Higher Octaves
I don't know about you, but I seem to vacillate regularly between being wrapped up in the difficult details of living as a human in this wild world and broadening my perspective to take in the overwhelming beauty and wonder that is all around me in the plants and people and places I love. It's like jumping from a lower to a higher octave of life - and back again.
One of my go-to practices for up-leveling my awareness is creating Earth Altars! The entire process of gathering materials, allowing patterns to emerge, and beholding the finished pieces brings me such a feeling of wonder and delight. Then I snap a photo and attempt to share a bit of this delight with you!
At times, I also experience life's higher octaves through writing poetry within a sacred container. While my eco-art practice is most often a solo endeavor, I prefer to write in the company of others.
My amazing friend and poet Sage Cohen facilitates a process she calls "Poem Medicine." She reads a couple of poems aloud for inspiration and then offers a few possible prompts to choose from for our own writing. Then she sets a timer and off we go with pen and paper. Sage likes to say “We don’t live in our lives. We live the stories we tell about our lives.” Writing - and being witnessed - in a sacred container has helped me re-write my own life stories on many occasions. Here is a piece I wrote during a Poem Medicine session.
Poem: Higher Octave
Some moments, days, and even weeks
I forget to cherish my singular and miraculous life
I find myself trapped in a groove
like a warped LP stuttering and repeating a sad old song
amplified through the scratchy speaker in my own head
The outdated tune with unholy lyrics
so out of synch with truth, with now,
with the glorious riotous goodness and grace enveloping my life
Some moments, days, and weeks though
I am moved to tears by the beauty and wonder of this life
the glorious chaotic beautiful horrible human experience
of being alive at this time, in this place,
with this set of issues, gifts and assignments
and this particular set of companions
Oh My God, I cherish my soul siblings
as we take turns reaching back to clasp one another’s hands
gently guiding each other through a treacherous twist or turn
elevating our songs to a more life-giving octave
rewriting them into melodies of connection and curiosity
as we sing our way back home
