Last night, anticipating my place in the cycle of tending, I stood under the towering trees.  The full moon of a few days ago had become deep darkness with no visible stars.  The sounds of the wind and the rushing river were loud amidst the gathering silence. I lifted my arms, planted my feet and called out to the four directions:

·      To the north for wisdom and inspiration

·      To the east for love and cleansing in the flow of water and emotion

·      To the south grounded in truth and standing for my values

·      To the west breathing deeply to see clearly and with wide-eyed perspective

And then holding my heart, acknowledging all the beings that have been here before and are here now and will be here after me.

I had extended my arms in care for our small part of this magnificent planet. And then with gratitude I felt how tightly I am held in the wholeness of all things, intertwined in being with the aliveness all around me.

What a gift to feel this vivid interconnectedness with the warm handover to begin and end my turn in the tending cycle.