The Nature of Chaos
It has been a long time since I have felt the call to write but today the call seems to have arrived.
On a personal level I have been processing the grief of losing my Mum and also a move of country, letting go of our home and then a further two moves of location. I used to be good at moving, it is something I have done on a fairly regular basis for most of my life but the last few times have not felt so easy, however at last I am somewhere I feel at peace. We are very hopeful this will be our forever home and where we can begin our Earthkin project. We are living in our caravan with our dogs in beautiful scenery with wonderful people, amazing animals, wildlife and nature right on our doorstep, heaven. All these experiences have taught me a lot about what we believe to be solid within our lives, a place to call home, a person who we believe will always be there, somewhere solid to put down roots, all these things we often take for granted but on a personal level and throughout the world these roots we assumed would keep us stable are being uprooted and leaving a feeling of lack of foundation and as though there is nothing secure to hold onto, everything is changing. It can leave us feeling very wobbly and insecure. These feelings are also being reflected by the world around us.
The world is in vast change with fear, discord and anger being at the surface of so many areas of life. Every where we look there seems to be sadness, hopelessness and division with close friends, family members and communities divided in their beliefs and feelings. Turning on the TV or reading a newspaper merely compounds this with fear screaming out from every headline. Social media is not much better with opinions being vehemently expressed, bullying and judgement from what may seem the unlikeliest of places, the gentlest of souls. Nothing feels the same, nothing feels “normal”, everything is shifting and changing with no real knowing of where all this chaos may lead. Our roots have been ripped from what was “normal” and stable and many of us are being left without the foundations that we knew, the certainty of our beliefs and the places and people familiar to us, so many of these areas of our lives are shifting and changing and this can leave us feeling ungrounded, unsafe and at times alone.
Some of this change is through natural circumstance, this beautiful world is an ever shifting, evolving and living being. But much of this change is manmade. We at times feel we are at the whim of these enforced manmade decisions, much as nature is, and we can feel powerless to stop the change sweeping through the world. However, underneath the surface of this seeming chaos I have found there is a quiet calm and certainty and it is available to every one of us.
Nature is very good at creating order from chaos. Humans arrive and rips out trees, plants, earth and replace with concrete. This of course creates havoc for nature with species unable to live in this alien new climate with a lack of food and habitat. However, over time nature begins to creep back in, grass seed carried on the wind or through the droppings of birds begins to sprout in the most unlikely places, dandelion -that tough and essential plant – finds a way to grow through a space seemingly devoid of anything natural. As the plants begin to return so to do the insects and other wildlife, the nature of connection and inter dependence once again finds a balance and the cycle begins once more. Perhaps we can, at this time, look to nature to help us remain stable during the chaos?
Nature always has the need for survival at it’s heart but also the need for connection, so many species – plant and animal – rely on another for help and assistance in their surival. This is such a demonstration to me of the essential need for that connection, that knowing that we are not alone. But when our roots feel as though they too have been ripped out, how do we find once again a firm foundation and connection?
If you step outside, connect with the earth beneath your feet, see and feel roots growing from your body into the earth this can help hugely in these times, just giving yourself something tangible to hang onto when all around is constantly shifting. But there is even more of a strength and solidity that can help bring balance during the chaos. It is the roots that are inside of each and every one of us. It is our very essence, our soul, our spirit, our light, our source, our god connection, whatever you wish to describe it as, it is there. It is a something that connects every being on this earth at this time. If we focus on this above all else, focus on increasing that light – even if it seems only a faint flicker at first, we can draw strength from this. We can begin to see that light in others, no matter what their mouth may be saying, look for the light within, focus on your own light and feel that reaching out and connecting with others, feel the light within them connecting with you. See it as a candle flame flickering within you, see it magnify and burn bright and strong. Now, more than ever, we must remember what and who we are, we are that source, that essence, we all are and no matter what division may be playing out in front of us, this does not need to be our focus, fear and anger does not need to be our focus. If we can remain focused on happiness, laughter, joy and love which is the true essence of our nature, we can stay stronger and more balanced, the more strong and balanced that we feel the more we can share this strength and love with others. Our foundations are always there, we carry them inside us, do not let anything divert you from this truth, we are love.