Survival!!!
As this blue/green spinning orb rockets through the universe, it carries upon its surface the entire gambit of living experience. Most of us have the incredible luck to have been born into a full and wealthy life. Even the poorest in this country are well off relative to most others who live very precarious and tenuous lives. It should follow that we would be happy campers with all of our luxury.
Yet there is huge complexity in this ‘modern’ living. The most basic elements of our existence have been preempted by material items, by modern media and by the rush of activity enhanced by transportation. No longer do we spend quiet, simple times at home with family. Now we are forced to dash about, trying to keep the frazzled ends of out lives together. Life is so much more complex than just one hundred years ago. It has become a whole new world, one that has no guides, guidelines or directions. At times it seems to be a free-fall towards an uncertain destination. Where is this crazy life going?
In our recent past, generations lived with little change over their years. Family traditions held true and made life predicable to some degree. Although this may have been found constricting to certain souls, it did provide a more solid platform from which to live. It is hard to say that life was better. It was certainly easier to understand, though it was difficult to change the established order of things.
Perhaps it is the unseen and unknown influences that can take hold of our feelings and turn them upside down. Who knows? Do the stars and planets affect us? Maybe. What ever the cause, it is fair to say that nearly all of us experience times of frustration and despair that, when strong enough, can take our happy camp to the portals of hell. It isn’t the major calamities that seem to do so much damage. The human has a great capacity to recover from disaster. It is the unknown and unseen influences that can drag our spirits into the muck.
For the most part such downward spikes on our life’s chart are equaled by the happy, glorious times that we spend. There is some balance. They tend to go hand in hand. But, there are exceptional times generated by a variety of experience that can take one to the borderline of sanity. There are times when one cannot reason or think their way out of the morass. There are times when one struggles to merely hang on for dear life to the thin lifeline, not knowing where or when the skies will part.
It is such times that one most desperately needs help. It is such times that one is least likely to seek help. There is a tendency to withdraw, to hunker down and weather the storm. It is such times that one’s most vital experiences may come to the forefront to assist the struggling soul back to normality. It is in nature that all of our questions can be answered. Nature contains an enormous wealth of knowing and intelligence. So often our Great Mother can be the source of peace and tranquility, of healing and centering for the wayward soul.
Although mt. biking isn’t the only way to connect with nature, it is a good one. The modern contraption allows the hapless rider to get quickly deep into the boonies. Here one finds the order, the wisdom and the peace that has been striped from our lives in the modern world. Standing in the presence of the divine order has a transforming effect on our lives. There are no answers to the myriad of questions. There is simply the sense that all is as it is supposed to be. From that understanding, it becomes possible to accept the complexity of life, including our trips to the depths of despair. The Great Mother is always there to nurture us.
