Studying Power

I have been studying power. Don't misunderstand me; I don't mean abuse or control of myself or others. I am talking about the deeply interconnected nature of this world and the tremendous aliveness of the whole shebang.

This universe is awash with power. Every day, in the dim early morning light, I make a fire. The wood catches and transforms. This is power. When I have a bit of time, I plunge myself into the cold Pacific Ocean. The waves push me about, and I scream with delight and shock. I am alive. I have power, and so do you.

With the solstice upon us, the days are short. On sunny days, the sky is that thin winter blue. In the summer, Tiger the cat is busy all day in his cat way, leaving the house at the crack of dawn and not returning until I call him in at twilight. Now though he sits next to me and naps, curled into a Tiger shaped ball of fur in front of the fire. He must be sleeping more than his cat allotted 13–16 hours per day! What power he has to follow the cycles of his own body. 

We all forget that we are nature, made up of water and fire, our animal bodies filled with power and held within the cycles of life itself. When the trance of self-criticism, blame, and the desire to control arise, we have forgotten our own power to choose love, to choose compassion, and to choose life. 

We are the elements, we are the world, we are this earth. Let's look after ourselves and each other with love and respect.