May/June Nature Musings 2024

Hi everyone,

Welcome to the May/June 'Nature Musings Blog' - a chance to look back over these last 2 months and remember and honour what nature has shown us and continually teaches us.

I have loved the slower, calmer transition this year from Spring into Summer.  As we turned into Beltane on the 1st of May everything seemed to be at least one month behind growing wise.  But it felt okay, it actually felt like the earth was slowing us down which felt amazing.  Time to gather our thoughts and ideas and not rush into projects and be taken up with the rising Beltane energy.

This year for me the Beltane fire within really fuelled what I needed to do......to teach and be more attentive to what was going on around me.  Not rushing around, trying to do too much.  I listened and rose with the energy this year.

However, the energy of the last 2 weeks, with the climax of energy with the turning of the wheel to the Summer Solstice, has been seriously intense.......AND not forgetting the Full Moon within that energy too!  So for some of you there were lots of changes, feelings of the world running away from you, and just not enough time in the day to do everything.  That energy has now passed, thankfully, and it feels less intense, everything that was in the air is slowly coming back down again, and I know personally I'm feeling more settled (phew).  

I've had some amazing encounters these last 2 months with the more-than-human realm, and ones which have brought so much awe and wonder into my life.  I have noticed more colour, more depth in colour too as you'll read further on down...just how many colours can grasses display?  

The Well-being programme too has brought everyone together as a community weaving our energy through the co-working of the Wild Bee essence on the Solstice - a very magical day indeed.

Lots to take in and absorb these last 2 months.  In fact this May has probably been the most vibrant May for me in a very long time - through noticing more and being engaged with the land more too.  Although the temperatures haven't been the usual summer weather, I have enjoyed time to be on the land where I work.

I hope you enjoy reading this journey of nature occurrences that have really stood out for me...

I absolutely adore Bees - I love their quirky wiggle dances (communicating between each other), their sheer size and the fact they actually take off with such large bodies and small wings, and their sleepy butts hanging out of flower heads....and of course the fact that a third of our food is pollinated by bees!

I love how our ancestors honoured and talked to the Bees, informing them of all the comings and goings in the neighbourhood.  Keeping the Bees informed when someone married or died really meant that the Bee community was part of the human community (or is it the other way around!).  

For insects with such tiny brains they interpret so much - they can interpret different landscapes, flower species, shapes and patterns.  They can even work out the shortest distance between objects, display both long and short term memory, communicate symbolically and demonstrate spatial awareness!  Impressive for such a small insect.

Over 100 million years ago bees evolved from wasps and yet today is perhaps the most challenging time of all for them due to man!  In the UK we have over 300 species of Bees and over 250 of these are solitary.  We also have 25 different species of Bumblebee.  But in the last 50 years, in the UK alone we have lost more than half of the solitary Bee numbers, and 3 species of Bumblebee have actually become extinct, with another 6 listed as endangered.  But this is true for all pollinators of all kinds all around the world....alarming to say the least.

A number of factors are interfering with Bees' ability to function correctly - habitat loss, pesticides/herbicides (don't get me started about the number of banned chemicals thanks to EU policy that have now made their way back into and onto our land because of Brexit!!!!), light pollution, climate change, pest and pathogens, bad beekeeping, disease transfer, diesel exhaust fumes, fear of bees (yes if you fear them then you're not really going to be passionate about saving them are you?!).  

So my deep nature connection with Bees really took flight five years ago when I moved back to Wellington.  There is a beautiful walk along the River Tone that follows the river for some 12 miles.  About 3 miles along this route there is a very large old Oak trunk that has not quite fallen, but resembles a large Buffalo or Gruffalo (pic further down in this blog).  A hive of wild Bees live in this old stump, entering what looks like the mouth of the Buffalo.  Every year I pass these Bees and stop and talk to them, and just watch them.  So busy flying back and forth with nectar for the hive, they are a marvel to see....and hear!  The hive sound is so relaxing!!

So the last 2 months these particular Bees have been in my dreams, and every time I pass this hive they really do stand out and want me to observe their behaviour.  Their calling came really strongly just before the Solstice, so gathering the Well-being group members we co-created a Wild Bee essence with this amazing hive.  That co-creation felt so held and sacred with wonderful teachers....the energy of fertility, sexuality, a symbol of accomplishing the impossible, of determination and hard work, a symbol of the Sun and our sacred connection, of the power of the community and hive mind to further humanity for the good of all.  

Where would we be without the bee...

"If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man."

Albert Einstein

What colour is grass???

This last 4 weeks I have really noticed the vast rich tapestry that are the colours of grass!  I implore you to take a walk through any meadow in the countryside and tell me 'what colour is grass?'

From creamy whites, to purples and reds the range of colour is simply outstanding this year....or perhaps I'm being reminded to look more!

Grass pollen is my one big 'allergic' reaction, but this year I have spent so many hours photographing the colours and delicate shapes of the grass heads within the meadows where I walk Willow....and no allergic reaction!  Even on the land where I work, the wild meadow areas are abound with purples, reds and pink pollen.  What a feast for the eyes!!

So if you haven't noticed the rich tapestry of colour of grass then go and see for yourself.  Spend time noticing the differences within a short distance, and notice too the effect of a soft breeze on these grasses...mesmerising.

I love symmetry in nature.  Being a mathematics nerd in my late teens I was really drawn and read up loads on the Mandelbrot set, Fibonacci sequence and fractals, and then seeing mathematics in nature just blew my mind.   

Nature shows us complex structures that repeat, have pattern and order, but there is also disorder and chaos too.  One can not exist without the other.

One plant that really has shone out for me these last few months is Horsetail (Equisetum spp.)....a very ancient, prehistoric plant.  Going back to ancient Rome and Greece, this wonderful plant was used as a herbal remedy to stop bleeding, heal ulcers and wounds, treat tuberculosis and kidney problems.  

A fern that during the Carboniferous age (more than 230 million years ago), was the dominant plant group in the world, with plants reaching gigantic size (30m tall). Two basic forms of horsetails survive today.  Making it the oldest living genera of vascular plants today....wow, a living fossil!!

AND Horsetail thrives in damp soils so it's no wonder that it’s made such a happy home here in the UK!

Through the Doctrine of Signatures, Horsetail with its skeletal structure and jointed segments, indicate one of its primary uses in strengthening and healing joints, bones and connective tissue.  Famed for its high silica content it not only helps the musculoskeletal system but strengthens weak nails and hair when used either externally or internally as well as arteries and veins. This is also reflected in the strong stems which could be seen to relate to the various channels of the body.

It is also commonly used in conditions of the bladder including chronic cystitis, benign prostate enlargement, incontinence and enuresis (bedwetting) as it strengthens the connective tissue of the bladder and has astringent properties.  As a kidney tonic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial it is greatly beneficial for the whole urinary system and can be a helpful diuretic, reducing oedema and swelling.

The astringent and healing properties also make it a great wound herb when used externally as a compress or poultice.

Horsetail is mostly consumed in the form of tea, which is made by steeping the dried herb in hot water.  It's also available in capsule and tincture form. Horsetail is classified as a fern that contains beneficial compounds, notably antioxidants and silica.  

For me a wonder plant....so why when I scan the internet do I find page after page about how gardeners should kill this invasive plant!  'A deep rooted perennial weed' horrified me!!  Like the Bee our desire to eradicate and sterilise 'our plot of eden' has far reaching consequences.  Our 'more-than-human' elders can teach us so much if only we would listen.........

The energy medicine, the plant spirit medicine of this plant is what inspires me the most.  A plant that brings strength, clarity through opening the conscious, subconscious and super-conscious.....a gateway for communication between worlds....and it has much wisdom to share!

Pareidolia - the art of seeing faces in inanimate objects...or are we really seeing the spirit of that object?

Ever since reading Alice in Wonderland, and disappearing down the tunnel after the rabbit, down into the Lower World to meet all those mystical and magical beings......all representative of Alice embracing and finding her true self as we all do during energy/shamanic work....I simply loved the faces of the flowers and plants portrayed in the story.  

And something I see regularly when out walking are the faces and creatures captured in stone, leaf, flower and tree.  Imagination is a powerful tool...it makes you think in a way not standard for people.  It fires up your creative energy being able to problem solve quicker and easier.  Imagination makes it possible to experience a whole world inside the mind.......and through collecting data that you see of patterns and shapes allowing you to form a deeper connection with that inanimate being.

Imagination can change our reality in that it can allow us to deepen our connection to the more-than-human.  Mental imagery and visualisation can alter how we perceive the world around us....so having the ability to see faces in nature allows me to give personhood to that world, to realise that I and 'it' are not separate....that we are full of patterns and faces and connections all waiting to be explored.

Go and find a flower with a face - pansies are my favourite; or pick up a stone and find the faces hidden within its cracks.  Start expanding your imagination and be more child-like with your curiosity......have fun with your imagination!  We are allowed!

“I am not crazy; my reality is just different from yours.” 

Cheshire Cat

The Wheel of the Year has reached its peak, our slow downward turn to the Winter Solstice has begun........BUT take each day slowly and notice the changes that occur.  Let's not rush too quickly into winter, let us savour the time of summer madness and the harvests to come.

Thank you for reading my nature musings for the last two months.  I would love to hear your connection stories with the natural world, and the plants and animals that have helped you too - send me an email or respond via Facebook. 

Look out for the next Nature Musing Blog which will appear in your email boxes from end of August.  A list of what is going on re workshops, talks, etc., will appear as a separate 'newsletter' which should be flying into your email boxes soon.  

Enjoy your own nature musings throughout July and August...enjoy the bounty that Summer and the first harvest brings!

Nature Blessings,

Karen x