This is a time to listen to the call of your heart. A time to dig into the fears that lay deep within you…. Beyond the hoarding of supplies. Beyond beliefs of riots. Beyond panic of not enough… Deeper…deeper into the fear of death. Then, deeper still…because what lays beneath that fear of death is something more curious for the human soul and psyche. The fear of not living to our fullest potential. The realization that stuff doesn’t fill the depths of our heart and soul. The knowingness that HAVING is not the same as BEING. That Love truly triumphs over everything else, but not the love of things. A pure love that only asks us to love our neighbor as our selves. That is a frightening love when you don’t feel safe. It’s easy to blame the other who may take a job you want, give you a disease. What we fail to realize is, we already are living with the horrible symptoms of the most toxic disease known to humanity – fear. Its symptoms range from hoarding supplies to hating someone who looks, thinks or acts differently than you. Widespread diseases of poverty, illness, starvation, isolation. The treatment, by societal standards, is nationalism, building walls, taking, racism, ageism, sexism…isms… The side-effects of these standard approaches to fear only harm you more…slowly eating away at your heart and soul that simply, repeatedly, call you back to Love. Until and unless we can sit with these fears, the call will be greater and deeper…the pain and panic will continue to rise and our reactions will become more extreme. Something will snap. A loss will remind us that we have so little control over what’s happening out there with others, while having the ultimate control. We are both at the whims of the universe and magnificent co-creators. Still, unless we can see that our fear is creating more things to fear, we are locked in our self-built panic room…full of the supplies we think we need to survive, yet still feeling desperately unprepared. Wallowing in anxiety that trickles up our spines and shouts in our ears. THIS is a CALL BACK HOME. To the earth….to her glory, her magnificence, her beauty. To realizing all that bounty she holds for us ALL. Not a playground for some and a destitute rock for others. An Eden for those who protect and serve her as the Sacred Mother of all living things, giving birth to the breath of life, the water to soothe our souls and food to nourish our bodies. THIS is a CALL BACK HOME. To our Hearts…to its power, its magnificence, its beauty. The ability to “love your neighbor as yourself.” To live from a sense of passionate compassion that serves just “you and yours”, but knows that “yours” is really everyone on this abundant planet. THIS IS A CALL BACK HOME. To Self…its power, its magnificence, its beauty. To wade, immerse into our shadows (fear, rage, hate, division) and sit with them until we are able to, holding hands, walk forward with a greater understanding of Self. With some knowledge that how we perceive the world is how the world presents to us on many levels. And, here is where we find some freedom…in removing the weight of trying, doing, accumulating as the answer and, instead, trying breathing, being, surrendering. It’s a fracturing of all that we know and believe on the outer layers of Self and life. When we sit here, perhaps in pain, crying or even stillness, the shadows seem less scary. Perchance we are simply so exhausted that we can’t do it this way anymore. But, a bit more Light somehow shines as we realize something has to shift…is shifting. The world is changing and we can be part of it, or hold to something that seems to harm us on some level. THIS IS A CALL BACK HOME. To our Souls. The earthiest part of You. The most Divine part of You. The most raw, Loving part of You. It’s the part that KNOWS there is more to Life “than this” and is being tugged, pulled, called, drug into the depths of fear to awaken to Faith. Not a religious call home. Not a doctrine led call back to faith. An ethereal call Home to an Energy that permeates all, Is all and still expresses uniquely in every person, plant, animal, grain of sand and stone. That is the heavens and the earth. That is YOU. Nature. Magic. Power. Peace. Love. And, it is calling each of us to lay down the shields of our armor – the stuff that builds walls instead of bridges – around our hearts. It’s asking us to listen to that Inner Voice that says “do unto others as you would have them do unto” because, dearest soul, we know we ARE the other…and they are us. It’s asking us to tap into the divine creativity we were born with and change the world. For all it will be grand discoveries – some on a personal level of healing the heart and our families, for others it will be scientific or humanitarian shifts. It is not easy, this growth, realization, this Call Home. It comes in waves, stages, spirals up and back down to the pit. It rocks us to the core. Lifts us to the heavens. Leaves us quaking. The earth knows. She is shouting to us. Humanity knows…others are crying-out for us to join them. We know…if we listen. For all who are willing to take this path, it is changing the world.
2 Comments
It's Shop Small Saturday! I'm avoiding the modern consumerism of the season overall. Still, knowing folks enjoy shopping post Thanksgiving, and the stress of the holidays is upon us, I wanted to offer some lovely custom essential oil blends for your gift giving (to Self or others). Consider these a nourishing for body, mind and spirit alternative to the traditional mass produced "stuff" that's become part of the holiday hustle bustle.
All blends: Organically cultivated. Sustainably harvested. Ethically sourced. Therapeutically tested. Options: diffuser blend, bath soak and room spray. $20 to $30 + SH. DM to order. Custom blends available. NOW OFFERING PROSPERITY ROLL ON Crafted to use daily as my "perfume" this blend has garnered so many questions and comments over the years, I've decided to offer it as a toxin-free alternative to traditional personal scents. Available in traditional mix or with Black Pepper for a heavier, earthier note. Features YLEO blends such as Abundance, Fulfill Your Destiny, Live with Passion and more. $35+SH. Happy, healthy holidays! For more information and to place orders, please email AlongNourishedPath@Gmail.com. If you thought the last blog on CBD and THC blew your mind, hold on to your hats (and be sure to read it if you haven't to help here) because we're just getting started! Research is changing what we understand as scientific fact at dramatic rates and we "common folk" don't always get the update. In fact, many medical professionals aren't fully up to speed either. For example, what I learned today while exploring more on CBD. Most of us can at least recall that we learned about our body's 11 main systems (yeah, more time under the thinking cap) at some point in school: circulatory, digestive, endocrine, integumentary (skin, nails, hair), lymphatic, muscular, nervous, reproductive, respiratory, skeletal and urinary. But, how many of us are aware of the fact that there is a 12th system, the endocannabinoid system (ECS)? Yeah, pause here for a moment....you'll need it. The ECS was discovered in the 1990s by a Dr. L.A. Matsuda while exploring how THC effects the body. What he discovered was a cannabinoid receptor (CB-1) network in both the central nervous system (spine and brain) and peripheral nervous system (the system outside of the brain and spinal cord which includes the immune system). Since then, other receptors (CB-2) have been located in numerous other systems like the immune system, as well as the digestive tract and throughout many of our organs. A receptor works like a lock and key. The lock is the receptor, the key is a chemical compound that fits the lock, in this case the keys are called endocannabinoids. Within our bodies we have receptors for all kinds of chemicals we make - 2 you've probably heard of are serotonin and dopamine. The chemicals fit into their specific receptors to turn things on and off. Just like a house key won't fit the car and the car key won't unlock a storage unit, each specific chemical matches to a specific receptor and they stimulate everything from hunger to how our DNA responds to toxins. What makes this new system so fascinating is that if we have receptors for cannabinoids, we must then make our own cannabinoid-like chemcials (we do) that plug into those receptors! Stay with me here because what scientists also learned was that our cannabinoids (called endocannabinoids) play a key role in how our 11 other systems function by fine-tuning them to ensure our bodies stay in balance (homeostasis). In fact, cannabinoids impact everything from appetite, inflammation, memory, mood, pain and reproduction to sleep and the research is just beginning. These internal chemicals (endocannabinoids) modulate the regulation of homeostasis (balance) across all our major body systems to ensure they collaborate/communicate. Basically, they help all of our individual systems stay balanced and, in doing so, help our bodies respond at their best in protecting us, for example, against colds, the flu and other disease. Let me state this again: this single system helps to regulate and balance all of the other major systems of the body. (Take the "aha moment" here if you need it). Why haven't we heard more about this until recently (today)? Because despite being used for millennia by healers and early doctors, interest and use of hemp/CBD waned with the onset of opioid use. While traditional medicine accounted for the effects of cannabis on the body (it's role in the intercommunication among our self-regulating processes such as temperature control, pain control, appetite), etc., this knowledge has gotten lost in a sea of modern medicine...until recently. In fact, a 2013 study revealed only 13% of medical schools were including the ECS in their curriculum. As interest in, and laws about, CBD continue to evolve, more of us are becoming aware of the role cannabinoids play in our overall health and well-being. How does all this translate to everyday living? Well, the ECS can be knocked out of balance by things like a diet high in sugar and unhealthy fats which can leave us hungry and cascade into the other systems. The ECS also gets tossed into a tizzy during times of stress when it's overstimulated and causes imbalances among the other 11 systems. So, what can any of us do to keep our ECS running smoothly? Balance intake of Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids by adding fish oil, flax and hemp oil/seeds into a regular healthy diet as they turned into endocannabinoids (the keys seeking our CB-1 and CB-2 receptors/locks) Reduce intake of sugar and unhealthy fats Exercise regularly as it releases endocannabinoids that help to regulate all our systems Add naturally occurring CBD oil as part of a healthy lifestyle since it enhances the body's ability to produce endocannabinoids in the ECS Share factual information about CBD with others, including medical professionals Research in this field continues to surprise scientists who are discovering that ECS receptors are prevalent in all animals and that endocannabiniod receptors in humans are more prevalent than those for serotonin and dopamine. One day, scientists hope to be able to re-balance/restore the ECS system to support our body's natural ability to address cancer, neurodegenerative disease, arthritis and promote good health. There is also research exploring "ECS deficiency syndrome" as a potential root cause for migraines, fibromyalgia, IBS and more. Only time will tell. What we do know is that natural cannabinoids (like those found in a high quality CBD oil) have been shown to provide therapeutic effects and have been used for thousands of years for everything from headaches, arthritis, depression and nausea to epilepsy (and more). Have questions about what you just read? Good! You should. Feel free to drop a line to AlongNourishedPath@gmail.com and follow this blog because we're just getting started! Image: Anandamide (a endocannabinoid found in the human body). Source: PubChem. Cannabis...As you may have seen if you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, I recently started sharing my introduction to CBD oil. Clearly, I more than dapple in what many consider “alternative therapies” (essential oils, supplements, herbs, yoga, meditation/prayer, Reiki), so this has actually been a longtime coming. My concerns – as it is with everything I put in, on or around my body – are whether or not any product contains toxins or compounds harmful to me and the environment, of course. Also, whether a product comes from a reliable, reputable source. So, I waited. And, waited again. When I finally discovered some products held to the highest standards in the industry, I did a bit more research and decided to give the CBD oil items a try. Like most of us, I’ve heard all the slang. I thought I knew what hemp, marijuana, CBD and THC were. But, a hit of the google bar first left me confused and then, after deeper digging, clarified. Truthfully, there’s misinformation out there so put on your “thinking cap” for a condensed overview of terms like Cannabis, hemp and marijuana, plus an intro to CBD and THC. A member of the plant Family Cannabaceae, the genus Cannabis is actually comprised of three species: 1. Cannabis sativa (C. sativa - what we’re exploring here) 2. Cannabis indica (C. indica) 3. Cannabis ruderalis (C. ruderalis) I told you to put your thinking caps on! For those who learn visually – largest to smallest: Cannabaceae (family) Cannabis (genus) C. sativa C. inidica C. ruderalis (species) Both what we call hemp and marijuana are really C. sativa. Hemp is a term used for Cannabis plants containing 0.3% or less of THC by dry weight and is sometimes called industrial hemp because, as one of the fastest growing plants on the planet, it can be developed into clothing, textiles, biodegradable plastics, biofuel, food, animal feed, paint, insulation and paper. Thus, it’s used industrially. Technically, it is not another strain of Cannabis, just C. sativa that does not produce a psychotropic effect. Interestingly, archeologists date the first spun hemp fibers to some 10,000 years ago! The term marijuana actually has racist origins* and is slang used to classify varieties of Cannabis that contain more than 0.3% THC by dry weight. These plants/products can induce what we call a “high”. *When more than a million Mexican immigrants migrated to the US between 1910 and 1920 to flee Mexican Revolution, anti-Mexican sentiments took hold and the word “’marijuana’ arose as a negative correlation of its use by Mexican immigrants.” CDBOrigin. Because they are "varieties" of the same Cannabis plant species, marijuana and hemp are similar and can look alike which has led to confusion, laws, arrests, seizing of plants, fear, hype, etc. What really differentiates hemp from marijuana are the levels of chemical compounds in the plants. While both plants can produce significant quantities of a compound known as CBD, they contain extremely different amounts of the compound THC. What does this mean? It means that hemp, at 0.3% or less THC, does not produce a high whereas marijuana, which can contain up to 30% THC, can. For clarification, CBD is short for cannabidiol and is found in Cannabis sativa as one of about 113 identified cannabinoids. It accounts for up to 40% of the plant’s extract. Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is also one of these 100+ cannabinoids and was discovered to be the compound producing the psychotropic effects (euphoria/high) in marijuana. I know, take a breath, dab on some CBD oil…it’ll be okay. And, what does ALL that mean? It means we are NOT talking about products containing significant amounts of THC, but rather products that contain therapeutic levels of cannabidiol (CBD) and are being used for purposes related to health and wellbeing…all without the buzz. Stay-tuned to Insta (NourishedPath) and Facebook (BlossomWithOils) for my check-ins on the CBD products I’ve started using and the next blog post about our friends in the Cannabis family. For more information on CBD oil, full spectrum hemp oils and #PalemttoHempology products, or the #CharlesronHempCompany, please email AlongNourishedPath@gmail.com. Image: Charleston Hemp Company. I’ve been reminded so much lately about home. As a place in my heart that I brought with me from a different time, place, plane. As a physical location where I spent the bulk of my formative years. As a longing to recreate that peace, security, innocent grace of living in a simpler time. As a hope of what I can create in the present and moving forward. I grew up hearing "you can't go home." Pardon my language, but that's bullshit. While things may not be exactly the same upon our return to "home," my life is a testament to the ability to return, time and time again, to various versions of home. Finding my core to begin healing from disordered eating that nearly killed me. The tenacity to learn to walk again after my ankle injury and twice more after surgeries to improve function. Deep dives into Spirit in walks, meditation, Kundalini yoga, prayer, love making, laughter, dancing, signing, playing. Moving back to Naples after my divorce, including living with my parents for a time. Holding the hand of my Popu and mom in illness and as they slipped to their heavenly home. Relocating to my "hometown" nearly two years ago after 25 years away. The grief that broke me, repeatedly, and helped me find love time and time again. The joy of watching my nephews grow. Dinner with family. Hanging out with childhood friends. Making new friends. I'd assert we are in a constant process of returning home as each of these experiences calls us to draw within to our light and shadows and claim them as our own. To own all of our brilliance, foibles, fears, atrocities, creativity, genius, simplicity, complexity, humor, grace, love...our stories and our Divine nature. A walk among the trees, up a mountain path or along a shore calls us home to Gaia - Mother Earth/Nature - in all her glory, and ours, as part of the web of life. When present, living in the moment fully, we are called home to Life. Whether in grief, joy, peace, turmoil, confusion, when we sit in it completely, we are called home to the power, presence and peace of being immersed in who and what we are in that instant. All this said, there are times, like today, when I feel distinctly lost and floundering...without a home. Without purpose or direction. Without the solid foundation Home provides. Clearly, that feeling is a lie. Or at least a myth. Whether spiritual, religious or not - we are part of something Grander than our cells. We have a level of consciousness that calls us to something deeper...if we allow it. We are part of the family of humans. An integral part of our earth home. Our lives impact others whether we feel it, are aware of it, or not. To a great extent, our bodies are the physical homes we inhabit, only slightly more (or less - depending on perspective) evolved than the tortoise who carries a physical home around him. For me, Home is all of these things and, yet, I'm still constantly feeling pulled inward and outward. Like Anais Nin, "I'm restless. Things are calling me away. My hair is being pulled by the stars again." Perhaps that makes the most sense as science continually shows us that star dust is in our very DNA. So, why DO we feel lost? Why do we wonder about our place and purpose if, at every turn, we are reminded that we are Home? That we do belong...we wouldn't be here if it wasn't meant to be. If we at once carry, encounter and create Home each and every moment of the day and night? I don't know. Our human nature overtaking our spiritual core? Influences from our culture? Ego? Probably these and more. What do we do to help feel at-home in our bodies, lives, communities and the world? My heart says to live as authentically as possible. Follow our hearts more and brains less. Tell the itty bitty shitty committee: "NO!" "Silence!" "F-off!" Synch our hearts with our minds - let our innate wisdom and intelligence lead. Trust our guts and know that even if we mis-step, make a mis-take, we're still where we need to be and can make corrections as we go. Ground. Get back to nature...literally and figuratively. Hug a tree. Walk in grass. Take a bath or shower. Advocate and donate to protect this lovely planet that is fighting to stay alive. Enjoy earthy foods with rich depth...dark chocolate, red wine, our fav "comfort foods" (be respectful to your body and watch overindulging as a way to hide or escape). FEEL. Allow all our feelings to come up. Sit with them. Let them wash over us - we don't have to act on them (feel angry, just don't punch someone). This is how we heal. Give back, help others, including the planet; support our friends; reach-out to find the Home within. Remind ourselves, as I am doing today, that we are always Home. We carry Home in our hearts. Earth is Home. Our abode is Home. Our loved ones, including the animals we share our lives with, are Home. Memories are Home. Faith is Home. Heaven, whether 'out there' or 'in here', is Home. Pondering this today, I'm reminded that Home isn't dependent on something always staying exactly the same. If we are honest, we know that things are never the same...every aspect of life changes moment by moment. However, a feeling that resides in us may be familiar enough that it feels like things haven't changed to our hearts, our souls. So, to quote Jon Bon Jovi, "Who says you can't go home...I lived a million miles of memories on that road With every step I take, I know that I'm not alone...You take the home from the boy...But not the boy from his home." What is your perception of Home? Do think you can "go home'? How to you live Home along your nourished path? |
author
I'm Mary Ann. I am a storyteller using skills, interests, education and experience to help others. Together, we'll explore your story and write a new ending for your journey along the nourished path. Categories
All
archives
January 2023
|