Cross-Blogging

On my other blog Hamida the Herbalist, I feature an issue of the week. The issue this week is Gratitude.

I found myself writing quite a bit about this, so this time, I moved the comments here and kept the flower essences there.

Let me begin with a personal account. I had to go to Tiburon yesterday to pick up some items at the Wooden Boat Show for a friend who is out of the country. Lately, I have been staying home more than usual for a number of reasons: 1) I am conserving on gasoline; 2) I don't like driving much anymore; and 3) I am busy and content at home doing what I'm doing. It was around 120 miles round trip and it was a beautiful day. I figured since I was out, I might do some window shopping and maybe 'hang out' in Tiburon - a high-end place with 'cute' boutiques etc. But I found that when I looked around, there was nothing there that interested me. In fact, all I could think of was getting back home. I looked at all the people on the street and nothing pulled me. I was not attracted to the scene. In fact, what I saw felt empty and meaningless, whereas my home felt alive and full of magical possibilities.

As I was driving back, as fast as I could get away with, I saw all the traffic, bumper to bumper going south back to San Francisco and the peninsula and I thought to myself, as I often do, these people spend their week commuting to work, then their 'days off' driving around looking for amusement and distraction. Do they ever 'stay home'? Why not? This led to the next set of thoughts which was that staying home, staying put is considered not cool or interesting when there's so much to see and do out there.

So I asked the questions: What's wrong with what you have? Don't you enjoy it? Why keep looking out there for more, different, new? Will any of it ever be enough? Many years ago, I did some research on the phenomenon of dissatisfaction that is so strong in the modern world. Why this constant need for more etc. I read a lot about the role advertising plays in making us feel that what we are or have is not enough. We are too fat, too ugly, too old, too stupid or whatever... so we need....this or that. It goes on and on. It is endless. I came upon a book that was a revelation because it talked about how the government funded research in the mid-30s, as the Depression was waning, to find out how to 'jump-start' the economy again. They needed to get people to spend money again. After the failure of the banks, people lost confidence. After going through the Depression, many people had learned to be frugal and do without. People didn't want to spend money as freely as they had before.They wanted to hang on to it. Now, the government wanted to stimulate industry and get people to spend again. A report came out that showed how psychology could be used via advertising, to make people want things, by creating dissatisfaction in their minds about themselves and their lives.

As with many other things that start out benign, but become malignant, the program was extremely successful and has led to the uncontrolled consumerism of today. We are trained to be dissatisfied from birth. It is normal for a child or even (especially) a cat to be considered a 'fussy eater'. Are there any fussy eaters in a drought-ridden African country?

Dissatisfaction is considered so normal in the modern world that, in fact, satisfaction is 1) considered unattainable or 2) considered a sign of stupidity or backwardness.

Shopping has become a recreational activity, whereas before, it was a way to get necessities. All of us have more than we need. But NEED has been redefined to include things that make us happy, things that make us feel good. It is an endless process because in order to be okay, we need the latest electronic device, hairdo, handbag, chocolate truffle etc. On and on. We are never content with what is. How would our lives be different if we were satisfied?

What if we said to ourselves every day, I have everything I need. I am content with myself and my life. To me, this is the basis of gratitude.

For flower essences that can help with Gratitude, see my other blog: hamidatheherbalist.blogspot.com.

Interestingly, as I was doing my daily 'drop' routine, I came across Michael Nolan's blog Frugal Living Tip of the Day which is Thankfulness
Find it at: frugalliving.today.com

Coursing the Chart

I have started working with clients toward certification as a Flower Essence Practitioner. The essences are powerful and transformative. I also use astrology to help in identifying the issues and setting intentions. People are often not aware of core issues - if they were, they probably wouldn't need to call on a practitioner in the first place. There might just be a sense that something is wrong and they want you to tell them what it is. Well, that is not what I do. Rather, I witness the other person's process, offering the tools that I have experience with. Among those tools is Astrology. Whether you have a "live reading" or a personalized report (see my website
www.wisewomenofthewest.com
to order a report from a famous astrologer) astrology can provide insight into answering the question of why we are here and what we are here to do. As I see it, ultimately, we are all on a path toward greater coherence. How we get there depends on our "map". The chart is the map. (Ever wonder why boat maps are called charts?) The navigational symbol on a map is called a "compass rose".
For an article about it see origin of the compass rose . And what you may well ask, does this have to do with.....? Well, the study of history will reveal the relatedness of things. The early scientists who invented the navigational tools, were also astronomer/astrologers. No separation. Imagine that!

The word resonance has been coming up a lot for me recently. It feels good. It feels right. To become resonant with the Divine as it manifests in the natural world. Ahhhh Vibrating together - coherent. These words are definitely striking a chord. Pam Montgomery's book Plant Spirit Healing with a foreward by Stephen Harrod Buhner who wrote: The Secret Teachings of Plants and Sacred Plant Medicine, two magical books on the plant messengers and our relationship to plants. The information that the heart is the primary organ of perception and actually comes into being before the brain, is marvelous. Ya Hu

Teachings from Buttercup

Last weekend I attended a workshop by Pam Montgomery author of Plant Spirit Healing: A Guide to Working with Plant Consciousness given at California School of Herbal Studies in Forestville, California. Each of us in the workshop were selected by a plant, in my case, Buttercup. An unassuming little flower that I also saw recently in Mexico. One that most people recognize, no matter how little they know about plants. You are walking along and there she is. Her spirit has been with me for a couple of days and nights now. With petals that are both shiny, reflecting light, and irridescent, giving off light, she is like a tiny mirror. Happily bobbing on delicate stems, she appears to be dancing in the wind. Her message for me was that one of the greatest things we can do is to show other people how beautiful they are. Reflect the light of others. I later went to the reference book for the Flower Essence Society, the Flower Essence Repertory, by Patricia Kaminski and Richard Katz, which said, the positive qualities of buttercup are: "radiant inner light, unattached to outer recognition or fame". I was not surprised because I have often found when working with plants. They tell you what they are for. These days we can be caught up in the "Hollywood" mentality which is all around us. We all want recognition, fame and (admit it) fortune. But Nature gives us everything, everyday, for "nothing". All She wants or needs is our gratitude. That is the one thing we need to do in return. Give thanks. Spiritual traditions all over the world, share this concept of giving thanks. Whether it be to God or to Nature, it is to the Creation. Gratitude puts our heart in coherence with the Universe, connecting us. And this is what we must do to heal ourselves and the planet. Every day and Now.

Small World

Just got a new book by Pam Montgomery, Plant Spirit Healing: A Guide to Working with Plant Consciousness. I'm reading as fast as I can because this coming weekend I will be taking a 2 day class with her at California School of Herbal Studies. Over 20 years ago, when I lived in New Orleans, I heard about CSHS. I wished I was back in California so I could attend. "Things happened" and I found myself back in California. When I moved into my current home, I had no idea that I was living 5 minutes from the school. The plants conspired not only place to me where I am, but also to provide me with the means to be able to go to classes there. Yesterday, when I went to register for the up-coming class, I told Jason that I had just returned from La Cruz Huanacaxtle and he said yes, he knew it well. He and his family winter near there every year. More and more I understand that finding your true path, is as much about listening and following your nose, as anything else. These days there are many books written about the subject of one's purpose, calling, right work, etc. To some extent, this attention to the subject puts pressure on people to "do something about it". To this end, they buy books, go to workshops, attend trainings and pay people to help them. I too, have done some of these things. Fast approaching 60, I begin to believe that "finding your true path" is inevitable. What else could you do? What the issue actually is - is having the patience and the certainty that it will happen. Not necessarily when you want it to happen, but when it is supposed to happen. Our true path is our life unfolding. How else could it possibly be? Just as we could never begin to control all the functions and actions of our own body, what makes us think we could "find" then "execute" the plan for our life? It's not that I think we have no choices. Rather I believe it is bigger than what our mind can conceive of. There are more beings involved. The plants for example. Maybe they have a plan for us. For my own part, the more I have dedicated myself to my relationship with the plant kingdom, the more my life has made sense and the happier I have been. The evolutionary relationship between plants and animals is extremely interesting. The plants have led, the animals have followed. Without plants making food for us out of sunlight, water and CO2, no animal could live. Think about it. "Little green men" (chloroplasts) trapped inside the plant cells, perform an alchemical transformation of energy into matter. Did they go to a seminar to find the true calling? To see what I'm up to go see my website at www.wisewomenofthewest.com

Flower Power

Recently I went to see Thomas Moore at the Church of the Incarnation in Santa Rosa, sponsored by Copperfield's Books. I was inspired by his talk. His most recent book, A Life at Work: The Joy of Discovering What You Were Born to Do, says that finding a life's work is an alchemical process that leaves nothing out. All elements of your life, including the failures and disappointments go into the mix. He illustrated his talk with the story of Rapunzel, who ended up in a tower due to a compromise her father was forced to make with a sorceress. This got my attention, since I played Rapunzel in a Girl Scout play when I was 11. He makes the analogy between early success in your work life and being locked in a tower. That is, sometimes success keeps you from growing and moving forward to what you really were meant to do. For those of us who are still wondering what we will do when we grow up, this is a relief. I can see now that if some of my earlier jobs had not been so unsatisfactory, I would have stayed. The first book of his that I read was The Re-enchantment of Everyday Life, so the dedication he wrote in my copy of his new book: "Do your magic, make us an enchanted world", brought me joy. I had just remembered something wonderful about my childhood. I used to spend hours outside with the plants and flowers - playing with the flowers, talking to them (as I still do today). "An only child" I never felt lonely and now I know why - I was surrounded by all the plant beings! I had a vision of myself in the midst of a whole world of smiling flower faces. Moore says we cannot forget how our past is a part of us. Rather we should mine it for all its worth. Re-examine our past and see if our relationship to it changes. It has taken me all these years to remember that I have always been connected to "flower power". No wonder Flower Essences and Essential Oils - Flower Therapy - appeals so much to me. I am seeking certification as a flower essence practitioner. I need a number of case studies. If you would like to be included in my study, please leave a comment with your email and I will get in touch with you. Best if we can meet in person at least once. So... near Santa Rosa or the Bay Area only, unless you are traveling this way.