A Shared Consciousness                                   May 2008

In This Issue
Suggested Reading
Things You Can Do Now
The "Do Nothing Farmer"
Finding Our Way
To Your Health
Organzations Making a Difference in Healthcare
Upcoming Seminars
 
May 7, 2008 F
Augusta, Maine
Civic Center
Intuition: A Necessity, Not a Luxury
 
September 11-14, 2008
Virginia Beach, VA
Medical Intuition Training
 
September 23-26, 2008
Abingdon, VA
and
October 3-4, 2008
 

Suggested Reading

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle(Barbara Kingsolver)

Four Season Harvest
(Eliot Coleman & BarbaraDamrosch)

The Black Swan
(Nassim Nicholas Taleb)
 
One-Straw

One-Straw Revolution
(Masanobu Fukuoka)
Online Classes
New!  Online classes now available.  Learn more 
 
Suggestions of Things You Can Do Now
 
Try to do one of these every day, week, or weekend.. whatever fits your schedule.

Plant "something" that you can eat.

Harvest "something": strawberries, dandelion greens, garlic.

Preserve/can something.

Find a new local food source.

Learn a new recipe that uses locally grown food.
Contact
Winter Robinson
 
P.O. Box 484
Bar Mills, ME 04004-0484
 

Tel: 207-929-6960

 
Email:
Winter
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Resources
 
 
 
 
Gallery
Hands and Tree
 
 
Butterfly
 
Tree with Sunlight

We are the ones...

 

Last summer I began researching the concept of "peak oil,"a concept that I had heard about years ago (probably in the '70's) but something that I gave little thought to. No doubt I figured that it would not happen...at least in my lifetime.


But here I sit, prior to the summer explosion of 2008 fuel prices, watching as gas hits a new high of $3.69 (some see $10.00+ a gallon on the horizon), flour is rationed (if you can find it), seed supplies are low, or non-existent, and three tomatoes, one avocado, and one bag of romaine cost me $17.00 this week. (That's the $2500 salad Barbara Kingsolver writes about in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.)


And I am not surprised. It can be hard trying to sort out what is intuition, imagination, fear. But the connection to oil and food is so obvious I don't have to worry if I am only "making it up." (food crops=tractors and fertilizer=truck to deliver=fuel=fossil fuel=depleting resources=$$$.)


This past winter arugula, spinach, lettuce, and parsley survived our long, cold, snowy, winter in our unheated hoop house. Next year, by this time, I will have tomatoes growing in there.


Climate change and peak oil are no longer something "in the future." They are no longer a topic of environmentalists, conspiracy theorists, or those we think are paranoid. They are headlines in the New York Times. They are here, now. The question is, "Can we change our ways of thinking, making choices, and behaving?" "Are we willing to change our habits?"


Intuition, our "gut feeling" says "we can, we must, and we will."


Intuition may not be separate from our survival instinct. And possibly, this is what the survival instinct really means. It means to connect with Source, that which nurtures and gives us life. We have to reconnect with nature in order to hear and receive guidance more clearly. How often do we dismiss or discount our connection to something "greater" when it shows up as an image or a thought; a felt sense such as heat, cold, or tingling in the body; or an emotion such as fear, depression or anger that appears for no apparent reason. But is it fear, or intuition, when you have the urge to "plant something?" To have a garden? To want to re-learn to ride your bicycle?


The Hopi saying goes,"We are the ones we've been waiting for." Michael once said to me, during a somewhat harrowing experience on a sailboat, "Winter, you have to 'man the helm,' there's no one else on the boat and I have to lower the mainsheet!"


Well, there's no one else on the planet. Our challenge is to accept that our dependence on fossil fuel is coming to a close... (and all that means), and still find a vibrant way of life, not only for ourselves but for future generations. Yes, it is a huge challenge, but an exciting one. This is a new, uncharted route...one that is both scary and exciting.


This issue is dedicated to providing you with resources to help you chart this never-before walked path. In the future this newsletter will continue to help you make connections, re-think your path, build your community, and strengthen your connection to Spirit.


"Do not wait for leaders. Do it alone, person to person."


                                                                ~Mother Teresa
The "do nothing farmer..."
WheatMasanobu Fukuoka is a person who has caused a stir by the publication of his book, The One Straw Revolution in which he advocates and demonstrates what he calls "do nothing farming." After quitting (in frustration) his job in agriculture with the Japanese government, he returned to the farm he had inherited from his family. For 40 years he has been developing a system of "no plow agriculture." The results of his method equal the harvest from traditional, intensive, methods of rice harvesting, and the modern industrial system of harvesting. He advocates no plowing, no chemical or compost fertilizer, no weeding or herbicides, and no dependence on chemicals.
 
Fukuoka's food growing has much to recommend it in its Taoist-like philosophy. He says, for example:
 
"The farmer became too busy when people began to investigate the world, and decided it would be 'good' if we did 'this' or 'that.' All of my research has been in the process of not doing this or that. These thirty years have taught me that farmers would have been better off almost doing nothing at all."
 
"The more people do, the more society develops, the more problems arise. The increasing desolation of nature, the exhaustion of resources, the uneasiness and disintegration of the human spirit, all have been brought about by humanity's trying to accomplish something. Originally there was no reason to progress, and nothing that had to be done. We have come to the point at which there is no other way than to bring about a movement not to bring anything about."
Finding Our Way
 
Buddhism suggests that reason is limited, and the knowledge that we get from it is transient and unreliable. We are advised to look into our own mind to find what is true.
 
What do we believe is true? Is it what some expert tells us, or the evening news? What do we believe about the nature of reality and the role of intuition, or guidance, in our lives?
 
Over the years I have noticed that my beliefs and values have a profound influence on my experience and what I do. I happen to believe that if we are willing to explore those nudges, gut feelings, and intuitive hits with others we make it easier for them to do the same.
 
One of the most valuable resources we have is our inner wisdom, our creative genius, our ability to innovate. If it appears we are living in challenging times, finding our connection to Source is all the more important.
 
All too often I let the 'drama' of life take over. I get caught up in the things I think are important and I forget (or ignore) the nudges that tell me to 'pay attention', slow down, breathe. After getting frustrated with a driver who has cut me off, I am often gently reminded that they are simply doing the best they can do in their own drama. And we're all in this together.
 
Here are a few suggestions that help me, when I find I am ignoring those gentle nudges:
  • Remember that guidance, or intuition, does not come in a "specific" way. It can be a telephone call from a friend, a book, a bird that flies by, or a thought that hangs on the edge of awareness.
  • Notice when your ego (intellect) tells you that you have always been wrong, it's fluff, you can't prove it, etc.
  • Pay attention to all of your senses: the smell of chocolate when none is present, a movement out of the corner of your eye, a sudden chill.
  • Take up journaling your hunches.
And the next time you think you are too busy to simply stop and watch a bird, or smell a flower - remember, it may be your own system of guidance speaking.
Here's To Your Health

Everyday pollutants come in all shapes and sizes. Many doctors link our over-exposure to toxins as the basis for many of our chronic diseases. I tend to agree. I would guess that 98% (if not all) of those individuals that I scan intuitively have an ailment that is related to their diet and/or environment.

Walter Crinnion, ND a professor at Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, Arizona suggests the following strategies for lowering your exposure to toxins:

Opt for organic fruits and vegetables. Avoid conventional peaches, apples and bell peppers.

Drink lots of green tea. Eat organic broccoli to help cleanse the liver and rid the body of toxins.

Limit fish. Purchase wild Alaskan salmon.

Replace your household cleaners with with those made with natural ingredients. (Baking soda and vinegar go a long way.)

And to detox your body, go on an elimination diet.

You can find the plan on my website at: http://www.winterrobinson.com/elimination.html 
Pause...
 
A Celtic Friendship Blessing:

May you be blessed with good friends.
May you learn to be a good friend to yourself.
May you be able to journey to that place in your soul where there is great love, warmth, feeling, and forgiveness.
May this change you.
May it transfigure that which is negative, distant, or cold in you.
May you be brought in to the real passion, kinship, and affinity of belonging.
May you treasure your friends.
May you be good to them and may you be there for them.
May they bring you all the blessings, challenges, truth, and light that you need for your journey.
May you never be isolated.
May you always be in the gentle nest of belonging with your anam cara* (your soul friend.)
Warmly,

Winter