Nature Knows Best
Marlow Shami
Autumn 2003.
Autumn Greetings-
A word I use often, and whose definition rings so true for me, is
the word "Nature." Merriam Webster defines Nature as an all
controlling and creative force in the universe. Think about it...the
definition could be talking about God, Goddess, Allah, the web of
life, universal consciousness; definitely something ever-changing,
touching all forms of life and BIG!
Keeping the definition of Nature in mind, take a moment to reflect
on these truths...nature does not discriminate, exclude or judge us.
Nature is the force that epitomizes unconditional love. Nature is
the stuff that holds us and all of life together in an incredibly
diverse interdependent weaving.
We are connected to all of life in ways science has yet to
understand on a rational level. Yet, these connections exist and
prove themselves with every breath we take, every act of kindness we
offer or receive, and yes, even in our suffering. Whether we feel
pain, joy, depression, or curiosity..all sensory experiences are
indicators of what we might need in order to become more whole and
healed. It is up to us to pay attention and attend to these
communications.
Let's spend some time together reflecting on, and experiencing how
Nature can guide us through the challenges and joy that thread
through each of our lives.
With Nature in heart and mind--
Marlow
NaturalSense
Autumn ISSUE
Volume 3 Issue 13
CONTENTS:
* Mission statement
* Essay: Nature Knows Best
* Activity: Your Nature is to Love
* Marlow's NaturalSense Calendar
* Resources & Community Events
NaturalSense e-newsletter offers you an opportunity to investigate
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.
When we realize and experience the fact that we are a part of
nature, our thoughts, actions, and life reflect the innate
compassion and creative change of the natural world. 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.
The land ethic simply enlarges the boundaries of the community to
include soils, waters, plants, and animals, or collectively, the
land...A land ethic changes the role of Homo Sapiens from conqueror
and of the land-community to plain member and citizen of it...and
implies respect for his fellow-members and also respect for the
community as such" ~~ Aldo Leopold, 1949 from his book A Sand County
Almanac
ESSAY: Nature Knows Best
Three years ago I had an important decision to make. I had been
pondering the issue for at least a month and just could not find an
answer to my dilemma. One day, while sitting in my office, I threw
my pen down and paced the room. Feeling ambivalent about following
my instincts, given my deadlines, I paced for quite a while. Finally
I concluded “the heck with it,” and took off for White Memorial
Preservation's Little Pond. It was one of those blue sky days filled
with cumulous clouds, glittering dragon flies, squawks of
territorial red-winged black birds, and frog rhythms. After walking
a half hour I found myself standing beside an elegant high bush
blueberry; the one just beyond a huge rock covered with mandala-shaped
lichen. It was here that it struck me. I’d nibbled on a tiny blue
gem and pop! I just knew what to do.
Funny how I sweated it out for weeks and then in a matter on an hour
the problem was solved. What exactly was going on that day? How does
nature affect our mood, cognitive function, health and well being?
Recent scientific studies tell us what we already know intuitively.
We are wired to live in a conscious relationship with nature on a
daily basis. Edward O.Wilson’s biophilia hypothesis posits humans
are innately drawn to other living organisms. There is a causal link
between the amount and quality of time people have with natural
areas and the quality and satisfaction in their lives. Given this
understanding, it is important to realize there is no substitute for
nature. Adults and children experience improved cognitive
functioning when their homes have trees and plants near by. A study
on the effects of green spaces on the symptoms of children with
attention deficit disorder indicate a benefit from green spaces not
because they were preferred (most of the children preferred playing
sports or watching television), but because they were green.
Patients in hospitals with a view of trees out their window need
less pain medication and are released earlier then those with a view
o
f the parking lot.
The authors of an exhaustive review of the literature focusing on
nature and healing found there is a fundamental connection between
the quality of our relationship with nature and the quality of
personal and global health. 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
That day three years ago I listened to my internal nature (my
attraction to be out doors) telling me to go outside to a natural
place I like. It is our human wiring that urges us on to seek
connection with Nature when we are able to listen. We evolved with
this attraction in order to survive and it communicates our literal
attachment to nature, just as a duck is attached to water, a baby to
his mother, or our arm to our body. I listened and followed my
attractions to the diverse wild life of Little Pond. Once there, I
made an effort to relax and pay attention to the colors, smells,
textures, sounds, wind, sun, water, everything that said “Yoo-hoo
…Marlow…experience me!” In the process of experiencing, I became
more relaxed and it felt as though I was gathering up more of me…an
expanded me; one that was no longer buffered from all that makes our
world so alive. And this affect was healing. Heck, it seems the
answer to my question found me on that walk. I slowed down and
relaxed enough to notice what I needed.
How might I have a quality nature experience you might ask? We all
have many responsibilities, work, social obligations, etc. How is
one to find time to enjoy nature except on weekends or holidays?
Intellectual understanding does little to motivate us to connect
with nature if we are stressed, impatient and tired. A restorative
experience with nature doesn't require you to run screaming from
your office or home each day.
There are ways to access nature's healing touch often and within a
short period of time. Try the simple nature meditation (see below)
each day this week (or as long as you like) and notice how you feel
before and after. Jot a few notes down about your experience. Don't
read these notes until the end of the week.
ACTIVITY: Meditation
with Nature
Here is the plan: I suggest you step outdoors and find one
positive natural attraction first thing in the morning, if possible.
This attraction will be your focus during meditation. You might find
yourself attracted to a large oak tree, a yellow leaf, a wild blue
aster, the sky, wind, star, or bird call.
Find a quiet place where you can be left undisturbed for 15 minutes
or more. If you must stay indoors, turn your phone off, tell family
members you will be in seclusion for a bit of time. Set up a candle
and sit down on a chair or on the floor. If you are out doors do not
set up a candle, just find a welcoming place to sit or stand.
~~Now focus on the natural attraction and meditate on the qualities
that you find so attractive.
~~Why are these qualities so attractive to you?
~~ What kind of emotional feelings do these qualities elicit within
you? These feelings are a way your inner nature can communicate with
you and the natural world all around you.
~~Now focus on your heart area. Hold your hands over your heart and
get in touch with your sense of gratitude for this attraction and
all it means to you. DO THIS FOR AS LONG AS YOU LIKE;-)
~~amplify your good feelings out from your heart ... image the good
feelings as a healing gold light that fills your body.
~~ now simply let go of all thoughts and allow this healing force to
fill and relax you. Remain in this state for a few minutes.
~~ If you would like to share your experience please feel free to
email me and with your permission I will share what you write with
whom ever else posts. (Make sure you indicate in your email that you
would like to share your post with the group.)
REMEMBER just reading about connecting with nature and healing is
not enough. We are indeed wired to experience our living
relationship with nature. We learn by doing. I learned how to swim
by getting in the water and trying (with guidance). In my personal
experience and in current research by environmental and organic
psychologists, making the choice to consciously enjoy Nature
relieves stress and anxiety, and cultivates a healing response to
the symptoms of living in a nature anemic culture.
Now get out there and have some fun;-)
CALENDAR
November 19 Nature As Healer Meditation
Circle 6:15-8:00PM, Litchfield, pre-registration
necessary: 860-491-2067 or
MShami@aol.com. $15. See Aug. 20th for details.
An in depth experiential workshop focusing on deepening your ability
to communicate, council and heal with Nature. Each participant will
experience natural healing touch, guided meditation, and learn the
Natural Systems Thinking Process. A gorgeous 4,000 acre wildlife
preserve in the NW hills of Connecticut is our host and master
teacher. Pre-register via Paypal
December 17, Wednesday Nature As
Healer Meditation Circle 6:15-8:00PM, White Memorial Rt.
202, Litchfield, preregistration necessary: 860-491-2067 or
MShami@aol.com. $15. See Nov. for details. Pre-register via Paypal
January 21, Wednesday Nature As
Healer Meditation Circle 6:15-8:00PM, White Memorial Rt.
202, Litchfield, preregistration necessary: 860-491-2067 or
MShami@aol.com. $15. See Nov. for details. Pre-register via Paypal
RESOURCES & COMMUNITY EVENTS:
COMMUNITY EVENTS
November 10 Monday Earth Prayers, 7:30 p.m.
First Baptist Church of West Hartford 90 North Main Street, West
Hartford (860) 521-9460
Dec. 5-7 Dominie Cappadonna and Jed Swift will offer a
workshop called "ECOTHERAPY: NATURE GUIDED HEALING" at Naropa School
of Extended Studies. For more information call 800 603 3117 or
303.425-4800 or e-mail extend@naropa.edu or check out the website:
www.naropa.edu/extend You can also call Jed Swift at
614-921-1997. "An ecotherapeutic perspective on health invites us to
move beyond the cultural tendency to associate personal pain with
individual or family pathology without attention to the larger web
of life. When we consider the human psyche within this web, we can
begin to view personal pain as both unique to the person and as a
signal from the larger context, and the 'earth speaking through us.'
The psychology professions are undergoing a redefinition of sanity
and mental health and searching for this larger context for the
theory and practice of therapy and healing. They are now beginning
to include the biosphere and Gaia itself in the field of wellness
and healin
g. As author Theodore Roszak asks, how can the soul be saved while
the biosphere crumbles?"
June 19-26, 2004 ECOPSYCHOLOGY GATHERING, Laurieston Hall, SW
Scotland.
www.ecopsych.org.uk
Resources
ECO-ACTION Youth are energetic and enthusiastic about the
environment. IREJN (Interreligious Eco Justice Network) has lesson
plans available to encourage and educate young people to care for
the earth. This fall, consider incorporating one into your
curriculum. If we don't have what you need, let us know and we'll
help you find it! Check out
www.irejn.org for more info.
Slow Food USA - "We are enslaved by speed and have all succumbed to
the same insidious virus: Fast Life, which disrupts our habits,
pervades the privacy of our homes and forces us to eat Fast Food,"
states the Slow Food Manifesto. Slow Food USA's guiding values
include sustainability, cultural diversity, pleasure and quality in
everyday life, inclusiveness, authenticity, and integrity. Learn
more about this important educational resource! Slow Food
(212-965-5640,
www.slowfoodusa.org and
www.slowfood.com
~~ Project NatureConnect- Learn more about how you can enhance your
relationship with Nature at this cutting edge website created by a
leading researcher in the field of sensory ecology. Dr. Cohen
created the Natural Systems Thinking Process, a powerful and
effective nature connecting tool. I use NSTP in much of my work.
www.ecopsychology.org
~~See a great new website: Natural Creative Earth Politics A
Coalition of New Progressives--http://www.reststop.net/NCEP/index.html
~~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
READERS WRITE COLUMN
NaturalSense® from time to time publishes a Reader's Write column.
Please don't be shy, email any questions or comments and I'll do my
best to respond to them in a future column.
MShami@aol.com
Marlow Shami~NaturalSense
PO Box 33
Goshen, CT 07656-2025
USA
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Copyright © 2003, 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
