Category Archives: Nature

Of Seahorses and Diving Deep…

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I recently learned that the Seahorse is one of my ruling signs, having been born in the beginning of the month of March . A welcomed seasonal time of rain and of warming soils after the frigid hold of winter. It is the first month of the Roman Calendar due to the arrival of Spring, of Worm moons, and the movement of migrating birds to their northern breeding grounds.

I never had a thought about seahorses. Never. I live deep inland, in a landscape formed by volcanoes, at the edge of the high desert of the Intermountain West. A friend of mine had surprised me with a mailer from the United Kingdom that held a small exoskeleton of a seahorse. A small creature she had found somewhere in a trinket shop, and had given it a safe place in her home for decades.

I had mixed feelings upon opening the package and pulling this small, dried seahorse from its wrapping. It lay small and light in the palm of my hand, and I pondered the meaning of the arrival of this small creature in my Life … after all, it had just traveled across an ocean and thousands of miles over land to reach my opened palm. Sacred Geometry, Holy Synchronicity.

The exoskeleton is exquisite to look at. They are considered a species of fish strictly due to the fact that they breathe through a set of gills, and have an air bladder for ballast in the water. They are found in shallow coastal waters, and due to their limited mobility, lead lives within a small home range. I have learned that they are voracious feeders, mate for the life of the one, have excellent eyesight and are masters of the art of camouflage… intriguing features of such a small creature. It is the male of the species that is impregnated by the female and carries the offspring to term .. they birth thousands of young each year. How crazy is THAT? The seahorse I received is a male.

The symbolic meanings of the seahorse are both intricate and diverse with mystical significance among the Ancient Greeks, Celts, other European seafaring folk and Asians. Their attributes include: Patience, Friendliness, Protection, Inflexibility, Perspective, Generosity/Sharing, High-Perception, Persistence, and Contentment. Wow, what a mix of qualities! They are considered to be a relatively calm, and mild-mannered creature that amble about to roam the seas with patience and contentment.

So what does this little creature offer me? It offers ALL of its attributes to my Journey at this time. A good ally to have nearby while I dive into the depths of Self, of Possibility, of Vision, and the release of my own Medicine in this fragile time of Turning to Heal not just myself, but also our World…..Namaste.

Nemesis of Spring ….

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I live in a house that was built in the late 1800’s…around 1868 to be more precise. It was built from wood acquired from the local mill …. good “clear” pine without a single knot to be found. Constructed of real 2×4’s, full size with evident kerf cut using old fashioned saw blades…… A sound piece of construction with an adjacent yard surrounding the premises. The yard is primarily comprised of green grass interspersed with a perimeter of shrub and tree species such as lilac, plum, apple, hawthorn and elm trees.

I do not know how long ago the grass was planted in the yard, perhaps as early as the 1930’s, 1940’s at the latest…. regardless, it was most likely after the plumbing system was put into the house. Earlier photographs of my house and town show bare dirt. All I know, I have attempted to outplant dozens of flowers, shrub and even strawberries over the past 25 years. Notice the word “attempted”, for it is key to describing an ongoing war I have had to battle with…….the grass….

This is no ordinary grass, mind you. This grass is indestructible, kind of like gorse on a golf course. I swear it has the genetics of dragon scales with a rooting density that out competes bacteria in a hot spring. It’s meristems are easily activated and kick it into overdrive when temperatures begins to warm. It is ever encroaching into any unoccupied nook, cranny or corner in the yard and oftentimes completely chokes out emerging resident species, such a my planted wild rose. Gnarly to whack back with a weed eater, I often go “for its throat” with my bare hands, tearing it out from the edges of planting beds, underneath my elderberry and other luscious little sites. I have given up on trying to introduce anything along its borders. It defends its territory so well, that I am tired of putting out anymore effort to restrain or “retrain” it’s indomitable spirit……

I now choose to release it to its own muse….look on it as Friend who will continue to stretch its boundaries. I think I would like to mirror its Strength, Persistent Temerity, and flat out Will to Live as something for me to take to Heart…Namaste.

The Warming of the Waters

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The edge of winter is beginning to soften ever so slightly here on the Modoc Plateau. There remains another 10 weeks of unpredictable cool weather up here, but I am able to observe the warming of waters. The ice is transforming into its aqueous phase. Small rivulets of water have appeared on the soil surface.

Spring is being introduced by the coming of Light, more sunlight. Wow. The wonder of sunlight. It is the catalyst which drives the alchemy of the emergence of green life of this season. Deep changes in the soil. The quickening of new life, new tissues being formed. A release from the dark, frozen state to one of release, change, renewal and growth. The soil lets go of its slumber and inertia driven by cold. It is a time of tremendous, miraculous alchemy.

The alchemy of Spring simply happens with our Mother. There is nothing humans need to do to drive this intricate process. It is organic, taking on its own form and juices as it unfolds. I realize that becoming fully human is also an organic process, a pathway laid out and constructed by Gaia Herself. My illusion lies in my monkey brain, the part of me that thinks…. the part of my brain that incessantly chatters and chitters and thinks that it is somehow in control. My monkey brain also tells me whether I am worthy, beautiful, whole or loved. Or the opposite: I am unworthy, ugly, fractured and unloved. The monkey brain is only about 2% of my brainpan. Only 2%. Yet I give it voice and authority as if it is all of me.

The secret to connection, love, trust, and hope live in the soil of my subconscious, the other 98% of my brain function. There lies the moist soil of wholeness and is hardwired to Our Mother. My monkey brain tirelessly throws up pictures on the wall of my third eye, mostly negative, like a movie projector gone rogue. To allow myself to experience and be tranformed by the seasonal pulse of Spring, I have to stop the incessant noise and “fake news” of my monkey brain. I say, “go for the plug” and unplug this projector as often as you can remember to do so. And let Mother transform you effortlessly into a new emergence as a tender new shoot. Namaste..

From silence and deep soil comes
release, change. New growth
sprouts unbidden, unencumbered.

Let go. Cast off your sleep
As your Mother awakens you
like a child in slumber,
and quickens new tissue, new life
into your Being.
Warmth rises freely, organic.

Great change is coming…

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It is a sobering fact that our atmospheric chemical composition has been altered by industrial pollutants. This alteration has resulted in creating atmospheric instability that is highly unpredictable and destructive. I belong to a conservation group called TreeSisters. This organization, along with Rainforest Alliance, the Arbor Day Foundation, National Forest Foundation, Eden Reforestation Project, Trees for the Future, the Greenbelt Project, American Forests, Plant-for-the-Planet, Greening Australia and others are planting trees – millions of them on a yearly basis. Simply planting trees. A global climatic emergency is in the making, one we will see and experience unfold in most of our lifetimes. As an ecologist, I have no doubt cropped-selfie_millerlakeabout this. Over population coupled with voracious consumption of natural resources has already determined this path. Although planting trees will not stop this change from occurring, it is a mitigating effort to minimize the amplitude of this climatic shift on all living systems.

Our Mother is self regulating. She has layers of intricate processes that go into effect to balance and harmonize Her body. As a species, we are part of Her body and our activities have had a significant effect on other species who are our equals and brothers and sisters in this miraculous place. This is all about Gaia Herself. She will retain what is important for her own Life and evolution. We have been blessed to be part of that process, and are highly successful in progenating our numbers across the globe. Our appetite as a species is HUGE. We have consumed everything in our path, so to speak, and will continue to do so today, tomorrow and in the future. Most of humanity is “not awake” yet. Not conscious of how we continue to feed and gorge ourselves as a single species on Mother’s bounty. Like a child who goes into the pantry and stuffs themselves on the carefully prepared foodstuffs, I personally believe that She will simply “take away our plate” in a manner which says “You have eaten enough, it’s not good for you or your brothers and sisters”.

My word to you is this…. PLANT TREES. Put your money where your mouth is.

New postings for a New Year

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I want to update my blog post to include the jewelry I have posted on my Etsy storefront named “FoxMtnFolkArt”. I know that folks have been trying to gain access to the site, but I am a little bit in arrears in catching up with my blog post and sharing sites.

I had a conversation yesterday with my older sister, and she recommended that I clarify who I am and what drives me to make the jewelry compositions I create. For example, I am currently in the process of creating a montage series called “Gaia” this year. I plan to have the series printed up as stationary cards and perhaps small posters. She did not understand what the word “Gaia” meant or the theory behind it…..

First and foremost, I am a biologist/ecologist at heart. My artistic expression is seated deeply in the science and physics that explain our world. Gaia is a concept formed in the 1980’s of the Earth functioning as a living organism, having a consciousness of its own. It’s natural systems work just like any other organism it has created on this planet. The earth breathes, digests, respires, has internal checks and balances to keep it healthy. I took my first class on “Global Ecology” as a graduate student at the University of Nevada Reno. I still have the book. My eyes were opened to the theory of Gaia as I studied the complexity of her chemical and nutrient cycles and delicate interactions of the atmosphere, oceans, geology and biota of this place. My respect for this planet became entrenched within my heart at that time.

My interest in rocks and geology came about from working in mineral exploration with an exceptional woman, Dr. Nancy Parduhn-Jackson. She (We) built a company named Cerus Exploration Technologies Inc. located in Sparks, NV back in the late 1980’s. She specialized in soil bacteria, more specifically Bacillus cersus, a microbe which has evolved with the capacity to survive and thrive in metalliferous soils. I was hired on as a laboratory assistant and to develop the use of plant tissue analysis through biogeochemical assay to locate buried ore deposits. Our combined exploration techniques were surprisingly successful. This work took us into the field where we laid out sampling grids for collection of soil and plant samples. We spent a lot of time looking at the ground, and rocks in particular. Nancy taught me so much about geology….jasperoids, jadeites, beryl, altered andesites etc. Rocks that had been changed under high temperatures, pressure and water in the mantle of the Earth crust.

My geologic learning was a natural influence in working with semiprecious stones. My own curiosity has lead me to expand and learn about the electromagnetic fields of the earth, the vibrational frequency of atoms, and the vibration within matter and all living things. Although the theory of chakras is introduced from India, the idea of energy centers within the human body makes sense. The new physics of string theory and the effect of planetary electromagnetism on the human body is being studied…..fasinating stuff to this nerd in sheep’s clothing. So, back to jewelry creation…..

I use semiprecious stones in my jewelry. I understand the resonance principal behind Crystal healing or stone healing. Although empirically it is difficult to prove that wearing a quartz crystal will enhance the vibration of the human electromagnetic field for balance and healing, I can understand the probability that it could. That is why I create jewelry with stones identified by various sources to resonate with various energy centers of the body…….

So now you know where I come from when creating my art pieces. Visit my storefront on Etsy…..FoxMtnFolkArt. Enjoy!