Swan Sanctuary

We humans are the only species that create waste. We have literally created mountains of waste from our garbage. We have junk yards filled with inoperable automobiles and car parts. We have buildings filled with obsolete electronics and electronic appliances. Our waste has infiltrated our rivers and oceans – and even our drinking water. Our rivers and oceans are laden with a potpourri of chemicals including medications, herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, fertilizers, and cleaning products. Factories all over the world spew out waste into the air, soil, and water.

Nature; however, does not do waste. On the many great plains throughout our planet, herd animals graze. As they graze, they move along, migrating, so that the grasses they have chomped down can regrow. Their hooves help to loosen the soil and their dung and urine fertilize it, so that the plants are replenished. This is what the buffalo of North America did for the land for hundreds of years, before they were hunted to near extinction. They were replaced with domesticated cows, pigs, and sheep – and the land – with non-native grasses. The large number of migrating herd animals are what is known as a keystone species within an ecosystem. They provide food for the predators that prey on them and everything is kept in balance this way. Without the herd animals, the predators die of starvation. In the case of deer, they overpopulate due to the absence of predators and succumb to disease.

We now keep huge populations of domesticated animals in captivity. They are not allowed to move around or graze, as they were designed to do. They are fed corn, which requires hundreds of acres of land to grow – land that could be used to grow food for us. These animals are crowded together in a confined space. Their dung and urine becomes waste as it is mixed into the ground where they trod, compacting the soil into a foul smelling goop. This gives rise to disease organisms and the animals are treated with antibiotics to combat them. This animal agriculture is something that cannot continue. The cost to our economy and the cost to our planet is too dear. We must begin to mimic Mother Nature, allowing the cycle of life to continue and balance to be restored.

I have been listening to various podcasts and documentaries about sustainable gardening, permaculture, the environment, and most alarming, the decreasing numbers of thousands of animal and plant species. I was recently asked by someone if I was “big on environmental conservation.” 

My reply was, “Yes!” “It is my passion.”

A speaker in one of the talks I listened to said, “We need to fall in love with the world.”

This was such a beautiful way of saying that we need to care. 

We have all been in love at one time or another. I doubt that there is a human being alive who has not felt this emotion. We fall in love with someone we are attracted to. We may fall in love with our newborn baby, or a puppy. There are an infinite number of people and things with which we can fall in love. When we truly love someone or something, it becomes sacred to us. We care for it, protect it, and treat it with reverence. We would not dream of harming it. The problem is that most people keep love to themselves, as though it is something to be coveted, rather than shared. They do not understand that love is actually the power that animates life in us and in everything. 

I am astounded at the disregard so many people show for the precious things in our lives. They withhold love from themselves and from others. Their contempt can be seen in the disrespect they show for the very world that gives them life. 

When we realize that we are one with all life, that we are part of Nature and not separate from her, we cannot help but love life itself. Our planet has given our life to us – for free. She asks nothing in return, yet we have exploited and taken from her. We cannot heal our planet when we continue to harbor hatred in our hearts. We must first fall in love. We must fall in love with Earth, with her water, air, soil, and sun, and all of her beings with whom we share her – our common mother.

Throughout history, there has been reference to more than a hundred mythological creatures. Our modern world has mostly blown them off as fantasy, from a time when humans were more easily controlled by fear. They (presumably) understood less about our world than we now know. Images of the gryphon (or griffin) that had a lion’s body with the head of an eagle, have been found as far back as 200 years BCE. The sphinx, with a lion’s body and the head of a pharaoh, is believed to have been around for about 4,500 years. Many of the mythological beings of old were hybrids, having been a combination of two known species. We are familiar with many of these legendary creatures – unicorns, dragons, mermaids, and faeries. There exists some controversy as to whether or not any of them actually existed, since no “evidence” has been found.

Interestingly enough, unicorns, dragons, satyrs, and other such creatures appear in the bible. Many religions tell people that the bible is to be taken at its word – literally. It basically comes down to interpretation and whether or not a person is willing to let someone else decipher and define for them what they should believe. 

Neville Goddard, a popular philosopher of the early 20th century, shed new light on the stories in the bible, showing us that these were just that – stories and metaphors – and not to be taken literally. We cannot of course, rule out the possibility that at least some of the mythological creatures did in fact, exist. We human beings have always lived in an intelligent universe, in spite of our own ignorance. We know much more today about the other species that we share this planet with. 

I am often fascinated by the intelligence displayed in the behavior of other animals. Some of the architectural design that a bird implements in the building of a nest, or the intricate pattern in a spider’s web is amazing to behold. The more that we learn about our world, the more we come to know what we do not know. It is only with humble observance and reverence for all LIFE that we can truly begin to understand, to appreciate, and to be grateful for that which is nothing short of miraculous. We might, if we are patient, be privy to the sight of a “mythological” creature. At the very least, we can gain appreciation for those species that exist today.

Ever since the recent pandemic, many people have grown concerned over the delays in supply chains, the price of gas, and the availability of food. Some have already taken steps towards becoming self-sufficient and moving off grid. It hasn’t hit too hard yet, but I believe that the day is not far off, when many people will no longer be able to afford to heat their houses. Water, too, is becoming scarce due to prolonged drought in the south and west regions of the country. Lake Powell, which is the source of water for several states, has receded to only one quarter of its former level.

The resulting fear and panic, in a dire situation, will test our spiritual strength. Will we repeat mistakes of the past, turning our hearts against one another? Will riots and war break out, spelling doom for the human race? Or, will enough of us rise up with the courage to make a better world? Will we reform our world based on harmony and balance, rather than on greed and hatred?

Most of us have grown up with much that we have taken for granted. We turn on lights with the flip of a switch. We take hot showers every day. If we are cold, we push the thermostat a little higher and if we are too hot, we employ air conditioning and drink ice cold drinks that are always at our fingertips. What would we do if these modern conveniences suddenly disappeared? Imagine, if Alexa ignored our commands, or Hey, Google! could no longer help us. How would we react if our electronic devices became unresponsive?

If we maintain proper perspective, we know that the human race has survived for millenia, without all of our modern conveniences. We understand that we are part of Nature and the means for our survival has already been provided. We can run away, find our own little piece of property, and create a self-sustaining way of life. But, the truth is, we are not islands. We need each other. We may be able to live on our own for a short time, but it will take great courage to lead all of us to a more sustainable way of living on our planet. 

The tortoise, too, has survived. It has its shell to provide safety, but eventually it must poke out its small head to find food and find a mate. The times that lie ahead cannot be escaped from. We must confront the problems that we are facing. We must confront them together.