Meet Jack, the wood mouse

Back in my den…

Buzzard follows me

or maybe I follow you

as I walk, drive, breath…

Rain daisies and felted bee

Rain daisies, felted bee

My week has been bee-sy, needle felting a bee for the birthday of one of Thom’s friends. This bee is now with her girl, I hope they will have a lot of fun together…

Rain daisies are good friends for the bees, and it reminds me that more work needs to be done at the allotment over the weekend. There are bee hives next to our patch. We got some of their honey this week.

Before I started this bee, I did some research on bees to connect with them and to get to know them better… I learned that honey bees taste with their legs (their claws to be more precise), and that until fairly recently scientists couldn’t understand how bees could fly, as their bodies are so much bigger than their thin wings. It seems that they beat their wings at such a speed that they can take off and fly!

In many cultures bees represent fertility, a strong sense of community, prosperity, diligence, busyness… and they also remind us that we are all interconnected within the big web of life, as without bees and other pollinator insects our food would not grow.

If you find that you have a fascination for bees, and/or you feel a strong connection with them, I invite you strongly to go and meet them: go and sit quietly in their company and listen… and see what they have to tell you. You can also meditate on the qualities of bees, their social habits, their behaviour… and see if you need to implement more of these qualities into your own life. Or maybe you need to be less bee-sy? Slow down and take time to enjoy the sweet golden nectar of life? Perhaps you need to stop rushing around and working too hard, and set aside some time to relax and enjoy ‘what is’ and what you already have?

Pay attention to omens and animals who cross your path… if you come across bee(s), there may be a reason, and it’s worth taking a few moments to reflect on it.

In yoga the sound of the bee hum is associated with vishuddi, the throat chakra. There is a pranayama (breath control exercise) called brahmari – which means bee in sanskrit – also called the bee breath, named for the humming sound that bees make. This breathing technique is very relaxing and quietens the mind effectively. You can practice brahmari while sitting, start with simply noticing your natural breath for a while, then inhale through your nose and keeping your lips gently closed, and then hum like a bee as you exhale. Do so until you have completely emptied your lungs and you need to breath in again.

You can also use this breathing technique while in a posture such as the swan for example:

The Swan or extended child – Utthita Balasana

Or be on all fours in the cat position, breath in and as you breath out, hum like a bee as you get into swan (or extended child), then go back into cat (on all fours) as you breath in, and keep going…

If you have an interest and/or a connection with bees, you may enjoy this documentary:

Happy Beltane!

Noémie.

Squirrel!

I often wonder:

What do I have to offer,

the world has plenty.

On self-worthiness, confidence and drive…

The alligator,

– the self-loathing side of me –

resurfaced again,

to grab a take away feast:

Creativity.

The spirit of my local park…

he is out and about more often at this time of the year,

especially at dusk.

his face is the stream that runs through the park,

his body is a tree trunk.

he proudly wears leaves as his crown

for he is the king of his own kingdom.

moss runs up along his sides,

his beard is made out of hair and feathers

from the animals who live there.

his eyes are deep and profound,

for they hold the promise of the night.

Hammerhead sharks, Crow and Blue Swimmer Crab

Hammer-head sharks, Crow and Crab

revealed themselves to me that morning,

after i sat in silence

on a chair in a circle, in a village.

the hammerhead sharks came first

and i felt safe instantly.

through me they sent an invitation

for a blond mermaid looking girl

to explore her emotions

a bit deeper on paper.

My prompt led her to meet whales,

then butterflies.

i can’t help but feeling a pull

towards the hammerhead shark

whenever I feel lonely, left out or sensitive

Hammerhead shark reminds me that

spending time on my own isn’t a curse

but a great opportunity

to swim fluidly through the waves of these emotions of mine

before they turn into unmovable rocks.

the hammerhead shark makes me feel protected on many levels

and i’m grateful for them to come to me.

Crow keeps coming to me too…

Although i know he is often around but unseen,

as a friend and protector.

yesterday he kept me company on 2 paths

the path of words unravelling from my soul

and the cycle path on the way home.

crow doesn’t usually say much

he is usually just a friendly presence,

watching over me like a close friend

as he landed on the path in front of me:

laid back, relaxed, amused, as if he was making fun of me

like an old friend.

i sometimes wonder if

crow isn’t a manifestation of my own father?

Blue crab asked me to tell his story,

like with everyone’ stories there are sad and happy times,

magic, light, wisdom, good meals and dark sea beds.

Ferdinand Bauer, Portunus Pelagicus Blue Swimmer Crab – watercolour 1806-1826, the Natural History Museum, London.

“I’m fast and I won’t be prey. I bury myself in the sand and I like watching the light coming from the top, sometimes it’s very bright and it lights up the sea bed. I’m used to darkness. I don’t like being picked up or handled. My life is simple you might say, but for me it’s full of action, drama, vibrations, rippling sounds… fears, the satisfaction of a good meal… Maybe not so many internal brainy turmoils as I take life as it comes, I live in the moment. I’m in the now and life is good” – Blue Swimmer Crab.

Blue Swimmer Crab has fascinating eyes, blue claws and an interesting pattern on his back and legs. His two front claws look like two pelican beaks with lots of teeth. The pattern on his back looks like a map of a world, with the shape of symmetrical lands.

Crabs feel very grateful when people free them from careless fishermen, SO do what you need to do to get them out of the crab pots or buckets before they end up on a fishmonger stall and boiled alive.

Whenever you feel that pull to set them free don’t ignore that call, they are calling you for help and need you to listen to your heart. Don’t dwell too much on how, just get them out of there!

Look in the eyes of a crab, and he will speak to your heart. Listen carefully for his message is simple but profound.

When you see someone fishing, focus your intention on telling the fishes in the water to go swimming somewhere else and stay away from that zone. Send that message out clearly again and again, it will work!

against a tidal wave

 

it takes a lot of courage

to go against the grain,

to refuse to do like everybody else

just because they told you so.

it’s brave to follow your heart

to stand strong in the storm of criticisms and hatred

from people who feel threatened by your independence.

but that’s how change happens.

change doesn’t happen by following the fools,

it’s clearly the opposite in fact.

Great Revolutionaries haven’t followed any rules,

but their own.

it only takes one individual to refuse to go with the herd,

to refuse self-deception

and the convenience of being safely tucked in,

for great things to happen.

instead she will explore other possibilities

other form of normalities…

pushing the limits, expanding, extending

reaching out for freedom.

follow your dreams…

it’s written on tins, walls and cigarette packets.

so what are we waiting for?

even they are telling us to do so…

meanwhile…

the indian flutes have vanished,

as my CD player stopped.

and an angel just walked in my living room,

in the form of a completely white cat.

he walked in, had a quick sniff around

looked at me straight in the eyes

green eyes meeting green eyes,

as we both stood there,

suspended in a timeless moment.

zen, he walked out again.

It’s another good sign… then!

may all be good in the world!

where do we stand in slow motion

(photo: Thom Rimmer)

 

i don’t think I need one more invitation

i think i’m pretty sure,

i saw that film in slow motion.

i think too much, I know

but i think i saw that person blinks.

a coffee table, what a great place

to meet and eat noodles.

what about hysterical societies?

not where, but are they still going?

i think i met one of them once,

queueing in a shop.

i couldnt tell if he was laughing or crying

i only saw his jaw drop,

then a heavy silence fell,

it sounded like a cast-iron skillet

whacking someone on the back of the head.

i wish i had seen a coyote that day,

but i didn’t.

i heard a crow though

i guess that’s a good sign too…

thank you,

thank you for reading this.

it feels like cotton balls in between my toes

and hot stones on my back.

thank you.

 

 

 

 

Rule of the Dragons…

This Summer was definitely under the Rule of Dragons.

“Coming in contact with the air dragon can be as a bolt of lightning to the psyche and intellect – and as such must be treated with care and considerable respect. Sometimes manifesting as sudden flashes of illumination, Draig-athar brings insight and clarity to your thought and imagination. As conveyer of numinous power, the air dragon can be seen as a symbol of visitation – for he is a messenger of the Sky God.” 

– Philip & Stephanie Carr-Gomm, The Druid Animal Oracle working with the sacred animals of the druid tradition.

Here, we watched the films, read the books, talked in great length about dragons and drew a lot of pictures of them.

May he or she be Smaug, Toothless, Horrorcow, an invisible Stealth Dragon, Stormfly, or any other Deadly Nadder… Dragons were very much a part of our world this Summer…

 Cloud Jumper, Stormfly, Toothless, Hookfang, Berf anf Belch…