Earth Our Original Sanctuary
This week as we celebrate Earth Day I am mindful of the beauty and wonder of Earth. When I think of Sanctuary Spaces in my life, all except one are in Nature. The Redwood Forests in California, Watershed Forest in Olympia Washington, Bodega Bay in California, Dancing Spirit Ranch in Montana, the North Sea, Arizona -the place of my birth...my sacred spaces are of Earth. I thought it might be fun to honor our connection to Earth with poetry and invitations to spend time outdoors.
All that lives
breaths a sigh
As love resides
in Air, Fire, Water, Earth…
Barely noticed,
Its essential union
Grounds our being
Our Vibration
Ripples on and on.
The Vibration of Love
Moves in then out…
Echoes of ancestors
Long past ripple forth
An equation of Love,
Unseen yet known
For those who tune in
to the resonance of their soul.
(The Vibration of Love by Mary Ann Matthys)
In her book, Earth Our Original Monastery, Christine Valters Paintner writes, "Trees are innately holy...Next time you are in a forest, imagine this space as one of the primordial or original churches- a sanctuary that has helped inspire the creation of other sanctuary spaces. Notice what arises in your body when you imagine being in the cathedral of trees...Pause and slow down, aligning yourself with Divine Presence..."
What is in a tree?
Sheltering me.
Shifting in the sand.
Gathering moss.
Living and Living…alive.
Branches, a canopy,
Shade the ground…
And me.
Home.
Witness to life
Lived at a faster pace,
Invites me to slow down.
Strength in rings.
Time and times,
Leaves and leaf,
Speak of seasons
and years.
Rhythms bring comfort
Gentle and sure.
Old yet ever new.
Greening now with Spring.
Teach me to notice.
Teach me to invite presence…
Bring me home to Me.
by Mary Ann Matthys
In her book, Reclaiming the Wild Soul, Mary Reynolds Thompson describes five archetypal landscapes she calls soulscapes. These places invite our inner and outer worlds to touch. They are desert, forest, ocean and rivers, mountains and grasslands. Each soulscape carries inherent gifts and invitations. Each inspires us if we pause and notice.
New Moon
in a phtalo blue sky.
Honey colored
Golden light
Marks the turning
Of the clock
Toward light
And day.
Fire in the sky
Beckons us “come!”
At the hinge point
Of the day
when light
greets the dawn.
Witness vibrancy
In a ball of fire
As you journey
Toward more.
Cloud travelers…
Standing stones
For your path,
Witness your journey
Toward destiny.
They are travelers too.
by Mary Ann Matthys
My invitation is to spend time outdoors and receive the blessings of Earth as Sanctuary. Set aside some time for a slow contemplative walk in nature. Activate all of your senses. As you walk, ponder the gifts of the landscape where you currently live. It may be as simple as the song of a bird, the croaking of a frog, leaves rustling in the trees, the solitude of rocks, or the heat of the desert. This poem flowed from time spent at Cannon Beach in Oregon...
Creation flows
Like the tide.
An unstoppable force
Impacting all
In her wake.
Starfish cling to rocks
Holding their breath.
Anemones breathe in tidepools
While waves roll ashore.
In and out.
In and out.
Flow.
Everchanging flow.
…high and low
Where will the tide go?
by Mary Ann Matthys
Gradually begin to notice the invitations of your surroundings. As you soften into communion with Earth and the natural world you may sense a deepening awareness of God’s presence in your midst.
Consider sketching or writing poetry that flows from your experience. Here is a poem that flowed from a visit to Armstrong Forest...To say that a redwood forest is an oxygen-rich environment doesn’t begin to illumine the natural high that occurs from breathing their air.
This Blessing
Is rich in oxygen
And scent of wood
Red with iron oxide
And detritus from stars
This Blessing
Creates a natural high
For those who walk
Its floor, soft and pure
Layered over thousands of years
This blessing
Desires reciprocity
From those tiny souls
Who enter within
And breathe out
This Blessing
Occurs whether
Insignificant beings
Realize it or not
They are but a moment
In this Blessing’s lifetime.
by Mary Ann Matthys
This comes with love from sea level on the Texas Gulf Coast,
Mary Ann
