Love and Nature

Love and Nature.

O, hurry, where by water, among the trees,

The delicate-stepping stag and his lady sigh,

When they have looked upon their images 

Would none had ever loved but you and I!

Or have you heard that sliding silver-shoed

Pale silver-proud queen-woman of the sky,

When the sun looked out of his golden hood? 

O, that none ever loved but you and I!

O hurry to the ragged wood, for there

I will drive all those lovers out and cry 

O, my share of the world, O, yellow hair!

No one has ever loved but you and I.

William Butler Yeats (1865 – 1939)

Stirring words from Keats with evocative images of nature and a image of deep,sensual love which we can often neglect in our modern world.

When I tend my garden or sit under a tree the connection can almost be devoid of the deeper sensual feelings as my social conditioning has taught me that nature is a "thing" rather than a living feeling,creating, evolving sentient life force.

I wonder what would change if we developed a relationship with nature that was not as a Human to the Earth but recalled the more ancient connection of deep and sensual love?

Although like alot of long term relationships it goes through stages and phases of closeness or separation and I wonder if we have been experiencing a "cooling" time over the past centuries with religion,science, technology and capitalism . Time has seen humanity do much harm to our once much beloved and respected Earth akin to a very nasty breakup full of callous acts and selfish behavior where everyone suffers!

So my question to myself is " Do I really love the earth and nature,with a deep down sensual and spiritual love?"

Walk in wisdom and peace

Meditate your way to compassion.

The following is a very simple but powerful meditation on compassion for those times when, well let’s be very honest, we want to rant and rave at someone! 

We can become so embroiled in something that we lose perspective, integrity and our actions can be hurtful to not just others but ourselves.  The following meditation is a weaving together of druid healing with modern counselling techniques (NLP) and I use this often in counselling sessions to help people reduce anxiety, over-come trauma and improve relationships.

This can be either as part of a full meditation or just when you need to change perspective or the window you are viewing the world through.

If you wish to use this as a deeper meditation, find a place where you can be undisturbed for 10-15 minutes, have some gentle music playing, light a candle, incense and create a space which is comfortable and peaceful. Meditation is best when performed regularly and over time as we learn to still the rushing waters of our mind, we are not seeking to stop thinking all together but rather learn to let thoughts float by.

Meditation.

• Begin by making yourself comfortable and become aware of your body.
• Connect to your breathing and relax your body visualising a golden light flowing from your feet all the way to the crown of your head.
• Taking several deep breathes in out, on the out breath repeat the words " I let myself let go of "......". Do this for a few moments.
• Then visualise the person/situation/emotion etc in front of you (mind’s eye or in reality) notice your actions, how you speak, act, feel and be aware of the colours, smells and sounds. Make them as vivid as you can!
• Next imagine you are gently rising into the air, until you are floating above the scenario, notice how it feels, looks and how it seems more peaceful than before.
•  When you are ready imagine a radiant glowing light flowing from your solar plexus down to the scene below. Allow the feelings of peace and compassion to flow with the honey golden light. 
• As you breath out repeat the words "I send compassion and peace" keep doing this until you are ready to return back to the here and now.

Repeat as needed .

Walk in beauty and peace

Caroline

The Magical Divorce

You read it correctly, yes the magical divorce!
  A month ago I was blessed by being part of a Druid/Wiccan hand-fasting civil union, it was a real blending and weaving of magical traditions, pagan hand-fasting and the more legal marriage aspects. It was an incredible , beautiful and  moving time with a diverse mix of people and paths coming together to celebrate the vows of union between to very lovely people.

I remember about 22 years ago I had my own marriage/ ritual ceremony and following that the spring, summer and autumn years of children, creating a home and filling it with love, friendship as a family. Many years later the winter of the marriage came and we weren't able to make it through the blistering chill and frozen landscape which our marriage had  become. The descent into darkness, hurt and pain lasted for years as myself, ex hubby and children tried to navigate our way into a different life and a new season.

But something was always seemingly unfinished and I had accepted it as being part of divorce and being a split family unit. Then over the last couple of months the most incredible series of events began to unfold. My son and Bard left the nest and went to live with his Dad,leaving my daughter at home with me.The wheel of my life suddenly started moving from  Summer  as I realised my 21 years of being "Mum" was now coming into its Autumn and Winter season. Who was I when I wasn't being a Mother? What the hell do I do with my life now as sometimes freedom isn't the blessing we perceive.Then several people who had been vital parts of my early marriage years suddenly came back into my life from seemingly out of the blue.

Then what I can only term as the most bizarre and freeing conversation  happened. My ex hubby  called and asked if we could, after all these years, openly and honestly clear the air, to speak of our hurts ( without hurting each other) honour the love and also give our children the gift of parents who are united in supporting them .

As grown ups we talked for hours of the experiences through the marriage, the pain of the divorce and the following years of trying to come back from the lost dream and hopes we had ritually vowed. The result was us realising that regardless of who did what, said the worst things or  was more right we had never  magically divorced.
All the energy and effort that gets focused on the marriage/union day is tragically ignored when it comes to divorce, we sign some papers , say we cant/don't want to be together anymore and somehow its all supposed to be finished. The casting of a circle, inviting the Quarters, ancestors, blessings, vows and rite of a ceremony is performed in a marriage but when we divorce/separate do we ever really unwind and close this magical ritual?

So now we as a family are going to do something a bit strange but  it makes perfect Druid sense!We are planning a week together with each one of us  co-creating a divorce ceremony which we will hold together at the Autumn equinox ( interestingly we married at the Spring equinox).
Our family is going to get "divorced" !Because its not just about the husband and wife but about our children who were also part of that sacred union and accordingly they also need to be part of the journey through magical divorce so we all heal and truly become  tribe.

Walk in wisdom and peace
Caroline/|\

Awakening my soul

           "Once the soul awakens, the search begins and you can never go back. From then on you are inflamed with a special longing that will never again let you linger in the lowlands of complacency and partial fulfillment " John O'Donohue - Anam Cara.

These words stirred something within me to recconect with the land and the spirit of Druidry, but one question I then struggled  with jumped out "How do I awaken my soul?"

Often I think that in doing or gaining information I can begin this process of awakening and growth, but it can often become an intellectual exercise rather than a true transformation in my bones ,in the landscape of my spirit.
Sometimes  in society we  stare at change face on, determined to change, focused on being the "best" we can be, but our soul actually shakes and withers. Much new age thinking cherry picks the ripest fruits of ancient traditions, shinning them up and forming them  into some sort of fantastic collage of self actualization.  Just look at how some fairy tales have changed into mere ghosts of their former selves.
But I wonder what my soul,the Gods and Goddess's and the spirit of the land is seeking from me? 

I read a story from ancient times which struck something very old and nearly forgotten within me, the seeking and searching that makes me restless and uneasy was held within this story. 
I realised that I was hearing the music of the Old Ones which urged me to search for the lost cord of the Soul Song, to walk hand in hand with  wisdom and beauty rather than the cold harsh shards of intellectual self analysis.


Again....How? This is where the magical paradox happened. I almost squinted my eyes, de-focused my search and jumped whole heartily into the magical world of myth and the templates they hold .

So my suggestion is to go read some ancient myths of the Celts, and I mean really read! Read with your heart and your soul . Read the old un shiny, totally non PC versions. Bring friends together to share these stories,  read and recite them together so we can allow  something magical and potent to be birthed out of the mists of our ancestors.

Walk in beauty and peace

Caroline

Druid Therapy: Mermaids and Reclaiming the Feminine

Druid Therapy: Mermaids and Reclaiming the Feminine: I have absolutely no idea how this post came into being, maybe the call of the sirens has lured me to the rocky edges of the ocean and be...

Mermaids and Reclaiming the Feminine

I have absolutely no idea how this post came into being, maybe the call of the sirens has lured me to the rocky edges of the ocean and beckoned me to dive in the sea's green depths and swim .
Recently I have been working with the realm of water with its symbolism of emotions and cleansing, of reflection and the feminine, but that is only a shallow image on the water's surface. A friend had been sharing her connection to a mighty expanse of water , the story of the Selkie , of the lost Soul Skin and the grief over loosing our soul family. In old legends it was told that the Selkie ( akin to a mermaid) came onto land and put down her magical seal skin to live amongst humans and marry her love. But her seal/soul skin was hidden from her and without it she began to wither, shrivel and die, bit by bit  day by day  until she was close to complete spiritual death . This story began to ruffle the surface of my calm water, ripples spreading out and the image on the surface began to change from serene and unmoving to something very different indeed.

Something in the deep stirred, it was something in the dark cool depths of my heart which has been locked away for so long I have begun to forget it existed. For 20 years I have been wearing the clothing of being a full time mother,wife, lover, friend and career woman, I had buried away my Mermaid scales and Seal/Soul skin in the darkest watery caverns of the Water realms. Occasionally I would catch a bittersweet call of the Soul Skin and glimpse a shining flash of  light that would shake me from my watery slumber, but I would always slip into the slow soul sleep without my true seal/soul skin around my bones.

I have stood on the edge of the water, dipping a toe into the cooling blueness and looked longingly wishing I could go swim and be restored in my soul home again. But I didnt have my soul skin, seal skin and didnt believe I could return, I was so wrong! All I ever needed to do was trust and believe that I could return home, have faith in the power of reclaiming the feminine not as a something I had to deserve but as my inherent birth right.

So Im jumping in, diving as deep as I can and sensing that I no longer need a "skin" because the water realm exists within me and connects me to all all the energies and healing of the water.Is that water in the bones?
Join me, come play in the refreshing water and maybe you too will find yourself reclaiming your feminine and yes men also can be enriched by reclaiming their feminine.
Swim in beauty and peace
Caroline /|\

The Sidhe and the Silence

,

Of Sidhe and silence  the past few weeks has been one where I have found myself inside the Hermits Mound. Secluded away from people, work and career , money and "doing" my time has been seemingly out of sorts with our Southern Hemisphere summer solstice, until I realised there is no should's or musts within the Druid path. Each season has its ebb and flow, it's own inward and outward breath to  fully create harmony.The image of the Druid Mound or the place of the Sidhe came to me strongly , a place out of time and a time out of place where something crucial yet subtle was bubbling away.

"It seems probable that the word Sidhe originally referred to the burial mounds from the Bronze and Neolithic periods, which were viewed as the homes of various Gods and other spirits. In time the word was used not just for the mounds, but for the various beings who lived in them. The word can also mean profound peace, and has echoes of the Lithuanian concept of darna ~ spiritual vibrancy comes from being in harmony (or perhaps accepting) ones own nature; being in harmony with one's tribe, family or wider community; from being in harmony with one's ancestral line and their expectations (recalling the link between the burial mounds and the creatures dwelling within them); from being in harmony with one's Gods and the forces of the cosmos. Peace here does not mean just sitting quietly, but a deep sense of balance, harmony, belonging, and attunement.(Druidnetwork.org)."

In the mound  I have felt nurtured, the years hectic activities weaving and melding together and transforming into something new. 
While I may not be fully aware of what lies ahead, I am deeply aware of my ancestors and connection to the Goddess and have a sense of growing excitement for the path unfolding.Sometimes allowing ourselves the gift of doing "nothing" everything can begin to unfold.

Under the rays of the Southern Sun
Caroline

2012 A New Era or an Old Beginning?

I have finally succumbed to the 2012 Mayan Calendar , but a warning before carrying on reading. This is not a blog on either the end of the world/zombie Apocalypse or some turning point in human consciousness , this is a simple call from a Druid heart to all who will stop by and listen.
We can continue to seek epic points in time which define us, which we cling to with hope and expectation. A single day to mark an incredible change in human consciousness of billions and billions of souls moving from this state into another level of being.

Yes we can count down, loose sleep, pay extraordinary amounts of money to be "part" of the shift and pat ourselves on the back for being so wonderfully spiritually developed.

Or we can feel our feet deep in the earth, feel the nourishment and strength of the earth. The stones and Dragon lines which call and pulse beneath us, we  can breathe it deep within our core and drink in the richness of our history. For me as a Druid the 21st is Solstice, in Southern lands this is the Summer Solstice, Alban Hefin(Arthuan) also known as the Light of the Shore(Light of Arthur) a significant part of the wheel of the year where we honour the birth/death of the light.As far as a point of divine "something", well I challenge each and everyone of us to instead of buying into this mass Mayan commercialism do one thing each day which makes the world just that little bit better! Now that is doable, empowering and about the true raising of humanity in the form of love and kindness.Try it.
Walk in beauty and peace
Caroline /|\

The Tangled Wood of Relationships

             The Tangled Wood of Relationships

Over the years in my counselling  career I have worked with many people going through difficult and tumultuous relationships and it seems to be one of the constant sources of pain for most. While relationships can be a source of great angst, they are also our greatest teaching lessons and places of growth.
So how can we learn to navigate the wild , tangled forest of relationships without being eaten alive or lost forever ? How do we instead embark on a Quest through the forest to find the door to our  soul's deepest treasure?


Modern psychology often explores painful relationship games as being a "drama triangle" where there are three roles people fall into or take. The roles are interlocked with someone always in the position of power .The real game begins when each member switches roles, keeping everyone  caught in a never ending cycle of drama and confusion. The three roles are

• Victim -  Self pity  and feels powerless in situations,looks to others to fix the situation or reinforce helplessness. "This always happens to me, nothing ever changes/I cant change things, its hopeless , there is no way out, its my fault and why is the world so unfair". Plus all the variants on the theme!
• Rescuer - the good guy/girl role. Rescuers swoop in with great intentions and agrees to save the day by being strong and nice. They feel needed and wanted by reinforcing the victims plight.
• Persecutor- after a while one of the previous roles gets resentful and WHAM they switch into the persecutor . It can vary from " Im sick of you using me to fix things for you" to " I cant stand you treating me like an idiot" From this point the game is in full swing, guilt, hurt , anger, injustice fuel the role switching and the game continues.

So how do we transform this tangled drama into a  masterpiece I hear you ask? We firstly take responsibility for the roles we play out in the drama, writing this down is always a potent start to the healing process. Note down the actions, words, emotions and thoughts in each position  you take and also for the others in the "game".

Next is the transformation stage (and for this Im working with archetypes as these are powerful symbols to connect with) so we can navigate the way through the tangled woods. Archetypes of the Quest is the alternative solution we can work with, so we and others can experience personal accountability, growth and love.

• Novice/Maiden - This role embodies some sense of the unknown but also a willingness to explore options and choices. Awareness of learning but also their participation in creating growth, unrealized gifts and talents.
• Knight - A champion, believer and supporter of the novices/maidens cause and challenges, doesn't do the fighting for them but helps navigate the dangers and ensure safe passage through the landscape so they can fully embrace their strengths/gifts.
• Dragon, holder and protector of the sacred wisdom, is just and fair but incredibly firm. Doesn't tolerate  games or deceit , holding honor and integrity as prized treasure. Boundaries in the caves, consequences for crossing the lair without honor or trust in your heart. Don't mess with the dragon you may get toasted!.

When you become aware of your drama triangle try practicing the alternative roles/archetypes and remember you may have to repeat over and over to create change. The conscious Quest into the forest of our relationships is one where all three members/roles are vital.The Novice/Maiden who want's to find the gifts, the Knight to support and help cut the path and the Dragon who ensures justice and truth for all.

So get questing, grab your horse and a sword to go find that illusive dragon.

In the peace of the Grove 

Caroline /|\

Oak - Gateway of Transformation

The tiny acorn, as it nestles expectantly in the deep embrace of the earth, doesn't resemble the mighty and towering Oak it eventually grows into being.

How often we also forget that just like the acorn we are a young seed of potential curled up inside a hardened shell of lifes trials and tribulations.

So how does the acorn transform into the Oak? The sacred Druid tree which symbolises transformation, nobility and the gateway into the spiritual mysteries. The Oak which is known for lightning strikes, its twisted and gnarled trunk calling us to venture into the realms beyond. The quote below from Bob Proctor explores the science and nature of the acorn in this analogy.

"Although the acorn may appear to be a solid object, by now you should clearly understand that the acorn, like everything else which appears to be solid, is in truth, "a mass of molecules at a very high speed of vibration." Within the acorn, there is a nucleus or a patterned plan that dictates the vibratory rate at which these molecules will move. Moreover, the same principle holds true for all seeds. In other words, every seed has a nucleus or a patterned plan within it, which dictates the vibration it will be in and which thereby governs the end-product into which it will expand or grow.

I believe you are all aware of this fact: everything in the universe is governed by a basic law-"Either create or disintegrate." Therefore, it follows that, if something is not in the process of growing, it must, by the law of its being, be dying. For example, so long as the acorn is kept out of the earth, it is slowly but surely disintegrating. However, as soon as you plant the acorn in the earth, the patterned plan or the vibratory rate of the acorn sets up an attractive force and the acorn begins to attract everything that vibrates in harmony with it. If you were able to observe with the naked eye exactly what is taking place, you would see a "parade" of particles of energy-a never-ending stream of them-marching in a very orderly manner toward the acorn. As they came in contact with the molecules making up the acorn, they would join, marry, become one, and of course, the acorn would expand, become larger, grow."

So if we take this analogy and apply it to ourselves, what is the seed of our true potential? And are we vibrating or even "planted" in the ground where we can truly flourish?In nature all the elements of sustenance, nurture and potential are all around in the very life force or "nwyfre" that connects everything in the web of life. 
By slowing down and allowing ourselves to tune in to our unique soul song we can begin to flourish and grow in harmony with our individual acorn energy!


Walk in beauty and peace,
Caroline.