Growing up Grounded

Growing up in Central Vermont on a small subsistence farm, my family of 13 grew nearly all our own food. Occasional trips to the grocery store were for staples such as yeast, oatmeal, flour, sugar. The long rows of Ball canning jars and freezer full of meat, vegetables and fruit served as affirmation of the summer’s accomplishments and offered food security for the long New England winters. At times, we purchased eggs from another farmer or milk when our cow was dry.

Sustainability, self-sufficiency, interdependence, community, responsibility, homesteading, connection with the Earth were not things we talked much about, rather lived.

My dad was an organic gardener before organic was cool. He taught me to respect the earth, took me for long walks in the woods. Together we waited quietly for the sight, sound and signs of animals and birds of the forest. I learned the fragrance of yarrow and ginger. He taught me the reverent anticipation of watching a newborn calf be born, nudged and licked to awareness and its instinct to stand on wobbly legs and stagger to the waiting udder. He taught me to milk a cow and plant the corn.

From these early experiences I learned not only to enjoy a deep sense of connection just by stepping outdoors but also to call upon this inner source of peace and resilience when troubles come as they are sure to do. This lifelong feeling of connection with the Earth and all of her forms of life continues to sustain my life in every way.

Connection is a basic human need. Connecting with the earth can be a tremendous source of our inner nature, strength, wisdom, and resilience. We are meant to breathe in life – taking in deeply the experience with our senses and exhale our response – releasing emotions and responding to the world around us. We simply cannot be at our best living from our raging minds. Why be a brittle twig when you could be the mighty oak or the flowing birch?

If you’re ready to discover the strength, resilience, freedom and pleasure of connecting to yourself and your world, contact me and let’s start the process together.