Nature Enfolds Us
I wrote the following in my journal more than twenty years ago, during the first years of The Rose Garden early childhood program in my woodland home. I was awe-stuck in those early years by the way the children grew so organically. They thrived as abundantly as the herbs and flowers we planted and tended in the butterfly garden by the stream.
In the Garden, Again!
“Today the children and I returned to the garden playground! Last autumn, after the Harvest Festival, the children and their parents came to school for a Saturday picnic, to “put the garden to bed”. We raked out the leaves, took the scarecrow apart, and spread her straw into the flower beds for winter mulch, pulled out the old flower stalks, and laid everything to rest for the winter. Through the very long and cold winter, from time to time, a child would ask, “But when do we get to go back to the garden?” Today was the day, and everyone was thrilled! The five year olds were discussing the exact place they had left off playing their “garden games” and the little ones were trying to remember which path we take to get to the garden.
Our garden is a little bright spot in the deep Virginia woods. It is laid out in the curve of our stream, and we must walk across a small footbridge to get there. The children love to play “in the garden” because this includes splashing in the shallow water of the stream, looking for salamanders, water skaters, cray fish and all their aquatic relations. They thrive with the endless back and forth across the little bridge, to play on the swing set, in the sandbox, under the scented branches of the butterfly bush, nibbling herbs and flowers as they go.
It is such a gift to teach these young souls, here in the generous arms of Nature. The children develop intimate relations with the insect and animal world, from the army of worms they unearth (and re-earth!) to the song of the wood-thrush they hear and the footprints of the raccoon in the mud beside the creek.
Native peoples pray by intoning “All My Relations.” And the children talk of the great family of Nature: our best friends the Rain Fairies, their mother The Great Mother Rain Cloud, Brother Wind, Father Sun. These children have the foundation laid for a life lived experiencing humanity as part of a great seamless Whole. This is preparation for the only future we can sustain. This is our one hope, and they bring their up- springing joy to it!”
Now, these decades later, I continue to be filled with wonder at the lessons these green woods continue to teach. My new book Rewilding the Human Heart ~ A Journey of Reunion is not only a guide for adults to rediscover the wondrous magic of the natural world and encouragement to share this with their children, it is also a record of the wisdom-teachings given to me by my more-than-human neighbors, the many creatures with whom I share this piece of heaven.
Let me share with you what others are saying about Rewilding:
“In this spiritual guide to reconnecting ourselves to the core elements and realms of nature, author Oppenheimer (author of Heaven on Earth) takes readers on a journey of transformational growth, healing, and understanding of the world within and without, laying out the steps it takes to “bring our soul-dreams into manifestation.” Oppenheimer provides a guided resource on meditation that allows individuals to create oneness and peace with the world. Focusing on the elements—earth, water, fire, air, and ether—and pairing them with the five realms (mineral, plant, animal, human being, and unseen being), this meditative resource explores multiple mindfulness practices such as visualization, breathing techniques, and delving deeper into multicultural stories and the importance of storytelling. Through it all, Oppenheimer urges immersion in “the components of our luminous biosphere, and the unfolding mysteries of the inner spheres.”
Pulling from a global range of cultures and spiritual traditions, each chapter is rooted in an element and a realm, which is practiced through the lens of the message within the opening story. Simple and practical, actionable steps are laid out in this organized guide that allows for deeper practices that "bring understanding through various learning modalities.” The material might prove heady for newcomers to spiritual seeking, but Oppenheimer proves an inviting coach, laying out with clarity topics like "self-creating and self-maintaining" techniques to tap into a deeper consciousness and connection with the world. Also welcoming is Oppenheimer’s choice to share a story at the beginning of each chapter to center focus. Oppenheimer cultivates practices that draw on all of the senses to build a path to awareness of self and all of creation.”
Booklife Reviews
“With the flair and vivid language of a poet and the wisdom of an old soul, Sharifa Oppenheimer leads us into a deep appreciation of our relationship with self and with nature. Attuned to the spirit of the ancestors and awake to the mysteries of spirit in our time, Oppenheimer leads us on a careful examination of inner and outer nature in our own experience. This book is a trek through our inner life which we can take up if we are willing to make the effort to follow her lead. She is beckoning us to follow her into the wonder of discovery. This is a book for adults to renew the magic that children discover when their imagination is awakened in true education.”
~ William HS Gebel. Astrophysicist, performing artist, psychotherapist and writer, Gebel is the author of No God or Only God, Nature’s Hidden Dimension, and Root Speaks to Bud.
I hope your summer allows you and your family plenty of time to wander in the dappled green light of forests, to sing beside tumbling brooks, to wake with the birds and sleep beneath June’s Strawberry moon.
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