Category Archives: Nature Wise

Earth and Grounding Meditation

Spring is almost here! We’re beginning to enjoy the longer days and sunshine (albeit, some places Grandfather Sun is showing his face more than others.) I was recently looking for some guided meditations for celebrating the Spring Equinox for our other blog, Shaman’s Blog, and came across this nice, easy grounding earth meditation by Patti Wigington at About.com. It seemed very appropriate to share here at Nature Wise.

Often in our fast paced urban lives we become disconnected from the Earth. When we aren’t “grounded” we can find ourselves feeling scattered, spacey, out of balance and just not in tune with our lives. This is an easy grounding meditation that can be used any time to help you reconnect. Continue reading →

Spring Equinox Ceremonies

Part of living a shamanic lifestyle is being attuned to the cycles of Nature, whether it be the phases of the moon, life cycles of the animals, fish and plants or the cycle of the seasons. Those of us who choose to walk a Shamanic/Druidic/Pagan path often acknowledge the “turning of the wheel” or cycle of seasons with some type of ceremony. Some celebrations are are grander than others, and some are very simple ceremonies.

The Spring Equinox is a day to celebrate the revival of life after a long cold winter. Our focus shifts from internal to external, from preparation to action. This is a time of renewal and rebirth…Eggs are hatching, birds are returning from their migrations, butterflies are breaking from their cocoons, plants are celebrating the return of warmth with vibrant greens and flowers of every color, the trees are bursting with new buds, and baby animals are appearing in our yards.

Spring arrives next week, on Thursday, March 20 at 6:57am EDT. So, let’s begin to think about celebrating it’s arrival with a ceremony. I’m offering a few simple ideas with plenty of time to plan. Choose one or more of these ideas and create your own Spring Equinox ceremony. Continue reading →

Cleansing Your Stones & Crystals

In my last post we discussed using stones and crystals for weight loss and I briefly mentioned cleansing your stones. So, I thought I should dedicate this blog as a “how to post”.

As shaman, we often call upon the Stone People to assist us with healing, protection or attracting specific energies. As more and more folks are learning about the power of stones and crystals, their use has become more common.

Like all things in the Web of Life, stones and crystals are alive. Your stones, crystals, jewelry, and pendulums can attract positive and negative energy. They absorb the energies you have within you as well as any energies around you. Therefore these objects need to be cleansed and energized regularly. Continue reading →

Imbolc – The Festival of Brighid

February 1st marks the beginning of Imbolc (Imbolg or Oimelc as it is known to the Celts, Candlemas to the Christians). This is the first of four fire festivals celebrated by my Celtic ancestors. But unlike the other fire ceremonies, Imbolc’s emphasis is on light, rather than heat. Although the days began to get longer following the Winter Solstice, now the light and longer days begin to become more noticable. This is the time of the first stirrings of Spring in the womb of Mother Earth. We begin to see the first of the crocuses and daffodils peeking through the snow, the spring lambs are being born, we can trade the heavy winter parkas for lighter coats, spring rains bring green grass and Old Man Winter begins his slow retreat. Continue reading →

Stones and Crystals Support Weight Loss

Today I want to discuss how the Stone People can help us keep our New Year’s promise to our self to shed some excess pounds. By now, some of us are already waivering and being drawn back into old habits. Fortunately there are some wonderful stones and crystals that can be used as tools and support to achieve your weight loss goals.

Now, just carrying around these stones isn’t going to cause those excess pounds to come off, but you know that already. Yes, I know we’re still looking for the “miracle pill” to shed those pounds. Continue reading →

A Winter Solstice Journey

The Wheel of the Year has turned once more and the Winter Solstice is upon us again.

Over the years we have offered up ideas for celebrating Yule, or the Winter Solstice. You can check out this blog in particular – Winter Solstice Celebrations from 2010 .

This Solstice, our gift to you is a guided journey that Debbie created specifically for you. Continue reading →

The Pine Tree – Protection, Healing, Vitality and Continuity

Image courtesy of Oregon State University

The keynotes of the pine tree are emotional protection and healing, balance of strength and softness, vitality and continuity.

There are approximately 90 species of pine trees throughout the world. Their wood has been used for building, their sap for healing and the pine nuts for eating, making them a very versatile tree.

The bark of the pine creates armor-like plates that relate to their protective energy, both physical and emotional. The name Pine actually comes from a word that translates as “pain”, and its essence helps alleviate pain within on many levels. And the fragrance of the pine is emotionally soothing and can help lift your dark moods. Pine essences is also good if you suffer from guilt, and if you have a hard time being satisfied with your achievements. Continue reading →

Helping A Deer Spirit

Well, my usual autumn case of the crud hit a couple weeks ago and left me feelin’ pretty puney and voiceless for almost a week. I spent recovery time curled up with my “blankie” and lots of slippery elm tea with honey, lemon and cayenne. Then it took me over a week to get caught back up in the office. It stunk as I couldn’t even return phone calls. So, the following story got delayed a a while.

Back in early September, I had a very interesting experience with a member of our local deer herd. If you’ve followed us before, you’ll know we live in the forest and share our space with several herd of “Sidhe deer”.

It was just after Labor Day here in the US when I was awaken from my sleep by a horrible smell. I noticed a slight odor when I went to bed, but just passed it off as something fleeting. I have a VERY sensitive sense of smell. Well, about 2 a.m. I came out of a deep sleep to a horrible smell of decomposition near my face. Not only could I smell it but I could taste it! Continue reading →

Crow as an Omen of Change and a Messenger of Death

Samhain has arrived and the Wheel of the Year has turned once more.

As I was searching the web to prepare for our Samhain celebration, I ran across this great post at Salem’s Moon – Magic & More. So, I thought I would share it with you instead of recreating the wheel (pun intended). There are also some other interesting Samhain posts at Salem’s Moon if you are interested. But let’s talk Crow … Continue reading →

Bobcat Medicine – Solitude, Silence & Secrets

photo courtesy of cbsnews.com

I was going to write about a completely different topic this week, but a second visit from Bobcat this week made him the focus of my attention. This is important to remember when working with messages from Nature, whether the spirit of the animal, stone, plant or tree to pay attention, especially if the same spirit comes back for a second or third visit.

This week’s visit from Mr. Bobcat put him at the top of my “Endangered Species List” if he returns for a third time. The first visit Gary saw him sitting outside my chicken pen choosing from the menu for the mid-afternoon special. Gary scared him off. Yesterday, sometime during the day, he returned and got under the pen to snack on one of my hens and left another with only one tail feather. It was a sad day indeed.

So, let’s talk about Bobcat’s message and medicine, other than an easy lunch. Continue reading →