Spirituality is such a difficult concept to explain. The word brings different meanings, feelings, and thoughts to every one of us. A huge influence on my spirituality is the Native American ideology that everything in nature is spiritual. From the rock to the eagle, to humans, we all have our parts to keep the balance (whether “good” or “bad”).
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of spirituality is a leaf. It has a purpose in this world, a connection to the greater whole of the tree, no matter how insignificant it may seem. The tree then makes up the forest, and the forest creates an ecosystem that relies upon it. This contemplation can be overlaid onto our own lives. From each individual cell of the body, to our entire being, and how our being interacts and relies on the other.
Another thought that comes to mind when pondering spirituality is the web. The connection that we have to the tree, to our breath, to the Sun, to the greater whole. And it doesn’t stop there, everything is a wonderful web of connection and enlightenment, each thing teaching and learning from the other.
Prairiewoods has been a wonderful sanctuary for me, a safe forest, when I have been lost in the trials of life. The trees have a wonderful quality of being able to absorb pain, sadness, anxiety, and misunderstanding (Grandmother Oak in particular). There is a feeling of belonging while in the trees, a wonderful embrace, like a giant hug.
This nurturing of nature is the recharge station for my spiritual battery. Walking barefoot in the forest, along a stream, the birds trapezing above my head, is when I come to understand and feel my connection and place in this universe. The wind in the leaves is a mantra that nourishes this soul.
—Brydon Hill