Forest Yurt Retreat Day Three: Walk the Labyrinth

walk the labyrinth photo ©2013 kimcrayton

After a long sleep with some very intensely vivid dreams, I woke up and wrote my dreams down, ate a light breakfast, and headed out for one last walk  before catching the ferry home.

I set out to walk a labyrinth.  The first time I walked a labyrinth was about 11 years ago at a retreat center while participating in a workshop on Touch Drawing through an expressive arts course during my undergrad studies.  Ever since then, any time I have the opportunity to walk a labyrinth, I always do. This one was especially lovely because it is right off a forest path, and you can tell that it is infused and created with loving intention.

After the labyrinth walk, I returned back to the Grand Forest for one more quick hike up and down the trail. This time I took a different route and ran into a beautiful collection of cairns arranged atop a mossy boulder. What a treat!

I’m glad I went back to the trails before leaving the island and heading back home.

mossy rock cairns @2013 kimcrayton

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Forest Yurt Retreat Day Two: Listening and Creating Ceremony

After sleeping to the orchestra sounds of croaking frogs all night, I woke up feeling refreshed.

Around mid-morning, I headed out for a meditation walk. Walking meditation is slower than regular walking.  And after all, I had nowhere to be, and was in no hurry to get anywhere.

grand forest @2013 kimcrayton

I found some lichen, and slowly walked amongst the swordferns, cedars, and mossy big leaf maples.

lichen in hand @2013 kmcrayton

I went back to the yurt for lunch. After lunch, I went over to the Grand Forest and hiked around (That is what it’s called. Seriously. It’s truly Grand.) It was kind of a surprise. I had not heard of this forest, and I just happened upon this amazing treasure.

the tall ones @2013 kimcrayton

While in the forest, I listened to the sounds of the forest floor, the earth and creatures slowly churning and growing. The forest floor is rich with diversity and complexity, it’s where nutrients that sustain the forest are created, so it is very nourishing. In every sound, texture, color and movement, the world at the roots of every tree is teeming with a quiet activity. The spirit of the forest is both exciting, mysterious, and soothing all at once.

After my walk in the forest, I went back to my yurt with the intention to create a ceremony.  I wanted to create a personal ceremony to release old identities, energies, and beliefs that were not serving me, and to welcome the emergence and expansion of my present-time divine being. I also wanted to mark my dedication to my spiritual path; the path of the mystic. (The second card in my tarot reading for Day Two of this retreat was “Nine of Arrows: Dedication.”)

I gathered some small treasures to add to the altar I had set up with the tarot cards on a small table. All the earth and elemental energies, guides and ancestors were called upon to witness and assit with the ceremony. I used the book “Sacred Ceremony” by Steven Farmer to help with creation of the ceremony.

After the ceremony, I ate some maple smoked salmon, and then fell asleep to the sweet songs of the croaking frog orchestra.

Mountain Song

After camping for a few nights, on Friday we headed up to a hut outside of Winthrop to meet a group of great friends. Most folks were going mountain biking. Since i am more of a lay-on-the-earth and soak in the sun kind of gal, I stayed around the hut and absorbed some great grounding mountain energy while cloud watching, contemplating and catching up with a few other mellow mystic friends.
Here was the view from the hut:

The combination of great friends, delicious food (freshly gathered morels!!!) and amazing beauty of the mountains was healing and energizing. I left the happy hut feeling refreshed and renewed. Here’s another pic of the view:

And here is a picture of a river in the area:

Connect to Springtime Energy

light plant spirit self @2011 kimcrayton

As much as I love the blooming flowers and the beautiful transformation into springtime, the surge in springtime energy is challenging for me.  The increase in light can become disorienting, as I wake up earlier and fall asleep later, and become very allured by all the warm invigorating sunshine.  I have to ground myself with earth energy to align my personal energy with the land.  I connect with my healing master, and give myself healings daily and listen to my body.   The urge to go out, be active, and connect with friends and kindreds is strong, and my energy gets very accelerated.  The plant beings call me outdoors all the time! There is such joy in the songs of flowers!

In tarot, this year is my “Sun/Wheel/Magician” year, so there is more outward and connecting activity going on this year so far than all of last year! In the Wildwood deck, the 1 card is The Shaman.  Although the transition from this year from last year (The Hermit year) is a bit bumpy, I definitely feel aligned with these.  The Shaman card is very relevant, since this spring I have focused on healings as a daily practice, using healing tools that I have gathered.  As an empath and intuitive, healings are essential for me to call my own energy back into my body, and it feels really good!

My Tarot Year 2013

If you would like to figure out your tarot year cards, as well as personality and soul cards, read Mary K Greer’s “Tarot for Your Self.”  I constantly go back to this book as a reference for really soulful readings for myself and others.

Sedona

Sedona’s beauty is breathtaking and powerful. It doesn’t take long to leave the crowds of tourists and head out into the desert and stand in awe and honor the red rocks that rise from the earth.  I enjoyed the Boynton Canyon Trail, which I hiked barefoot on soft red pebbles and sand.  It was soothing to open my foot channels and let warm, grounding earth energy flow and energize my legs.

One thing that struck me about Sedona (aside from the obvious magnificent red rock formations) was the juniper trees.  The junipers were really dynamic and sometimes stood twisted and bare in the sun. The trees were remarkable to sit by, with their warm, dry bark. In this picture, I am sitting with a peaceful twisted juniper, and feeling an immense sense of joy.

Bones of the Earth

I really love beachcombing.  I can spend hours on a beach looking for treasures and interesting objects from the sea. These photos were taken one afternoon  at a spot where I usually take pictures of trees along the shoreline. But the stones called to me and wanted some attention.  How lovely and smooth each stone is here on this beach.  It is always a gift to be able to spend time here.  Each color and shape is so smooth and pretty.  Recently, I heard the saying “stones are the bones of the earth.”  It made me think of this beach and how with each step I gently walk upon the bones of mother nature.

 

Honor the Light within You

honor the light ©2012 kimcrayton

When I Am Among the Trees

When I Am Among the Trees 

among the trees ©2012 kimcrayton

– by Mary Oliver

When I am among the trees,
Especially the willows and the honey locust,
Equally the beech, the oaks and the pines,
They give off such hints of gladness.
I would almost say that they save me, and daily.

I am so distant from the hope of myself,
In which I have goodness, and discernment,
And never hurry through the world
but walk slowly, and bow often.

Around me the trees stir in their leaves
And call out, “Stay awhile.”
The light flows from their branches.

And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,
“and you too have come
into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled
with light, and to shine.”

 

Treasures of the Forest

on the forest floor ©2012 kim crayton

Messages from the Old Roots

“Whenever I have found myself stuck in the ways I relate to things, I return to nature. It is my principal teacher, and I try to open my whole being to what it has to say.”

Wynn Bullock