Photo Diary // A Walk in the Woods to a Waterfall

I love photography. It's so grounding to spend time observing and creating, through a lens; interacting with your world in a way that's witnessing and artistic all at once. Sitting down to blog my journey today, after a fresh meal, leaves me reflecting back at all the little moments. From making an incredible tea for my moon cycle, to having my feet in a cool, glacier fed river, the quaint, quiet moments of the day come alive, simply because I took the time to photograph them.

Here's to honouring the little things in your life this week!
xo Beth

A blend of Harmonic Arts' 'Women's Moon' and wildcrafted Fireweed + Pearly Everlasting, served as a warm reminder of how much I love the plant world

I spent the afternoon at a magical place called 'Nymph Falls' on Vancouver Island

Rushing water plays over mossy rocks

I love that the entirety of this photo is just running water

I had to pull over on the way to the falls to photograph these beautiful creatures

The way the sun beams through the forest top is incredible

F o r e s t   &  M a i d e n   interact  and  play .   W i s d o m  is  exchanged .

My 'Aha' Moment - Mother Earth Style

I had an 'aha' moment on the bus ride out to Tofino recently. I'm reading a book right now called 'Serpent of Light' - it's about the Earth's energy systems and the shifts it's going through right now. In it, there was a line that drastically shifted my understanding of who the Earth really is.

"...{It was a} beginning of a new cycle of life for her dear body, the Planet Earth."

This idea that Mother Earth is first and foremost a Spirit with a body, just as we are. Such an obvious concept to some, maybe, but understanding this had such profound implications for me. A few things came to mind upon this understanding.

a) If you're getting to know someone, and want to connect, you're not going to pick and prod at their cuticles, analyze their hair, and zone in on their skin to find the true them. Of course not! You're going to listen to them, look them in the eyes. You're going to speak to them, ask them questions, and ask them to hang out in order to get to know them better.

Same with Mama Gaia. In the past, I've often touched tree bark, felt the ocean and the wind, and looked at those interactions as the ultimate way to connect. While those things are absolutely fabulous, the most important part of any relationship isn't the physical. I now see that it's key to not only enjoy the Earth's beauty, but to look past it, into her spirit. This spirit can be found just as easily on an elevator ride as in a grand forest if you know how to invoke it.

b) Just as when our body dies, our spirits live on, when Gaia's body dies, her spirit lives on. What an interesting idea - if we end up trashing the earth to the point where we kill her body, her spirit will live on. Where would it go? Good question - perhaps a distant area of the cosmos, perhaps she would incarnate as new planet, a star, or maybe she would simply live in the Spirit world, giving love and guidance to all those who call upon her.

But personally, I'd rather not see her go. I really love all the support and beauty the Earth has provided me and so many trillions of other life forms. Let's, then, help to heal her.