A Beautiful Day

Yesterday morning, I drove up to Cedar Breaks National Monument to do some hiking and wildflower photography.  We had rain predicted for the afternoon, and also for much of the week here, and I wanted to avoid getting wet!  I was amazed and astounded at the bounty of blooming flowers that I saw, in spite of our dry weather.  Below is a sampling of what I saw, including lupines, penstemon, osha, and monument plants, to name a few. 

But the big thrill was at another location that my botany friend Matt had recommended.  I drove directly east from Cedar Breaks to a spot part of the way over to Panguich Lake.  I wasn’t sure I had the right spot, as Matt had mentioned a hillside that was in full bloom with ???, but I didn’t find that.  Perhaps the flowers that he was referring to were finished for the season. 

Instead, I parked at the side of the road near where Mammoth Creek crosses under.  I was pretty sure that was the place he was referring to. 

Below is what that area looks like.  It is kind of barren and at 10,000 feet, it is very cold during the winter months. 

There was a small informational sign in the scruff near the road describing how the early settlers of Cedar City passed that way hauling lumber from near Panguich Lake into Cedar City to build their first official public school.  Via a mandate by the state legislature, this was done in the winter of 1898, as the school had to be completed by that next fall.  Another testament to the strength and determination of those early settlers. 

So, not finding the blooming hillside, I started walking along Mammoth Creek. 

My favorite places to explore in the higher elevations are creeks, as they are ecosystems that are usually unique to their area.  What I found reminded me of the San Juan Mountains in SW Colorado.  I discovered yellow monkey flowers, elephant heads, shooting stars, veronica, bistort, and a beautiful purple alpine violet.

But the big treat was yet another orchid!  Here is a bog orchid that was growing in a few places along the creek that had been wetter in the spring.  Huron Bog Orchid.

I always like to relate my personal experiences to the spiritual path.  If you go through life immersed in what the Native Americans call “The Beauty Way”, you will always find beauty around you.  Especially when you are outside.  Be it and you will attract it.  Communication with nature will also raise your vibration.  BTW—I have been calling in the rain since the Solstice last week, and we have been having some.  Cooler temps, too. 

June Launch

 

Earlier today, our group met for our monthly launch.  There were 5 of us in all, plus a few family cats!  Kathleen lives out in the country, and the roosters on her property were crowing intermittently.  What fun!

Right now, it is much later in the day when I would be posting about my journey, so I can just give you the short version.  My intent was to be shown how to anchor myself in this community as a spiritual force.  The reason I was asking this was because I am finally getting things together to teach a series of workshops here.  It will be entitled "Exploring Consciousness and Spirituality", and will be once a week for 6 weeks.  I am still not sure how to reach people, so it will be by word of mouth and posting flyers.  This first group will be the test model. 

Briefly, in my launching journey, I went up to a very high level, pure white, which I believe is what we would call the All That Is.  I then posed the question about how to energetically attract students and be a force for spiritual change in the community.  Instantly, I was plunged down like a bullet being shot out of a gun, straight into the center of the earth.  A giant tube then formed, and I went up this tube to the surface and experienced everything within this tube transforming.  Cedar City was being cleansed and clarified.  My Core Essence was a glowing ball in the center of this transformation.  I could see that the giant tube didn't stop at the surface of the earth, but kept on going upwards.

How this will play out in the physical, I have no idea.  I do know however that I need to connect with my highest and most expansive level of consciousness and at the same time, anchor that into the core of our Earth Mother.  Not just for the students, but on an ongoing basis, too.  

Above is a photo of Zion National Park from last Wednesday.  I went with my friend Matt and his wife and 2 boys on a botany field trip to look at the hanging garden plants that grow in the areas where water is seeping and dripping from the sides of the main canyon.  It was a lovely day.

Another Magical Night

 

It was quite warm and breezy with temps in the mid 80’s.  Last night I drove over to the Parowan Gap sacred site to view the Summer Solstice sunset through the gap.  I got there early, about an hour before sunset, as I was not sure about where the best viewing spot would be.  No one else was there.  Yet!  I thought I would have the place to myself.

Not so fast!  I had parked in the regular parking lot which is near the rock art and informational signage.  As I walked down the road east and away from the site, more and more cars began to arrive, park in the dirt near the road, and set up a viewing location with folding chairs.  A lot of the people knew each other, and a party atmosphere was happening. 

I was far enough away from the regular parking lot, that I didn’t see that many more cars were parking there as well.  So we had quite a crowd.  The official Solstice was the night before, but the skies were cloudy, hence the bigger crowd last night, on the 21^st. 

As the cars full of people were gathering, I took a few photos from the road and then went up a hill and sat observing the scene while waiting for the sun to go down.

I had brought a small stone with me to leave as an offering, and I energized it with gratitude and appreciation for the Pachamama and Inti Tayta as I waited.  I also brought in the energy of rain that is so desperately needed in the southwest right now.  That stone was left under a juniper tree. 

At the right time, I went back down to the road, and took this fun shot. 

Here is the progression of the sunset.  I was actually walking back towards the gap through a field and to my left to get the right angle as I took these photos.  There is a small stone circle set up to mark the best spot to stand, and I was heading right for it.

It may not look like it here, but as the sun reached the hills on the far horizon, it looked really big.  This is when I stopped and pulled in all of that fabulous energy from our Father Sun. 

The parking lot that was empty when I arrived had filled up completely.  People were milling around, socializing, and walking over to look at the rock art before it got too dark.  A nearly full moon was rising in the east at the same time.  I suspect that a lot of those attending stayed on until it was pretty dark.  It was time to head home for me!

Summer Solstice

 

Here in the Northern Hemisphere it is Summer Solstice weekend.  Specifically, the solstice will occur at 11:32 PM Eastern Time on Sunday night.  Keep in mind that there is about a 5 day window of high energy for the solstice, so if you plan to do some sort of ceremony, which I highly recommend, you have a lot of leeway time wise.  Your ceremony should also involve calling in the power of our Father Sun to ignite every seed of healing and evolution that you will plant during your ceremony. 

A few years ago, I went with a group of people into SE Utah to experience the Summer Solstice sunrise at an ancient sacred site.  We stood at the back of a propped up monolith that had the pointy end aimed at the horizon at the spot where the sun would come up.  The photo at the top of this post sets the scene.   Below you can see how this very large boulder was propped up in a way that was not done by nature.

It has always been clear that for the ancient people of the Southwest, the Winter Solstice represented the beginning of their New Year when the days start to get longer and the planning for the planting of crops begins.  But what about the Summer Solstice? 

On that early morning several years ago, I pondered that thought while waiting for the sun to come up.   It had rained a bit the night before, and I noticed that there was some water left in a scooped out depression at the back end of the monolith.

Then it hit me.  All of the crops of beans, maize and squash that were planted in the Four Corners region of the U S were dryland crops that depended on the annual monsoon for their water.  At least in this part of the world, the ceremony performed at this time of year was to call in the rains!  Otherwise, the crops would fail and the people would starve. 

This part of the country is experiencing a very severe drought right now.  So in addition to my regular bowl burning ceremony that I will probably do tomorrow night, I will also call in the rain the way the ancient people did.  I have a buffalo skin drum that I used in Colorado for that purpose.  For the rest of you, use the power of the sun to ignite your prosperity and abundance in any area of your life where you feel a lack.  This could be in health, finances, career or relationships as examples. 

I will also be going out to the Parowan Gap probably on Monday night to experience the sun setting right down the middle of the gap.  That will be day 2 for my ceremony.  If all goes well, I will report on that outing.  Blessings to all of you during this very high energy time! 

Some Inspiration

 

A few weeks, ago, the Applied Precog group held their semi-annual on line conference, which I wrote about in a previous post.  One of the presenters was Stephen Wright, who runs a spiritual retreat center in the UK.  His lectures provide an interlude of spiritual wisdom to the proceedings. 

He was also kind and generous enough to e-mail his entire power point presentation to the group.  Most of the presentation features his favorite quotes, and I took a screen shot of one of them that I keep on my desk.  I thought I’d share it with you.  It is from a book entitled “I’m Dying to Take Care of You” by Candace Snow and David Willard. This is a book for caregivers.   Below is Stephen’s paraphrased version.

“Spirituality assures us that we are not alone”… that …”we do not have to be in control of others”… thereby allowing us to … “trust, to be honest and therefore vulnerable, and to live in acceptance of ourselves and others”… and to share a … “faith in a power greater than ourselves”. 

I find this quote very comforting.  It reminds me that a spiritual practice does not have to be complicated or rely on dogma.  A practice should however acknowledge that we are all one, and we all have an inner connection to ourselves and also a connection to a greater force in the universe.  That is all we need to know.  Plain and simple.