In the previous two parts of this series of blog postings on Aligning with Nature’s Yearly Cycle, I introduced a fair amount of background material on Nature, what a garden is, what the benefits are of consciously aligning one’s personal and spiritual development process to Nature’s Yearly Cycle. I even talked a bit about Free Will and how it is the operational dynamic for Human Consciousness, and gave an overview of the physical manifesting process.

By now you know that in Nature, anything that is in form on this planet Earth -- whether we can detect it with our 5 physical senses or not -- has its own evolutionary process that it is undergoing while in this dimension of reality. This includes the broad scale of human consciousness, the Earth herself, all the plants, animals, rocks, rivers, oceans, ecosystems, as well as anything that is human-made, from nations, to cities, to our families. It includes our personal processes, and the process of everything that we create. The evolutionary process of all this form happens in a yearly cycle, and the “natural” starting point for the each year’s new cycle begins with the Fall Equinox. 

Again, at the moment of the Fall Equinox the call goes out from the Soul-level consciousness that is behind each form for the new cycle to begin to come together at the deepest, and most subtle of energy levels. This gathering process takes place during the period between the Fall Equinox and the Winter Solstice.

A good analogy to describe what’s happening during this first phase of the cycle is that of how an architect first works with a client. At that initial stage of the project, the architect wants to gather as much information as possible, such as what does the client want to build and why; what will the building be used for and by whom, where is the building located, what special features does the client want or need and so forth. All of this information is needed so that architect knows how to direct her creative energies before she starts to put together the actual blueprints for the project.

In other words, this first phase involves a lot of behind the scenes kind of activity between your Soul/High Self and Nature. You most likely won’t have much of a sense of what is happening at these deeper levels. And yet, a lot can be happening in your outer world. There might be key actions that you need to take in order to signify your conscious participation in the process and that will “get the ball rolling,” so to speak.  

I have noticed, however, that as the number of years in which I have consciously aligned my personal process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle increases, the more I am able to sense the quite subtle, but very real shifts and opportunities that come with the birthing of the new cycle.

Some years I can sense that BIG shifts are in the works. Like last year. In the weeks leading up to the Fall Equinox, I had the strong sense that some very significant opportunities were being offered to me on a Spiritual Level and I was being given time to assess whether I wanted to take them or not. Remember, even God honors our Free Will and if we don’t think we’re ready for something Spirit is asking us to do, then we have the full freedom and right to say “no” or “not now.”

Even though I was not clear in my conscious mind about what Spirit was asking of me, I could feel the strong desire of my Soul to say “yes.” So I did and as the year has unfolded, I’ve been on a very intensive path of healing at deep, deep levels. Just to show how intensive it’s been, here’s a comparison. In 2008, I received a TOTAL of 15 healings over the 12 months, 8 were done for me by another Christa Healer and 7 of those 15 I did on myself. In the just the first 8 months of 2009, I have done 27 healings on myself and received 8 from other Christa Healers! THAT’S A LOT by any standard!

Quite honestly, I know this level of intense healing would not have been possible, nor would I have been able to stay balanced throughout such intensive spiritual work, without out support I have received because I chose to consciously align my process with that of Nature’s cycle. This way of living my life has been all the difference. But especially in terms of keeping me balanced and the process balanced. I was able to do it without any adverse effects; even more I was able to do the intensive work in such a way that each piece along the journey prepared me for the next piece.

As I write this, the current year’s cycle is winding down and I have been very aware of the ripening of the fruit produced in this year’s cycle in the Garden of Julia. I experience myself as a more substantial and capable person than I was just a year ago. Certainly much more than I was 11 years ago when I first started receiving Christa Healings! It’s not that I don’t still have doubts or low moments or fears. It’s just that I feel more spiritually equipped and prepared to do my part as in Instrument of Light in the World.

And as the new cycle approaches with this year’s Fall Equinox, I have a very different feeling about what the new cycle will be about. If last year’s theme was about “going inward,” my sense is that this coming year’s theme will be “going outward.” This past year, and indeed the last several years, have been laying the groundwork for the next stage of my life’s journey. (Think of a life stage as a series of yearly cycles focused on bringing about a larger goal or intention.)

For simplicity’s sake, I'll call the current life stage that I am in the process of completing my “Nebraska Stage.” My Nebraska Stage began nearly 8 years ago when, in September 2001, my husband and I made the decision to sell our little 15 acre farm in Southeast Minnesota. I’d like to use the details of the first year's cycle of my Nebraska Stage as way to introduce a fuller picture of Nature’s Yearly Cycle.

Before we get into the specifics of the story, here are the key dates and themes to remember about Nature’s Yearly Cycle:

• Phase One of the cycle starts with the Fall Equinox (on or close to September 21st); the theme of this phase is “Gathering.” Again, this happens at very deep levels and is initiated by the Soul.
• Phase Two starts with the Winter Solstice (on or close to December 21st); the theme of this phase is “Planning” or drawing up the blueprints. This is the speciality of the Devic Level within Nature Intelligence.
• Phase Three starts with the Spring Equinox (on or close to March 21st); the theme of this phase is “Building” or implementing the plans. This is the specialty of the Nature Spirit Level within Nature Intelligence.
• Phase Four starts with the Summer Solstice (on or close to June 21st); the theme of this phase is “Bloom, Grow, Ripen and Harvest.” This when what was initiated at the start of the new cycle comes into full, 5-senses form and celebrates the efforts of all those involved: the partners from Nature and the partners from Spirit, including the Human Souls involved.

Now, I’d been aware of Nature’s Yearly Cycle since about 1994 when I first got my copy of Perelandra Garden Workbook Second Edition. As I’ve said before, I’ve intuitively followed this cycle most of my life, long before I was aware that it was the natural cycle on the planet. But it wasn’t until about 2001 that I really started to consciously and intentionally aligning myself and my process to this Cycle.

Now the circumstances leading up to our decision to sell our beloved little “farm” had been in the works for a long while -- but that’s a whole other story! Suffice it to say, that by the Fall of 2001, the time was ripe for a change. It was as if my life had reached a plateau and I had the choice of either remaining on the plateau and building an ordinary life at that level or moving on to my next level. Well, by this time my Soul was actively awakening and I was feeling a very strong internal push/pull to “open and expand.” And because my husband and I came together to support each other in “becoming the person God intends for us to be,” we were going to be in this piece together!

You might say that the theme of the 2001-2002 Cycle was “Moving to Open and Expand.” The cycle started with the decision that Fall that it was time to move on to our next set of experiences. Our outward action to jump-start this cycle and show our commitment to it was putting our farm up for sale. 

Then, throughout that Fall and into the Winter, we explored many options. Where did we want to move to? What did we want to accomplish? With the coming of the Winter Solstice, we started to get a clearer idea of what we needed and wanted to do.

By the time of the Spring Equinox of 2002, we had settled on a plan. With Phase Three underway, we watched in amazement as our plan started to unfold in tangible, outward ways. We had pin-pointed an area to move to, found a place to live, our farm sold and we were moved and in our new, though temporary, home in the open and expansive landscape of the Sandhills of Nebraska by early May 2002.

Lots of people in our lives thought we were crazy! Why would anyone intentionally move to a town of 1200 people that was the only town in a county with more cows than people and was a good 85-90 miles from any reasonably-sized towns for shopping, etc. But to us, it made perfect sense! Over the course of our planning during the first 3 phases of that year’s cycle, we’d realized that we are ourselves needed to open and expand to new levels spiritually, mentally and emotionally. And given our mutual love for and affinity with the Earth, we knew intuitively that placing ourselves in a landscape such as the Sandhills would enhance our own opening and expansion process. And it did!

The summer of 2002 was an active time for us. I saw myself clearly breaking out of old shells and being willing to look at new avenues for myself. That was also the summer I read Machaelle Small Wright’s story of her own expansion experience, Dancing in the Shadows of the Moon. It was a fitting part of the launching of the Nebraska Stage of my life! I chuckled when I reread the book this past winter at how things that were nearly mind-blowing 7 years ago were now just a normal part of my consciousness and understanding of Life!

Each successive year since 2001-2002 has built upon the foundation laid by that first cycle of the Nebraska Stage of my life’s journey. More and more with each passing year's cycle, my life’s journey has become a truly co-creative effort between my conscious self, Spirit and Nature. And the opening and expansion of my consciousness, of my awareness of who and what I truly am and of my growth into a powerful, substantial spiritual being in physical form is part of what I am now “harvesting” as the Nebraska Stage of my journey comes to an end. All this has been possible in ways that I could never imagined because of my choosing this path of consciously aligning my own personal, evolutionary, spiritual process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle.

Ancient wisdom talks about the Circle of Life and I understand what is meant by that. What intrigues me more, though, is the opportunities that we have to experience Life as an ever-expanding, upwardly-moving Spiral. The Spiral is a form found in many places within the created world, from galaxies to our own muscle fibers. Life lived as a dynamic, upwardly-moving, expanding spiral gives us the opportunity to consciously grow in our understanding of ourselves as persons and as spiritual beings.

I often say to people “we are so much more than we are consciously aware.” So in part, the Journey that is Life is one of discovery of our True Self, which is immense, powerful, capable and loving. And yet, the journey is also about truly growing into that True Self. Because we have Free Will, we have to consciously choose to grow, to move up and outward in the Spiral of Life. No one is going to make us grow. We may receive urgings from God, our High Self or our Spirit Guides to move out of the familiar, recurring “wheel” that our lives can become, but it’s up to each of us to choose to move forward, upward and outward. 

Consciously aligning one’s own process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle is one way to ensure that we don’t get stuck in a rut or spend life chasing our tail round and round. When you choose to align your process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle, Nature, God, your Soul, your High Self and your Spirit Guides will take you seriously! So be prepared to rock and roll a little!  As always, it’s your path to take responsibility for and to govern. But you will find yourself on the receiving end of a tremendous amount of support. And not because it wasn’t there before. But because you are now open to it!

So I invite you to get out your 2009 calendar and put a BIG RED circle around September 22. Write in the time of the Fall Equinox for your time zone: EDT = 5:18 PM; CDT = 4:18 PM; MDT = 3:18 PM; PDT = 2:18 PM. (http://www.erh.noaa.gov/box/equinox.html)

Plan on being able to spend at least 5 minutes before and 5 minutes after the exact time of the Fall Equinox to be quiet and inwardly focused. Be clear about your intentions. At the exact time of the Equinox state those intentions, either silently to yourself or outloud: 

"I welcome the next cycle of my own evolutionary process and I declare my intention to consciously assist and participate in its unfolding over the coming year and to align myself to the right timing of it's unfolding."

If you like, mark the day in some special way. I like to gather a bouquet of warm-season grasses mixed with fall-blooming wildflowers. Do whatever feels fitting for you and what feels symbolic of this commitment you’ve made to your own evolutionary process.

And, then over the next weeks and months leading up to the Winter Solstice, pay attention to insights or internal stirrings that you might feel. Mark these in some way, either mentally or in a journal. And continue your observing as the rest of the year’s cycle unfolds.

Consciously find ways to develop your own intuitive abilities. This is one of the clearest and loudest ways that Nature and Spirit communicates with us. Using our intuition really is the most natural way for us to live our lives. So,

• learn how to work with a pendulum,
• learn how to correctly use muscle testing,
• pay heed to the little voice that you might otherwise ignore,
• listen to the feelings in your “gut brain,”
• tune into your heart regularly,
• learn how to do connected meditations and receive guidance from your High Self,
• learn how to awaken your Soul.

Be willing to step out of your comfort level by actually taking actions based on your intuitive “hits.” Be willing to tell the judging, critical mind that wants to say that this is all a bunch of new-age phooey to be quiet and stay out of your way! Mostly, be prepared to experience a new level of self-awareness.

Now that you have a foundational sense of Nature’s Yearly Cycle, I’ll continue to include discussions on it in future blog postings as the coming year’s cycle commences and unfolds. As I said earlier, my own sense is that the coming year’s theme for myself has to do with “going outward” from the base established during the Nebraska Stage of my life’s journey.

As you may have guessed, the Nebraska Stage of my life is officially coming to an end with the completion of the current year’s cycle. Sometime in early September, I and my whole family -- husband, dogs, cat and chickens! -- will be moving to West Central Minnesota! As is my policy, whether I’m starting on a new year’s cycle, or a new stage in life, I’ve very curious to see how things will unfold! 

Until next time, Namaste!

Julia

This week’s blog is part two of a series on consciously aligning your personal evolutionary/spiritual process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle. Before continuing with the series, here’s a recap of what I addressed last week in part one of the series.

For Nature, a garden is any endeavor or environment that is initiated, defined and maintained by humans. Thus a garden can be either be “soil-based,” as in a vegetable or flower garden, a pond, hydroponic greenhouse, a farm, a city or national park, etc. Based on Nature’s definition of a garden, gardens can also be “soil-less,”  such as in a business, a song, a work of art, a website, a scientific experiment, a vacation, a house, etc.

From Nature’s perspective,

• gardens that pay no regard for the laws of nature are considered “human dominant.”
• gardens that are initiated, defined and maintained with varying human interpretations of the laws of nature are considered “nature friendly.”
• gardens that are initiated, defined and maintained by humans who consciously understand Nature to be a “full partner” in the design and operation of that garden, and who actually act on this knowledge, is considered a “co-creative garden.”

Nature’s Yearly Cycle begins with the Fall Equinox. For the northern hemisphere, that means the new year’s cycle begins on or around September 21st. In the southern hemisphere, the Fall Equinox would be on or around March 21st.

In a revised edition of last week’s blog, I also described a simple process for doing this alignment.

The process of doing this is quite simple – or it can be a little more elaborate if you're into ceremony! You don't even need to set up an official soil-less garden nor open a “coning.” (See the sidebar on my homepage for a definition of a coning.) But if you know how to do these things, by all means do these first. But again, you don't need to. At this stage of your learning, all you would need to do is consciously connect to the larger energetic happenings of the planet and you'll be on your way. So, here's the simple approach:

First, find out when the exact time of the Fall Equinox is for your time zone. (The Fall Equinox for 2009 is 4:18 PM CDT on September 22.) To prepare, take a few moments ahead of this time to quiet yourself and then, at the exact time of the equinox, make a statement like this, either out loud or to yourself:

"I welcome the next cycle of my own evolutionary process and I declare my intention to consciously assists and participate in its unfolding over the coming year and to align myself to the right timing of it's unfolding."

Again, at the time of the Fall Equinox, the “call goes out for the new cycle to activate and begin its formation processes at the deepest of energy levels.” (Perelandra Garden Workbook Second Edition, Machaelle Small Wright, pp. 181-182)

The big picture advantage of CONSCIOUSLY aligning one’s own evolutionary process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle is that you are allowing your consciousness and your life’s journey to come into sync with the higher evolutionary processes of all that exists on our planet and which “naturally” happens when not interfered with by humans. It’s like going with the flow and staying BALANCED all along the way instead of being out of step with and out of balance with the whole of the Creation as it is being expressed on this planet.

Now the above statement in red is going to be an important base to hang on to as you read the next bit of material I’m going to be sharing. The concepts are going to get a little thick for a while and I’m going to stretch you a little further -- or maybe even a lot further! -- than you might think you want to go! But hey, you can hang in there! And if need be, read the following multiple times to help with your absorption and comprehension of the material!

To understand what actually happens with the Fall Equinox, what it really means to activate and begin the formation processes of the next evolutionary cycle of any particular form at the deepest of energy levels, you need to understand a little bit more about the manifesting process.

Now you’ve probably heard that manifesting starts with our ideas and thoughts. Well, those thoughts have to come from somewhere and ultimately that somewhere is from Consciousness.

Physical manifesting is the process by which Consciousness, which is a soul-oriented reality and is beyond form, goes about creating or taking on form all the way “out” to the physical energy level, the vibrational level at which something can be detected by our five physical senses. We can taste it, touch it, see it, smell it, hear it at a physical level.

Another way of saying this is that physical manifesting is the MOVEMENT of energy from the most deepest and most subtle of vibrational levels all the way down the vibrational scale to the point where the thing is no longer just an idea or a thought, but a physical reality in our third dimensional world. Your physical body is ready example of this process in operation! Your physical body is your Soul expressing itself in physical form!

There are many different groups or expressions of Consciousness. For example, there is God Consciousness, which we can describe as the all encompassing Life Force/Soul Reality from which all other individuated soul expressions originate, such as Nature Consciousness and Human Consciousness, to name a few. Each of these types of soul-oriented realities have different defining qualities, different operational dynamics.

Nature defines itself as “a massive intelligent consciousness group that expresses and functions within the many areas of “involution,” that is, moving soul-oriented consciousness into any dimension or level of form. It is the conscious reality that supplies order, organization and life vitality for this shift of soul-oriented consciousness into form.” (Perelandra Garden Workbook Second Edition, Machaelle Small Wright, p. 7)

The defining quality or operational dynamic of Nature Consciousness is inherent balance. The Consciousness, the Intelligence that is Nature simply knows balance. “It does not need the faculties for understanding what it knows and why.” (Co-Creative Science, Machaelle Small Wright, p. 31)

The defining quality or operational dynamic of Human Consciousness is free will. Now here’s a can of worms if there ever was one! Free Will means that as a CONSCIOUS individuated soul we get to decide WHAT we want to experience and HOW we want to experience it. 

There are two primary levels of individuated consciousness where Free Will comes into play.

First is at the High Self Level. When you were birthed from God as an individuated spark of God-Consciousness, you came “out” of the Source of All with particular qualities and abilities and patterns of expression are unique to YOU. These all make up what can be called your ORIGINAL GOD CODES, your original BLUEPRINT. Within the codes, within the blueprint is the FULL POTENTIAL of who you are and what you are able to evolve into and EXPRESS FULLY in an outward manner, in outward FORM. 

The CUSTODIAN of your original God Codes, your original Blueprint of you as a Soul, is an aspect of you known as your HIGH SELF. Your High Self the part of you who stays very close to the Source, very close to the your connecting point with Source. The consciousness level of your High Self is as high as your individuated consciousness can reach before rejoining with the Oneness that is God-Consciousness.

Think of the High Self as HOME BASE for your Soul. The Soul moves out into the different realms, dimensions and levels of Creation from the High Self.  And the Soul can move out in many different directions at once. These different directions are called Soul Rays. The whole point in moving out in these different directions of reality is EXPERIENCE, to gain the experiences needed to help you MATURE as a Soul.

This maturation process in part of the “package” that is the Human Soul. We were not birthed from the Source in our full adult, mature state -- the state where we are fully expressing all that we are capable of doing and being as a Human Soul. Again, because of the particular “package” that is human consciousness, we need to grow into that “adult” full-expression state. And as Human Souls, we grow through experience. For experiences to be growthful, we need FREE WILL, we need full freedom to choose our experiences and learn from those experiences.

We also need ego and personality, which constitute our "small self." This is the second level where we consciously exercise Free Will. For now just think of your ego as your conscious awareness of your individuality. Think of your personality a “character” that you have assumed in order to live out your current set of life experiences. Whereas your ego stays with you and evolves with you through your different lifetimes, you will have taken on many different personalities in the course of your many different lifetimes. Personalities are like shoes, they help us “get around” and experience things.

And so we have two parts of Self that we need to be aware of when it comes to Free Will. We have our High Self, the larger part of us who has the consciousness to understands and direct the big picture of who we are and what we’re tying learn and do. And we have our small self -- the part of us that we normally and narrowly think of as “me” and that has a particular personality.

Think of the journey of the Soul is the journey of the small self growing into and coming into alignment with our High Self. The growth happens when small self learns the lessons our experiences have to teach us, when we integrate those lessons into our understanding of ourselves and that understanding expands and deepens. Eventually, we come to KNOW & EXPRESS ourselves FULLY and in accord with our Original God Codes and Blueprint.  

And again, because FREE WILL is the defining characteristic or operational dynamic of human consciousness, of the human soul, Free Will is operating at both of these levels of our Soul’s expression -- at the High Self level and at the small self/ego/personality level.

At the High Self level, that Free Will always remains in alignment with the Higher Will of God for all Creation and for the individuate Soul itself. In other words, High Self is always going to be working to make sure that whatever the Soul experiences is going to help it mature into all that it was created to be by God. It’s going to work very hard and diligently to help the Soul stay on track --or, get BACK on track! -- and reach the point where all of its inherent God Codes are active and functioning and what is laid out the Soul’s Original Blueprint actually becomes a Full-Fledged Formed Reality.

But the immature Soul, expressing itself “out there” in the playgrounds and classrooms of reality as the ego/personality and having all these different learning experiences, ALSO has free will.

And Free Will is absolute. You can’t just have a little free will. It’s an all or nothing deal! And this means that, even as our small ego selves, we ALWAYS have choice. Do we cooperate with the High Self and stay in alignment with our original blueprints or God Codes? Or are we going to decide to go our own way and do what we want to do without regard for the consequences or ripple effects of our thoughts, actions and choices?

Now that last question points to a whole other can of worms that we’re not going to get into today!

For now, let’s just focus on the fact that WHEN WE DO USE OUR FREE WILL to consciously operate within the perimeters of our True Blueprint, we are choosing to align our small will with our Higher Will.

And when we do that, Nature is able to give us the information (the matter, means and actions) we need to ensure that what we create and what we experience is in “balance” -- within the ourselves, within what we create, and within the greater contexts that we and our creations are a part of.

Balance happens when a “thing” -- something in form -- is able to vibrationally hold a certain level of authentic expression of its “thingness” and when its “thingness” enhances the bigger things that it is a part of.

Think of a masterpiece quality painting, one in which each component of that painting is artfully and appropriately placed in relationship to everything else in the painting and the essence each component is expertly rendered on the canvas. When all these elements combine in the most optimal way and in alignment with the full intention of the artist, the whole painting becomes more alive and more vibrant than it would if even just one element was missing or not executed with care and skill. The high state of balance of such a painting is quite notable. That’s why it’s a “masterpiece.”

Now just imagine that someone comes along, and with deliberate intent, a draws a mustache on the face of one of the characters in the painting. Such an expression of "free will” seriously detracts from the overall order, organization and life vitality of the painting! We’d say it was “ruined.” Nature would say that the balance has been reduced or lost.

Balance can also be hindered or lost because of ignorance. But the elimination of ignorance and the “enlightenment”  and expansion of human consciousness is a key part of the evolutionary path of the whole humanity, on this planet and elsewhere. Once there is awareness of ignorance or when we are exposed to new knowledge, we are again brought face-to-face with our Free Will. Do we choose to remain in ignorance or ignore the new knowledge? Or do we choose to move forward and into greater and greater levels of alignment with who we are as individual persons, as Souls, and members of the whole of humanity?

The bottom-line of what I’m urging you to consider is this: Our individual choices have real consequences, real ripple effects! The question is, Will those ripple effect enhance or detract from the balance of our lives and of our planet?

When we, through the conscious use of our Free Will, intentionally align our own evolutionary process to Nature’s Yearly Cycle, we are allowing that process to be guided and played out in a balanced way by Nature.

Again, Nature knows balance! Our job is to start tuning in with our intuition and with the use of other multi-level communication tools so that we can “hear” and then act upon the information that Nature is sending us to help us fulfill our stated intentions in a balanced way. All the different aspects of our lives can be enhanced by this conscious alignment.

I myself have found the process of consciously aligning with Nature's Yearly Cycle a tremendous help in keeping me MOVING FORWARD on my own evolutionary/spiritual journey and in helping me stay in alignment with the desires and purposes my Soul set out to accomplish in this lifetime.

The beauty of all this is that our own individual balanced expressions -- in our lives and in what we create -- aid and heighten the overall balance and evolutionary process of our relationships, our communities, our world. By giving ourselves the gift of balance by working consciously and co-creatively with Nature, we give that gift to others as well.

Now, I promise that next week’s addition to this series won’t be as “heavy duty” as this week’s! Next week I will address what actually happens during the first phase of the new cycle that begins with the Fall Equinox and continues through to the Winter Solstice when the next phase of the cycle is activated.

Until next week, Namaste!

Julia

In this week’s blog, I’m going to switch gears a bit and do a little “teaching” about this whole topic of “working in co-creative partnerships with Nature and Spirit.” It’s a subject of as equal importance to me to share with you as the spiritual healing and development tools I offer.

On my web site and in previous blog postings you may have noticed a lot of language about working in co-creative partnership with Nature and Spirit and about “soil-less gardens” and probably wondered, “What the heck is she talking about?!” 

Now, I’ve offered some explanations on this topic of “Co-Creative Partnerships with Nature and Spirit”  but it feels like time to delve into the subject more. In part because, I do say in several places on my website that I “teach people how to create their own healing partnerships with Nature and Spirit.” And it is, after all, part of my DDP for the soil-less garden I call the Center for Healing Partnerships!

So here I go. And in particular, I want to begin to introduce to you the topic of Nature’s Yearly Cycle, and how when we consciously align ourselves with that cycle, amazing things can happen!

But first, I want to give some more background on this whole topic of working co-creatively with Nature and Spirit, and to do that I need to talk a bit more about the concept of a “garden” from Nature’s perspective.

From Nature’s perspective, a garden is any endeavor/environment that is “initiated by humans, given its purpose by humans and direction by humans and maintained with the help of humans.” (Perelandra Soil-Less Garden Companion, p. 9) The funny thing is that while humans tend to see gardens as an expression of Nature and assume that gardens are always “growing” in some kind of tangible medium, such as soil, or rocks, or water!

But Nature sees things differently. To Nature gardens are always a human expression! To Nature anything that fits the criteria of being initiated, defined and maintained by humans is a GARDEN! This includes a business, a book, a movie script, a website, a job, a house, a government, a nation, a carpet factory, a farm, a botanical garden, a state park, etc., etc. You name any human endeavor you can think of that is initiated, defined and maintained by humans, and from Nature’s perspective it’s a garden!

Now when a garden -- whether soil-based or soil-less -- is initiated, defined and maintained without any consideration of “the laws of nature,” such a garden is from Nature’s perspective, “human dominant.” Often the ripple effects of purely human-dominated “gardens” are a lot of imbalance, distortion and adverse “unintentional consequences.” For example: prescription drugs that do more damage than good.

Nature considers those endeavors by humans that do try to cooperate at some level or another with the “laws of nature” as “nature friendly.” Organic and biodynamic farming and gardening and other land-management practices that try to respect Nature’s ways and processes are good examples of "nature-friendly gardens.” So are approaches to train and interact with animals in which the people consider the natural needs and tendencies of those animals. Nature-friendly gardens tend to have more success, or are more “healthy” and create less imbalance and adverse unintended consequences than purely human-dominated gardens. And this is a good thing!

But we have the opportunity now, as human consciousness and awareness expands to new levels on this planet (and elsewhere!), to take things to an even greater level when it comes to working with Nature.

A “garden” in which humans consciously understand Nature to be a “full partner” in the design and operation of that environment, AND actually act on this knowledge, is what can be called a “co-creative garden.” Humans and Nature working together in real, authentic, mutually respectful partnership, with Nature contributing its “expertise” and humans contributing their “expertise.”

(Just what the expertise of each is gets a little tricky for our current discussion, but if you’re really curious, I recommend the book Co-Creative Science: A Revolution in Science Providing Real Solutions for Today’s Health and Environment by Machaelle Small Wright.)

What’s the advantage of “gardening” this way ? BALANCE!  “When a garden operates in balance . . . , it is in step with the overall dynamics of the whole. The various parts that comprise the garden operate optimally, and the garden as a whole operates optimally.” (Perelandra Soil-Less Garden Companion, p. 10)

My trying to write this week’s blog is a perfect illustration of the difference between going at things from a human-dominant approach to doing things from a co-creative approach!

When I started writing this week’s blog, I could tell I was going down the wrong path. In other words, in my “human-dominated" approach, I was heading in a direction with the topic of this week’s blog that was not in balance with what was appropriate for me to share at this time and for you to read! But because I do make a “good-faith effort” to take a co-creative approach with “soil-less garden” I call the "Center for Healing Partnership" and all the smaller “gardens” within that larger garden, including this blog, I got the strong intuitive hit that something wasn’t “right” in my approach. And so, I remembered to check with my soil-less garden team for my business and my fellow coning members got me back on the right track and are doing a good job of keeping me on track too even as I type this very sentence!! 

Now, balance is Nature’s bread and butter. Nature knows balance inside and out. Nature innately knows what balance IS and HOW to achieve it! And the fact is that balance is NOT something human beings innately know or understand. That’s why we need to consciously partner with Nature because Nature is going to help us achieve and create the balance we so urgently need in our lives and in our world.

Now the topic of balance is something I’d like to talk more about, but I’ll save that for another “lesson.” For now, I want to get back to the whole point of this blog and that’s to introduce you to Nature’s Yearly Cycle as defined and played out in Nature. Even more, I want to encourage you to consider STARTING to develop your own conscious, co-creative partnership with Nature by “tuning into this cycle,” and aligning your personal evolutionary/spiritual cycle with it.

I know full well that this whole “soil-less garden” thing can seem more than a little overwhelming, and while I do hope that someday you’ll investigate this fascinating approach to doing and being on this planet, I also want to encourage you to start somewhere and tuning into Nature’s Yearly Cycle, at whatever level you feel capable of at this time, is a great place to begin creating your own co-creative healing partnership with Nature and Spirit.

Western culture associates the beginning of the New Year with January 1st. And when asked, most people would probably say that Spring is the start of Nature’s Yearly Cycle. After all, Spring is when the ‘world of Nature” seems to “come alive again” after the winter’s sleep or rest. But, as Machaelle Small Wright found out when she made the conscious choice to learn about Nature from Nature within the context of the Perelandra Garden, Nature sees things a bit differently!

In her book, Perelandra Garden Workbook Second Edition: A Complete Guide to Gardening with Nature Intelligences, Machaelle talks about 4 dates throughout the year that are especially linked to Nature and which define Nature’s understanding of what constitutes a “yearly cycle.” These dates are, in the northern hemisphere, as follows:

• the Fall Equinox (on or close to September 21st),
• the Winter Solstice (on or close to December 21st),
• the Spring Equinox (on or close to March 21st) and
• the Summer Solstice (on or close to June 21st).

These dates constitute the start dates of the different segments of Nature's Yearly Cycle, also known as the Solstice/Equinox Cycle. Over the next couple of weeks, I will go through each of these segments and show how they all fit together to form the whole of the yearly cycle of nature's energy. For the remainder of this week's discussion, I'll address the first segment of this cycle.

Now, it may surprise you to learn that in Nature, the Fall Equinox is the day the year’s new cycle actually begins! The Fall Equinox is the day when the “call goes out for the new cycle to activate and begin its formation processes at the deepest of energy levels.” (PGWB, pp. 181-182)

Another way of saying this is that the Fall Equinox is the natural “New Year’s Day” of the entire Planet and all that exists on it, including for us!! And, as summer winds down and we anticipate the coming of Fall, I urge you to consider shifting your thinking about when the New Year begins.

And, even more, I enthusiastically encourage you to consider the idea of consciously aligning your own, personal evolutionary process with Nature’s Yearly Cycle, to bring your own evolutionary process as a human being alive on this beautiful planet in sync with Nature’s yearly cycle, to receive the tremendous support and balance that can come from such an alignment, from such a conscious, co-creative partnership.

The process of doing this is quite simple – or it can be a little more elaborate if you're into ceremony! You don't even need to set up an official soil-less garden nor open a coning. But if you know how to do these things, by all means this first. But again, you don't need to. At this stage of your learning, all you would need to do is consciously connect to the larger energetic happenings of the planet and you'll be on your way. So, here's the simple approach:

First, find out when the exact time of the Fall Equinox is for your time zone. (The Fall Equinox for 2009 is 4:18 PM CDT on September 22.) To prepare, take a few moments ahead of this time to quiet yourself and then, at the exact time of the equinox, make a statement like this, either out loud or to yourself:

"I welcome the next cycle of my own evolutionary process and I declare my intention to consciously assists and participate in its unfolding over the coming year and to align myself to the right timing of it's unfolding." 

Here’s what Machaelle has to say about why she herself does this for her personal cycle as well as for the Perelandra Garden:

I have learned from nature that all that exists on planet Earth is grounded fully and completely in form and physical action through the energy of nature. That energy commingles with the human dynamics of thought and creativity and serves to fuse into these dynamics the matter, means and action necessary for grounding. It is the natural law of the planet. It is called involution/evolution. The energy of nature (involution) links with and energizes the creative, foward-moving spirit of humankind (evolution) to create one cohesive, efficient unit of life energy. I have seen this principle demonstrated often in areas outside the usual nature environment. It seemed reasonable to me that my personal process would be greatly assisted if I formally and consciously participated in the fusion process between it [her personal evolutionary process] and the nature energies.

. . . I can’t give your hard evidence that there has been a drastic change in how I move through my personal cycle each year. However, I feel that there has been an enormous amount of clarity added to the process, it’s purpose and direction––and this could certainly be attributed to my conscious participation in the fusion of nature energy through the equinox/solstice cycle. It’s like the pieces of my life and the direction I am taking within this year’s period are appropriately energized and enhanced 4 times, and the result is that those pieces fall into place smoothly, even effortlessly––and I experience clarity. (PGWB, pp. 182-183)

When I first learned about Nature’s Yearly Cycle, I was immediately drawn to it. Fall has always felt like the time of new beginnings for me, perhaps because the new school year starts in the Fall. But I like to think that I’ve always has an innate sense of this cycle! And so to consciously align my own process with the natural energy dynamics of the planet itself, makes perfect sense to me.

As I have become more attuned to the dynamics and flow of Nature’s Yearly Cycle, I too see the pieces of my life and my process and what I am consciously and purposely attempting to create in my life fall into place with much more appropriateness than I could ever orchestrate “on my own.”

I am fond of saying “There’s so much to us than we are consciously aware.” And there is so much that is a part of our Soul’s evolutionary process that is beyond our full conscious understanding. But by aligning my personal cycle with the natural energy dynamics of the Planet, I have a way of being connected to my Soul’s process that is much stronger and so much more capable of keeping me on-track with that process than if I tried to navigate through my life without this very powerful compass.

Over the coming weeks, I’ll continue to share with you what I know and understand about Nature’s Yearly Cycle, taking you through each piece of the equinox/solstice cycle and sharing more about how I have seen this cycle play out in and benefit my own life, my own spiritual/evolutionary process.

As enticement for you to "stay tuned" to learn more, I will say that I’ve found consciously aligning to Nature’s Yearly Cycle to be a tremendously wonderful way to live and structure my life! And, building on a topic of last week's blog (energy profiling) you've probably come to see that "it’s just my nature” to want to share with you things I find valuable and to encourage you to consider to giving yourself this Gift as well!

So, until next week, Namaste. Julia