Giving Back to Nature

by | May 31, 2021 | Gratitude, Nature | 0 comments

Beauty of Nature
Over the past year more of us have found or been introduced to a deeper connection with nature.  During lockdown and possibly working from home we have found time to be outdoors and notice what is around us. There was no distraction from the shops being open, not able to meet friends and no time frames of having to be in certain places at certain times.

We took time to walk, notice, explore and breathe. We became more aware of the seasons, the weather, what was growing and emerging, the sounds emanating from the trees and hedgerows, the birds flitting by or soaring upwards on the thermals.

Maybe, unknowingly, we connected with nature more than we have done so before.  There was a sense of feeling the earth beneath our feet, a sense of being in harmony, of our whole being in balance and feeling re-vitalised from being outside.  Whilst out possibly there was a need to touch and smell the plants, to hug magnificent trees and forage the wild garlic.  We benefited knowingly or unknowingly, from the gift of nature – her abundance, beauty, energy and healing.
Waterfalls
I too, greatly experienced the healing effect from Mother Earth and I did so with gratitude.  However I was reminded recently that maybe, as human beings, we just assume that nature’s gifts are there just for us to take.  Certainly in a global perspective, we have been taking from nature on a massive scale since the industrial revolution and are now at a crisis tipping point as the imbalance and greed is coming back to hit us hard.  Our early ancestors knew what could be taken and how much, always leaving enough for regrowth and sustainability.
Beauty of Nature
However, do we make the assumption of just taking from the goodness of nature for granted?  How often do we stop to thank what we see, hear and have in our world around us?  Is it enough just to say thank you and then automatically take?

 

As a shaman, leaving gifts in gratitude is an important aspect of our inter-connection with everything that is around us, we are just one part of a huge web of life – neither better nor more powerful than anything else. How can we recognise the needs that nature has and how can we return the favour back to her?
Definitely we are more aware of making our gardens more wildlife friendly, growing plants for pollinators or creating small ponds. Hopefully we consciously shop with minimum impact upon nature in mind. So what about when we visit the countryside or coast for a day or a holiday could we leave a small gift in return?

The gifts can be symbolic of our gratitude and thanks for what we have experienced or used in nature for the time we are there.  You can leave dried herbs, ash from a fire, a small crystal or even your own saliva! I took with me a piece of jade that came from New Zealand many years ago to leave as a gift to the land of Patagonia when I visited back in 2019.

My invite to you is to give thanks and gratitude for the enjoyment you have had being out in nature and also leave behind a small gift as a way of giving back to nature.