This week the Beech is waving its dried golden leaves that still hold on to its branches. The Beeches are plentiful in this area. I notice how they help support the banks on many of the slopes that climb up to the cliff line.
There is an ancient Beech tree that lives upon the slope that faces our home. We have come to call her Great Grandmother Tree. She is placed in such a way that enormous stones are beneath her, supporting her to be one of the most climbable trees in our vicinity. It feels as though she is a portal to another cosmic location where everyone is supported and nurtured. She is one of my primary role models for she is knit into the hillside with such strength and vitality that it appears she is growing trees out of herself. She is surrounded by powerful medicines including Solomon Seal and Ginseng. And at moments I worry about her for roughly 30 feet down the slope a huge landslide has formed due to human err and the powerful waters where the hill ends at the creek.
The Beech messages within the Oracle Deck—under creation—speak to how we belong into our community, how we uphold our boundaries, and what our piece looks like within the greater puzzle of our relationships. The relationships I find fascinating are ones that not only involve humans but also our other-than-human kin.
As the days are abnormally warm this winter I have received many visits from honeybees. I especially cherish the moments they circle me or even land upon me.
Part of me likes to imagine that they somehow were survivors of the hives that were held here and are coming to say hello. Or perhaps it is the greater bee consciousness offering their warm welcome to these Spring-like days.
Last summer the bees were floored to enjoy the Poppy flowers from the seeds I was inspired to plant honoring the death of a loved one. As the bees seem to hold the opening between birth, life, and death, they hold the memory of how sweet it is to be here at this time. They remind us how we humans, plants, and animals have evolved in relationship with one another.
Recently I listened to a podcast featuring Akiva Silver, author of the book Trees of Power. This man has experimented living in remote places feeding entirely off of wild food. Through his explorations he began to notice that biodiversity of wildlife actually increased the closer he was to where humans lived.
This struck me with a warm sensation throughout my body, reminding me of our ancient relationship with the plant kingdom and how throughout time we have evolved together. How in all honesty, we deeply love one another and need each other.
As humans we were given the gift of our five fingers, ready with the ability to maneuver tiny seeds and plant them. This is one of our kismet holy exchanges.
Another involves fire. At our home, a giant Mimosa was cut down that was near the power lines. I wondered how to work with the body of this tree and when I asked the tree, the image came to burn her body for the soil. I didn’t understand, because a lot of ash on the gardens does not create fertility. Shortly after that I came across a passage in Akiva Silver’s book when he writes about how a civilization deep in the Amazon had extremely DEEP fertile soil.
It was discovered that the humans who inhabited this land had such a special interaction with the land around them that they were able to contribute to the immense fertility of the soil. The method involved digging a hole and burning debris of trees and plant material and then add this charcoal to food compost creating a substance called Biochar. They would add this to where they planted to add fertility to the Earth’s soil. I love how they teach us to feed the Earth Mother and she will feed you!
We have been gifted this land we call Plantasia. With this gift, we hold an enormous responsibility. At moments I get lost about how to carry out this responsibility, but my husband, Phil, is always stepping from stone to stone that is laid before us. I admire him so deeply in the way he carries his responsibility to the land. While I’ve been primarily focusing on mothering, he’s been spearheading the tending of our Earth Mother, planting, seeding, and dreaming of more trees, plants, and flowers.
We imagine the following generations eating fruit and nuts from these meadows as though it was a normal part of life. We imagine how much this will also support the wildlife in the area, including the bees!
We were not raised in these ways but as we have stepped onto our paths the act to re-enliven our relationship with the Earth has become foundational to our shared life. It is as though the Earth has been reaching out to cohorts of us humans, guiding us back home and reminding us of our sacred oath to each other.
A few years ago I was asked to participate in a Ginseng project. It was during this project that I first heard a story about the spirit of Ginseng.
At that time, we had lived with our land for about a year, and we had yet to find Ginseng. When I was asked to be part of this project, I spoke to the land saying, “If I am meant to be part of this project then guide me to where Ginseng lives.”
Phil and I looked all week, thankfully it was just the right time of year when the berries were present, making identification much easier. After scouring another hill side, I gave up and felt a strong desire to go bathe in the creek. I went to where I would normally bathe, but felt a strong pull to go to another creek pool, behind our home and into the forest. As I approached the pathway descending to the creek, I looked down and there he was: a mature Ginseng plant with 4 stalks and red berries.
I continue to revel in how connected we are with the land. Sometimes our innermost urges do come from the land herself, guiding us to where we need to be, and where the land wants our attention.
It is in this way that we honor our oath with the Earth, and I am reminded of the Cherokee story I received while working on the Ginseng project. I am not in a position to retell this story. However, in the myth, many of the plants and animals wanted to give up on humans, except for Ginseng. Ginseng did not want to “cancel” the relationship with humans no matter how poorly they were acting. Instead, Ginseng wanted us to remember our relationship. And so, it was Ginseng, with five leaves, representing the five fingers on the human hand, reminding us to hold their precious seed babies and to plant them. They reminded the humans that it is our responsibility to plant the seeds given to us.
Ginseng is one of the most valuable plants and often poached in our area. The rhizomes are a powerful medicine and it takes at least 4-7 years for their medicine to be ready. A bird with the most beautiful song called the Wood Thrush eats their berries and in turn carries their seeds, but the seasons are faltering and the birds are often not in the area during the time the seeds are ready. It is now our responsibility to care for this plant and ensure it’s continued growth as a companion plant.
Recently my husband Phil was inspired to plant Ginseng and ordered hundreds of seeds, a bit on a whim, at half price. So the other day our 2 1/2 year old daughter Aurora, Phil, and I hiked up to Great Grandmother Beech and prepared a gorgeous new home for these seeds.
While we were preparing the Earth we unearthed 4 stones that became the symbols for the directions protecting and bordering the patch of Earth where we raked, massaged the soil, sprinkled the seeds, and then danced and sang upon them to tuck them into their bed. Phil blanketed them with leaves as Aurora and I offered sacred water blessings from our spring.
Perhaps these seeds will grow, perhaps they will not. But as our relationship with Ginseng and Plantasia deepen, more will be planted with ceremony, hands, and love.
We are not alone here on this planet, and the plants have not forgotten our relationship with us. They will continually make themselves known in the most magical ways when we pay attention. This includes paying attention to the seeds within us that are ready to take root.
Great Grandmother Beech always reminds me how powerful we are, and that the more we nourish ourselves, the more we can offer nourishment to those around us. But in order to fully nourish ourselves we need to receive the support of others just as we are to give our support. In this way we are interwoven into the same fabric, co-creating a living breathing masterpiece.
With love,
Sacha Louise and the Bees
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I love how Sacha beautifully articulates the messages she receives from the natural world and reminds us all that there is profound wisdom to be learned by connecting with the plants, animals, and spirits of nature. In a world where there are an overwhelming amount of spiritual practices and tools, reconnecting with God through nature feels like the best fit for me. Sacha’s messages continue to teach and inspire me.