Your Gut Feelings - Healing
Wisdom
Marlow Shami
Autumn 2004.
Greetings-
As we move into the autumn season here in New England an old tune,
whose lyrics draw from the bible, comes to mind. For everything,
turn, turn, turn. There is a season, turn, turn, turn. And a time
for every purpose under heaven.
Change touches us in so many ways. Our body, mind, beliefs,
environment, work, play, and companionship needs all change as we
move through life. Cultivating your ability to stand on the common
ground we share with all of life makes change an ally and wise
counselor.
This issue focuses on your gut feelings -- intuition too often
ignored -- that has something important to communicate. This
communication will help you grow your roots in the common ground,
helping to make sense of the changes, as well as honoring the
mystery often attached to change.
Trust your gut and do the research! That's the message in this
issue. Below you'll find some simple tools and inspiration to help
you trust intuition.
With Nature in heart and mind--
Marlow
NaturalSense
Autumn ISSUE
Volume 4 Issue 15
CONTENTS:
* Mission statement
* Essay: Your Gut Feelings=Healing Wisdom
* Activity: It's Not Just What You Think That Counts
* Bonus Activity: Nature Connection Basics
* Marlow's NaturalSense Calendar
* Resources & Community Events
NaturalSense e-newsletter investigates how and why our relationship
with nature can be a healing one. The nature of healing is rooted in
our relationship with all of life.
The quality of our life is directly related to the quality of our
relationship with Nature. This newsletter provides an essay,
nature-based activity, calendar, and resource list to inspire the
deepening of your natural healing connections with Nature.
Marlow Shami, M.S. is a Nature-based healer, teacher, and writer.
She has a private healing practice in Litchfield, Connecticut. She
conducts Nature and healing workshops, Nature Meditation Circles,
and publishes a free quarterly e-newsletter, NaturalSense®. Her
specialty is the healing connection between humans and the natural
world.
Consciously or unconsciously, people are seeking the healing that
can come from interaction with nearby nature. Interaction can no
longer be thought of as a luxury… It is a vital, necessary part of
being a whole person enjoying optimal health… not only for the
healing of patients but also for the healing of the planet through
purposefully nurturing the relationship between humans and the
natural world.
~~Irvine & Warber The authors of an exhaustive review of the
literature.
ESSAY: Your Gut Feelings=Healing Wisdom
How many times have you ignored that “gut feeling” and ended up
in the traffic jam, injured yourself, gotten into an unnecessary
argument, or been stuck with a lemon of a purchase?
The mind seems to never stop its discussions, debates, and
critiques. Often the endless chatter taunts us with fallacious
prerequisites for how to be a successful, valuable, and attractive
person. These messages are downright exhausting and do not serve
anyone.
Since the rational mind is the most valued of all the human senses
in modern culture, our sensory abilities remain primarily cut off.
After all, the rational mind is the boss and “knows” what’s best. Or
does it? (See NaturalSense essay “I have 53 Senses? I Can Barely
Deal with 5” in the newsletter archives of my NaturalSense website
www.naturalsense.org)
Learning how to pay attention to your gut feelings takes a little
practice. All humans are born with this ability. Between living in a
nature-anemic culture, with life lived mostly indoors, we are left
with a kind of collective amnesia.
Paying attention to your gut inspires us with wisdom that fuels
healthy choices.
Did you know a majority of people in the U.S. mistake hunger for
thirst? A recent newspaper headline attributed the second most
common killer in America today is obesity related health problems.
Smoking took first place. Our gut instincts, when honored through
understanding and action, will break the cycle of this epidemic. The
energy and freedom created as you become fluent in your unique
sensory make up is nothing short of astounding.
As you start to trust your gut feelings and begin to pay attention
to what is really going on outside your head, you'll notice new
things and have fresh observations on the “been there done that"
list. That old cliché is untrue. We have been nowhere and done
nothing more than once. Paying attention to your gut feeling breaks
the habit of thinking without sensing -- you find your self truly
awake and alive.
Pay attention if you are tired. Don’t just fuel up on coffee. Rest.
Instead of grabbing that slice of pizza, (comforted by the knowledge
that you have your antacid with you), wave off the pizza and go for
a meal that supports your health. Or maybe you notice you really
want to take a walk outside rather than just sit and gab on a work
break. Paying attention helps you say no and prioritize, thus
avoiding over extension and dissipation, a state that profoundly
compromise your life and relationships.
When you pay attention with the knowledge that you are listening to
your true nature’s guidance, a momentum builds. It may be subtle at
first, but in time there is no mistaking this truthful guide and
there is no turning back. It’s that important and it feels that
right.
We are a part of nature and this relationship heals. Nature--the web
of life--strings everything together: rock, snail, river, moon,
great blue heron, newt, quail, fish, oak and us. Nevertheless, on
the average in a modern culture, an adult spends 85-95% of life
indoors.
This is why there’s often such a discrepancy between what we need
and what we do. It’s all in how we know ourselves. If we “think” we
are separate from nature -- better and smarter -- suffering often
follows. Quick fixes distract and numb us from the actual source of
our pain until something breaks in our body, mind or soul.
When we know and experience ourselves as Nature, we can’t help but
feel better, more whole, healed, flexible and creative. Choosing to
honor your natural truth -- your gut feelings -- does take courage,
tenacity and love. But in the end what do we really have anyway? A
life lived rooted in love. It’s that simple--we need time--with
nature.
ACTIVITY: IT'S NOT JUST WHAT YOU THINK THAT COUNTS
Each time you engage in an activity with nature your experience
will be unique. This is how nature works, always flowing and
changing. The skill you cultivate in this activity contributes
greatly towards the quality of your life. Enjoy!
Try counting all
the marketing pitches touching your daily life, just scratch a line
on a scrap of paper with each sighting. Count radio and TV adds,
logos on clothes, bumper stickers, billboards, magazine and
newspaper ads, etc.
At the end of the day add them up. The following day start to
counter those ads with nature connection. Make as many connections
as ads you counted. It may take a few days -- or more. Notice how
you feel at the end of the day.
See the BONUS ACTIVITY below for hint on how to leverage your nature
connection.
BONUS ACTIVITY ~ Nature Connection Basics
Connecting with nature can take 30 seconds, one, two, thirty or more
minutes. It depends on you. No matter the time spent keep these
steps in mind. This activity is based on the Natural Systems
Thinking Process. Learn more about NSTP by visiting
http://www.ecopsych.com/homepagenature.html
STEP 1: Make sure you are feeling still inside, you may do
this by either sitting, standing, or walking very slowly.
STEP 2: Ground yourself. Make sure you are present with the
nature all around you. In other words, put the busy mind on the back
burner for the time being. Feel your feet on the ground, take a few
slow deep breaths and pay attention to the feel of your breath as
you inhale and exhale.
STEP 3: Feel gratitude and open your heart. You can do this
by recalling a good memory or by paying attention to something
within or around you that generates good feelings (a flower, seeing
an act of kindness, the blue sky, rain…).
STEP 4: Look around you. Notice the natural feature that most
strongly draws your attention. Concentrate on the attractive
qualities of the natural area or entity, enjoy the details. When you
feel your nature connection has come to a conclusion, express your
gratitude for the connection in your own way.
STEP 5: Listen with your senses wide open. Don't judge, edit or
disregard any detail. You may hear a tune, notice an insect, recall
a scene from the past or have a strong emotion well up. Observe and
honor your experience.
When you feel your nature connection has come to a conclusion,
express your gratitude for the connection in your own way.
KEEP A JOURNAL. After you thank the area take a little time to write
down what you noticed and what it may mean to you.
~~~~I love reading about your experiences. If you would like to
share your activity experience with me or the whole activity group
simply email your comments and let me know if your intentions. Email
comments to Mshami@aol.com
CALENDAR
September 20 Monday, 6:15-8:00PM,
Nature As Healer Meditation Circle White Memorial Rt. 202, Litchfield,
preregistration necessary: 860-491-2067 or
MShami@aol.com. $15. Pre-register via Paypal
This gathering is for anyone interested in
experiencing the simple power of nature's healing effects through
guided meditation, natural energy touch, and the Natural Systems
Thinking Process. No experience is necessary. Bring a blanket/mat if
you prefer to lie down for meditation and wear comfortable clothes.
September 25 Saturday, 1:00pm -1:45.Nature
Based Healing Meditation, for adults. Annual Family Nature Day, White
Memorial, Litchfiled, CT. Meet at Mott-Van Winkle Lodge. Info: (860)
491-2067
Take some time to experience a deeply relaxing meditation. You have
the opportunity to receive a healing during this meditation.
Afterwards, I'll guide you in an out of doors nature activity
designed to enhance your healing. Bring a mat or blanket.
***Stay for the day.***11am-5pm.
Visit the many
venders, see demonstrations and experience a variety of workshops.
The Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, New York will present a
program about wolves, starring their wolf ambassador, Atka.
Geraldine Griswold, better known as "The Bat Lady", will be back
again this year with her live bat friends. Winslow & Rusty Gilman of
"Rusty's Reptiles" will feature their snakes, lizards, and more in
"Reptiles Rock". Children's crafts and activities, nature walks,
demonstrations, live animals, weather workshops, insect and
butterfly displays, hayrides, craft fair, booths, and food will
provide an activity for everyone. Drumming Circle led by John
Marshall. Cost for day $5. children under 12 and members FREE.
Sept. 28, Tuesday, 6:30-8:30pm-
Discover Your True Self Through Nature's Wisdom . A
LifeLearn Program, Conrad H. S. room 164, West Hartford. $14
residents of West Hartford, $19 non-residents. Registration: (860)
523-3535
Do you have little time, low energy, and zero motivation—yet feel a
deep longing to recover a sense of genuine value and health in your
life? Receive a nature-based healing, discover a potent stress
antidote just outside your front door, and transform your longing
into healing guidance. This class can help you transform the
constriction of a stress-filled life into spacious quality living
through powerful information and innovative practices designed to
connect you with your source of healing creativity and wisdom,
Nature.
October 2, Saturday -
9:00am-12:00noon,
Discover Your True Self
Through Nature's Wisdom.
A LifeLearn Program Hall High School, room F155, West
Hartford. $19 residents of West Hartford, $24 non-residents.
Registration: (860)523-3535
See Sept. 28 for details.
October 18 Monday,
6:15-8:00PM, Nature As Healer
Meditation Circle, White Memorial
Rt. 202, Litchfield, preregistration necessary: 860-491-2067 or
MShami@aol.com. Cost $15. See Sept. 20 for details. Pre-register via Paypal
November 3, 9:00am-5:00pm:
Nature As Healer. 32nd Annual Association for Experiential Education
Conference, Norfolk Virginia USA. Cost $80 for my pre
conference workshop. Walk ins welcomed. For details on full AEE
conference see www.aee.org.
Registration on line www.aee.org
(in conference services section under "Annual Conference"), TEL:
(866)- 522-8337, USPS Attn.: Evan Narotsky, Conference & Events
Manager 3775 Iris Ave., Suite 4, Boulder, CO 80301-2043
A conscious relationship with Nature is essential for healing,
guidance and wisdom. Humans have 53 natural senses, not just 5. You
will learn to enliven your many senses through outdoor activities,
guided meditation, journaling, and learn the Natural Systems
Thinking Process. Each participant will receive a
natural-touch-healing from Ms. Shami. Open to all. No meditation
experience required.
RESOURCES AND COMMUNITY EVENTS
Learn more about how nature heals by visiting
the International Community for Ecopsychology website. List of
events, resources, essays, and links for more depth.
www.ecopsychology.org,
http://www.organicpsychology.com/
October 3, 10:00 am to 6:00 pm RI Women’s Gathering –
A Day To Connect With Each Other and Mother
Earth for Empowerment, Unconditional Love, Celebration and Healing
at the Apeiron Institute for Environmental Living $5.00 per person,
GROUP RATE: $15.00 per vehicle/carload, walk-in & bicyclists free.
Info: bekah@apeiron.org.
October 4, 4:00pm to 9:00pm, Sacred
Trust Forum on Religion and the Environment. This year
our keynote speaker is renowned author of ‘The End of Nature” and
“Enough”, Bill McKibben. Unitarian Society of Hartford, 50
Bloomfield Avenue, Hartford, CT.
Info: Dave Barrett (860) 509-9519 or
dbarrett@hartsem.edu.
For more details go to:
www.irejn.org/sacredtrustforums.html
October 22-24, RENEWING OUR
SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE: REDISCOVERING OUR PLACE IN THE
UNIVERSE, Spring Hollow Lodge at Sharon Woods Metro Park,
Westerville, Ohio Info: Jed Scott Swift 614-921-1997
www.naropa.edu/matponline
~~CT readers ... Please see
http://www.solarconnecticut.org This organization and THE
CONNECTICUT CLEAN ENERGY FUND plus SmartPower are really visible,
viable examples of valid renewable options for our state. Hurrah!
GIVE A GIFT TO A FRIEND!
Please forward this article to your friends and colleagues, since
your recommendation is how NaturalSense® grows. Anyone can subscribe
to NaturalSense®. It's FREE. To subscribe or unsubscribe email
Mshami@aol.com with your intentions. Make sure to let me know
what email address you would like to use for delivery of
NaturalSense®.
Copyright © 2004, all rights reserved. Permission is granted to
reproduce, copy or distribute NaturalSense® Newsletter as long as
this copyright notice and full information about contacting the
author is attached. The author of this article is: Marlow D. J.
Shami. Contact her by email at:
MShami@aol.com, or by phone at (860) 491-2067
Create balance and healing by deepening your relationship with Nature.
Marlow Shami
NaturalSense ®
PO Box 33
Goshen, CT 06756
TEL: (860) 491-2067
Email: MShami@aol.com
www.naturalsense.org
