on 11 august 2018
on a ragged mountain high (above)
collfeatherz & tbird
committed to a sacred union & living ceremony
and so began their sacred marriage
We begin in gratitude, a prayer of thanksgiving for the earth who holds us, the lives that touch us, and the magic that brings us together.
A deep bow to this sacred and living Council, and to the lineage holders and participants, human and more-than-human.
Thank you to all who held and hold us in this sacred union, those present and not, living and beyond.
Thank you to the Great Mysterious-ing and to this beautiful and sacred Earth, our home.
Dearest friends, allies, family, and all,
We write here from the cool, foggy, early-September mists of the Crystal Valley of Colorado. We are writing from a place of deep gratitude and commitment to this sacred union and the living-ness of Council. Last month, Colleen and I stepped into a conscious marriage and sacred union. Many of you were there in body to help us celebrate and honor this transition and union; many of you were there in spirit as well. Thank you for seeing us and being there, in every way.
We are excited to announce Alchemy of Prana's first Fall Schedule (please email us if you would like a copy). It is with great joy and love that we share this calendar of events. Our intention is to provide regular and ongoing opportunities for our human community to engage and make contact with our more-than-human community.
This weekend we will share Council on the Mountain. The weather is shifting, autumn is in the air: what conversation wants to be had in your life now? What is setting in your life as the Fall shines its color; what is stars are ready to rise in the aspirations of your existence? Nature has a way with softly shifting the world around us, with the color and light, and with the temperarture and energy: how might we engage in reciprocal dialogue with our natural world, in every moment? Come explore this with us in Council.
Inner dirt . a felt-sense . quantum moments
There is a conversation that is being had in me lately, and it has everything to do with language and inner landscapes. At the core of this dialogue is the very structure of my native language. English has a vast web of nouns at its core, and thus inside the living mind of we English-speakers is a rigid world of objects. The word stream explains that such a thing is an object, firm and solid. A stream [or the wind & ocean], however, never arrives; a stream is always arriving. It is always moving and flowing. Movement of the water is the nature of a stream, just as movement of our breath and heart is the dynamic, living nature of a human. In this subtle angle, whereby the lexicon we use and internalize opens beyond the borders of the object/noun that is used to express it, lies the essence of our living world. Shifting just this single subtle rune is opening a world of meaning for me lately.
The language of verbs, of action and aliveness, points far closer to the essence I see around me--- in the quaking aspen leaves, in the heartbeat of my loving wife, in the passing hours of star across sky. Poets and songwriters point with metaphor here, to this subtle and essential aliveness, supporting our understanding of this truth. Life itself moves this way, always in dialogue of arriving, always breathing. Other languages and modes of communication do this as well. This web of relating and understanding is the root of our biology and evolution, and it is expansive and open.
Jack Zimmerman and Virginia Coyly helped to cultivate a secular, non-traditional way of Council, and have been leading Council circles and trainings since the 1980s with the Ojai Foundation (where we were trained). Their book, The Way of Council is the seminal work on council in this age. As they share, the heart of Council is listening: “In council the gateway to the Mystery is listening. We listen in council with more than our ears. We listen with the same awareness a mountain person gives to the wind in the alders or a mother gives to her young child learning to speak” (2009).
This is the conversation that is rising in me, and I hope that I can learn to listen to truth of the wind moving and life living, in whatever language comes forward.
Hearing the Call:
This summer Colleen and I spent five weeks camping with the School of Lost Borders in the Inyo's of California. The School of Lost Borders was founded by Stephen Foster & Meredith Little for the exploration of Rites of Passage in our modern culture. For over forty years SOLB has been leading participants on Vision Fast programs as a way to support the myriad transitions we humans move through in our lives. Colleen and I have participated in many of their programs, and this summer attended the SOLB Guide Training. Colleen and I feel deep resonance with the School of Lost Borders and the Vision Fast model for consciously working with transitions. In February, Colleen and I will be assisting with the School of Lost Borders Mid-Winter Vision Fast. Starting this fall, Alchemy of Prana will begin offering a 3-day Vision Fast program (24 hours fasting), and next spring we will offer a 12-day Vision Fast program (4 days fasting).
Thank you for supporting us in this journey. We would love to connect in whatever way arises; please feel free to reach out. Sending our prayers and hopes for a supportive and colorful fall to you all.
namaste and aloha _ tbird
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