Time-sick Earthly Beings gathered at the edge of a lake south of the wildfires ravaging Canada.
Thus have I heard:
The earth is crying.
Thus have I seen:
The animals are going extinct.
Thus have I smelled:
Oil spills burning on the ocean and toxic particulates filling the air.
Thus have I tasted:
Plastic in water.
Thus have I touched:
Wounds of future generations robbed of hope.
Thus have I thought:
I fear we cannot survive.
Flourishing diversity pulsing together
Caring, connecting, collaborating
Multi-solving emerges
Through reciprocity, symbiosis, and patience
Friendships blossom love
What do we hear?
The wind blowing through the trees
Plants, Animals, Rocks, Waters teaching Ancestral Wisdom
Children laughing seven generations into the future
The wisdom of compassion
What can we see?
Beauty in scales, fur, skin, and feathers
Wonder of fireflies lighting our world
The web of interdependence is our strength
What can we smell?
Jasmine flowers, lavender, and basil
Freshly brewed tea and coffee
Pine needles regenerating the soil
Rain washing the sky
What can we taste?
Vegetables grown by children in the schoolyard
Sweetness of maple trees
Food that nourishes all beings
What can we touch?
Tender beings in need of care
Primordial sound vibrating through our bodies-hearts-minds-spirits
The earth and sky as we danzamos
Walking on mycelium and microbes, awakening a network of love
What can we think?
Fractals amplify change
Earth Awareness embodies active wisdom
Earth Awareness is the Way
Earth is one family
What wants to emerge?
— On the occasion of the BESS Earth Awareness Working Group Retreat of Mind & Life Institute, On the Unceded Lands of the Algonquin Anishnaabe, During the Seventh Month of 2026, Waxing Crescent through Waxing Gibbous Moon
Written by Paula Arai, Erin McCarthy, Erika Diaz-Almeyda, Constanza Baquedano, Pooja Sahni, Sheila Kinkade, Lucy Schultz, and Christy Wilson-Mendenhall
