The Earthkeepers

Tonight is the full moon, and a lunar eclipse. Here in Sedona, we have rain. Very grateful for that.

 Here’s what our friend John Armbruster had to say about the February full moon:

This is the moon of great preparation. The first glimpses of productivity coming out of a time of reflection and introspection. 

In this Moon we see the light of the sun having some power. There is revival and hopefulness. Begin the spring celebration. Give thanks for the days of darkness and diminishment for this time of quiet. 

We need to remember that the essence of a give-away is to identify an object that we are attached to and want very much to keep…but we give it away as a sacrifice or surrender if you will.   Remember, our emotional self is often connected to our possessions, and releasing them can heal us, as well as our relationships. I share this so our 2008 give-away blankets, instead of ”garage sale” type gifts on them that we no longer need or can use, can be full of gifts from the heart that help us all to heal.  

                                                                          

 I recalled the new era, called the “New Pachacuti”, which began in 1989 as shared by our Andean teachers. In that year, the Dalai Lama traveled to South America to meet with the Spiritual Leaders of the world. He acknowledged that the center of spiritual power on the Earth was moving from Tibet to the Andes with a shift from the male to female energies so we might come to balance. Mother Earth was moving the energy from Tibet to a mountain in Chile bringing it through every region of the earth for cleansing and adjustment.

When it passed through our Midwest region in 2000, John Armbruster listened to Mother Earth, and we did a ceremony called the Earthkeeper Dance for Peace, dancing on the back of the “Dragon”, which the earth energy is called as well as “Kundalini Serpent” and “White Serpent”.

Llama Norbu, who had left Tibet with the Dalai Lama, arrived a few years later to dance with us, honoring the ceremonies.

However, the “Dragon” was delayed or held back at the Panama Canal…and many of you remember doing ceremony in 2003 with the Mayans, (earthkeepers did one on the shores of Lake Michigan), so the “Dragon” could cross to it’s final resting place in Chile. In actuality, the Mayan Elders shared recently that they had done the ceremony in 2001 with the “Dragon” crossing in September of 2001. And by “coincidence”, we were dancing our second Earthkeeper Dance for Peace at that time, again with John Many Voices listening to Mother Earth to guide us.                                                                                                       

It’s very important to note, that there is no time in Spirit, so whenever the prayers are done is the right time. Not one person or one group’s prayers are more important than others. When the “critical mass”, if you will, of prayer is reached, each prayer that has happened and each prayer that will come is essential. It’s like time travel or more a “no time” phase that is foreign to us corporeal beings.                                                                                                               

I share all this now because the Elders say that by the middle of 2008, the final ceremonies will be completed to anchor and honor the “Dragon”, in preparation for 2012 and the ushering in of the new energy. Everyone of you who has been called to do ceremony, from offering a prayer as you head out for the day, to participating in a dance…remember, it is no small thing you do, as John liked to say. Mother Earth has responded. And I believe the ceremonies will go on and on and on!!!                                                                                                       

I observed the secret of Ceremony. Ceremony is often thought to be about the ritual or the skills of the leader. However, ceremony is truly about the light…the light within. Ceremony creates a world of balance, so each person participating can illuminate that which is within them, thus giving them an opportunity to transform and be in joy. And those opportunities arise during and after the ceremony…with folks experiencing their “buttons being pushed”…pushed so those areas in need of change or healing are illuminated…giving each person a chance to “make good”, or “make nice” as our young people say today.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

I learned it’s important to do ceremony with computers and be mindful of thoughts around them. Computers exist because of crystals. It is the living nature of the crystal/silicon that allows computers to do what they do. The crystals hold the program, and computers are nothing without the use of crystals. Not only do crystals hold programs but they hold thought patterns too. So be mindful of your thoughts around crystals. No wonder the Elders say, “leave handling or working with crystals to those who understand them”.                                                                                                                                                                             

I revisited that Creator already has placed within us all that we need. If you have forgotten who you are and think it’s someone else or something outside of you, then you have no power to find the solution. If it is someone outside of you who can only change the problem, then you’ll have to wait for some miracle worker to come and change it for you. However, if you see you are the problem, then you can see that you are the solution as well. You have the power to transform.                                                                                                                                                                         

Finally I am to share that I learned the answer to any question….and the answer to any question is always, LOVE.                                                                                                    

The Evening before Christmas has a strange an delightful mix of energy. Expectation mixed with stress and anxiety… the deep quiet of Christmas Eve Services and the hustle and bustle of last minute shopping.

The Poem “The Night Before Christmas” has shaped our perception of Christmas Eve and has immortalized Father Christmas into a legendary and symbolic representation of Christmas that, in many minds has supplanted the image of Christ. 

It is interesting that Christ’s birth came out of the night and was heralded by the mystical powers of the universe, took place during an oppressive time of Roman Government, and emphasized the humility of spiritual birth.

The celebration was moved to the time of the Roman Saturnalia. This was a weeklong celebration of the Winter Solstice and the Sun’s greatest distance from the Earth. The 25th of December is the point of least light. The Christ, bringer of the light, represents the return of the Sun.

For every Christian this time is a time of inner understanding and quiet contemplation of the order of life, the gift of life given by their creator to each and every living thing. In Christ, the divine became human… or was our divinity simply revealed to us…?

The National Audubon Society compiled a list of ways to improve our planet. Based on conversations with America’s top scientists, the society is encouraging individuals to make simple changes in daily routines to minimize human influence on the Earth’s environment. “If each person who reads Audubon (magazine) does just one of the resolutions, that will be 450,000 people who will have acted in some way to preserve what we have and they will be more aware of how their actions (or inactions) affect the planet,” says Audobon’s Lisa Gosselin. Below are Audobon’s top 10 recommendations. Read carefully; some of the suggestions may surprise you.

1. Say “no” to exotics. To help the plight of endangered species, don’t house exotic pets or purchase products that are made using animals at risk.

2. Go veggie. Vegetarian diets put less strain on the environment. Livestock guzzles nearly 50 percent of all water consumed in the United States and eats nearly 16 pounds of grass and grain for each pound of beef produced. Eat vegetables for personal health and the health of the environment.

3. Coffee in the shade. Buying shade-grown coffee supports the preservation of rain forests and safeguards the habitat of many species.

4. Be picky, not fishy. When choosing fish to eat, avoid over-fished species such as swordfish.

5. Be heard. Voice your opinion by supporting local and federal legislation to protect the environment and its endangered species. Every person at your town’s planning-board meetings can make a big difference.

6. Pay your dues. Some states offer the option of contributing part of your income tax to fund the protection of non-game species. Look for this option on your next form.

7. Buy the plate that pays. Some states donate revenue from special license plates to wildlife conservation programs. License plates with a conservation theme also help spread an important message.

8. Conserve energy. Buying energy-efficient appliances can significantly decrease energy use at home. If every US household was equipped with the most energy-efficient refrigerator available today, 10 power plants would quickly become obsolete.

9. Don’t be afraid of the dark. Electricity used to generate light produces a large amount of carbon dioxide, which in turn contributes to global warming. Use timers or movement sensors to minimize electricity use. Fluorescent light bulbs outlast incandescent bulbs and yield significantly lower levels of carbon dioxide.

10. Stay cool. Make sure your furnace is working at optimal efficiency and keep the temperature as low as possible. Decreasing the temperature by even a few degrees lowers carbon dioxide emissions by hundreds of pounds over the course of a year.

Bonus Tip: Be gentle on the earth; substitute synthetic animal fur for the real thing. 

The teachings of the Medicine Wheel have been surfacing, stirring the waters of our consiousness in the past months. And we have come full-circle in the Appreciation of the Ancestors and Mother Earth ceremonies…honoring each direction and it’s lesson on the Sacred Hoop. It’s time to share what’s been making itself known about the Medicine Wheel teachings of the four winds.

We have been taught that the Medicine Wheel is a path of knowledge. It is undertaken to awaken vision and to discover and embrace the Divine within ourselves. It is a path to re-establish ones connection with Mother Earth and the mysteries of the universe. It is a simple path that will test our very being to the core.

Photo by Janisse Younce

We enter this path of knowledge through the East gate…asking for illumination…so that we might know what it is we are to embrace.

Photo by Janisse Younce

Our journey begins in the South, where one goes to shed the past. We shed the notion that we were banished from the garden and that the ground was cursed on our account. We embrace Nature as our family and understand that we are a caretaker, an earthkeeper. We free the Spirits of our past, that they might find peace and that they may no longer feed on our present. It is the place to heal our physical and recognize the childlike gifts within. It is where the element earth resides.

Bear sits in the West to help us. Photo by Janisse Younce

The West is where we lose our fear and face death. We face the unknown and that which we fear the most. We free ourselves from the grip of fear so death can no longer claim us. We remember we have many lives in this life-time, and acknowledge that each one will come to it’s natural end. It is the place of healing our emotional. It is where the element water abides.

Photo by Janisse Younce

In the North we discover the wisdom of the ancients, the trustee’s of the Earth, those who have gone before us and who will follow, and create a union with the Divine. We claim our lineage as one with knowledge. It is the place to heal our Spirit. It is where the element air/wind lives.

Photo by Janisse Younce

Finally, we return to the East - the journey back to one’s home to exercise one’s vision and overcome pride and self-importance. We assume full responsibility for who we are becoming and influence our destiny by envisioning the possible. It is where we heal our mind. The element fire burns here.

And so we come full circle on our Sacred Hoop. Remembering, that coming full circle does not mean that we are finished…as our work with the Medicine Wheel is never finished.

Do you hear it?…the next Hoop is calling…

Thank you Creator for this journey of the Medicine Wheel. Thank you for the Way of Knowledge.

Hugs, Tracy ~ Each person is responsible to find the truth they have come to learn on Earth. We share what has come to us. Take what you want…leave the rest…we share because it is time. May each person come in-sync with Mother Earth so each may find their Ways.