no matter the impact it has on us, is ever done for the sole sake of being cruel.  It all serves a purpose, and that I can get behind.

Too much of human life just seems so pointless, so sense-less.  I mean, it all serves a purpose of some sort within our culture.  But beyond that?  Nothing of merit is really accomplished.  I am so disillusioned with the bulk of American materialistic culture.

But back to Nature -- on all fronts.  For me, that wild energy that flows in Nature is something my Spirit requires.  I need those untouched (or at least less-touched) spaces to recharge, relax, and to just shed all the daily grind and negativity that my everyday life drags me through.

I need that connection to something greater than myself, something I can readily see and experience with my five normal senses.  I need that connection to Nature to put all the daily battles into perspective.  Nature reminds me, that in the grand scope of Life, shitty coworkers aren't the end of the world.  That rude and inconsiderate neighbors don't have to ruin an otherwise good day.

The gist of it all, those moments in which I get to soak up untainted solitude in Nature are one of the main reasons I am not a murderous psychopath.

I live for the daily walks with Holly (my husband's dog).  They are the highlight of my day.  Just me, the dog, and the animals and Nature that are all marooned here in the heart of the city.  And yet, we all make it work.  There is just something about these wild animals, from reptiles to birds to mammals, both large and small, that are thriving here in the city that remind me I can do the same thing.  In fact, they are teaching me that just because I live in the city, that doesn't mean I have to relinquish my Wild Spirit.

And that is a truly amazing gift.

From Nature.