Flow

“Like water, be gentle and strong. Be gentle enough to follow the natural paths of the earth, and strong enough to rise up and reshape the world.”

Ronda Peterson

I’ve learned to rely on the natural world to guide me. The earth, water, fire, and air inspire how I chose to move through the world. In my prayers and contemplations I am reminded often: I am nature, and nature is me. 

Most of my experiences with water have revolved around lakes, oceans, and rivers. My family and I spent time in Yosemite last year. This trip  gave me a new experience: Spring Waterfalls. We witnessed the most spectacular displays of earth and water dancing around us. I stood in awe for several days, and it has left me changed. 

I’ve been inviting the flow of water into my life. I depend on its gentle nature when I need to feel supported. I see the delicate streams of water over time following and creating channels upon the earth’s surface. I rely on the consistency of the waves of the ocean – the rising and falling of its current, very much like my breath within my body.  

Yosemite waterfalls have taught me to invite the pure power of water to rise up within me, and to trust myself enough to reshape the world. I summon the process of a spring waterfall: the newly felt heat from the closer sun shining brilliantly upon the winter snow, charming it into melting and allowing gravity to pull it into one major artery upon the earth’s rocky surface, finally plunging over the edge into a frigid and swift moving stream below. 

This is one way I view God at work. I allow this Great Spirit, like water, to create the pathways within me so I can follow them  – whether they are created mightily and with force, or soft and with tenderness. Both are effective changemakers. 

When I mess up, hear that critical voice in my head, or have been let done by another I call in the gentle moving water to support me. 

When I need strength, endurance, and confidence I call in the force of the spring waterfall. 

I feel them both within my body, see them clearly in my mind, and let my emotions flow with their current.