This One Sacred Life

One of the great ironies of our time is how fearful of death we, as a species, are. We see it, for the most part, as the end. Finale. Over. Finito. Perhaps we’d be less fearful about the end of earthly life if we actually spent more time invested in living it fully?

How easy it is to panic if the electricity goes out or, God forbid, Facebook goes down for five minutes. OMG what will we do!

A life rich in meaning is often found well away from the fanfare of modern life’s conveniences and enticements.

I believe we are on this beautiful earth to enjoy it fully, and to truly experience what it is like to be human. When was the last time you stopped and stood under the stars? Can you actually remember? I once heard a lovely quote along the lines of: if the stars only came out every 3 millions years would we be watching the TV tonight?
I think not.

My brother, Rene, all relaxed in the heart of the bush. Australia.

The beauty of life is in the detail. It’s all around us. Starlight, birdsong, soft green grass. The trickle of water over rocks in the creek. The hooting owl. It’s the feel of our lover’s tender hand across our breast. Beauty is the scent of our child’s hair. We find life affirmed when plucking blueberries off the bush or gathering root vegetables for soup.

With my daughter Bethany when she was a young girl.

It is the scent of pine needles underfoot as we tread lightly upon the forest floor. It’s the crackle of a fire, and the first light of morning. Life is the unique smell of rain upon the soil: petrichor.

Rene & Chantal’s campfire. Australia.

This chance to live on planet Earth is a privilege and should be treated as such. There is so much joy, love, beauty, kindness and grace all around us. It’s everywhere. We can choose to see these, or we can tune into the cultural soup and be brainwashed that a good life is about the latest fashion, TV show, bank balance, material acquisition, and celebrity gossip.

The beauty of a rainbow. The view from my writing room.

The further we move away from Nature’s heartbeat, the more inclined we are to fear death, and ironically, life.