This time of PanDeepening has called many of us to open our minds and our hearts and to broaden our awareness of the larger Earth community of which we are part. As we reflect on the wider “We,” we human-kin might find ourselves at a loss for understanding the languages of our plant- and creature-kin, our arbor-elders, all those whose voices and experiences have been sacrificed on the altar of anthropocentrism. Today, we welcome the “Sun’s Day,” the birth of a glorious new day in which all beings in the web of life can capture our attention if we just listen to their exuberant, full-throated chorus.
Prairiewoods Even-Song
by Bert Thelen, friend of Prairiewoods
A chorus of birdsong, crickets and frogs,
Fireflies and moonbeams brighten the skies
She sits and silently sings her amazement
The bigger the dream, the harder she tries
Pandemonium reigns the whole world over;
Trying to grasp it, we lose our way
Only the wisdom of owls will save us
Calling us gently where love holds sway
Do not be afraid to follow the river
Flowing wildly in the canyons of life
Connecting us closely with all that is holy
Finding the secret where nature is rife
Trees are our elders, the fauna our kin
Beasts of the forest, fish in the sea,
Birds of the air, creatures that flee,
All of us together fashion our “We”
Let’s not scorn the compost heap,
Not mind the smell; decompose slowly
Be patient as well, and time will tell,
Taking us surely where all is holy
“Taking us surely where all is holy …” Who are the “We” we’re becoming? We might say it’s directly related to how widely we are opening. When we celebrate the holiness of the wider “We,” we find our wholeness in listening, in being open. Let this be our prayer.
—Laura Weber, Prairiewoods associate-director and retreats coordinator