Healing Spirit, by Kay Halsey

Please take time to read this piece by Kay. You will be glad you did. In a little slip of the fingers, I accidentally typed “peace” instead of “piece” in that first sentence. After you read this, you might be able to figure out why!

April 2012

 

            An excellent TV advertisement is pictures of different people of all ages saying, “It’s in here!”  Indeed it is.  We are spiritual beings, sensitive to the sounds, smells, sights, feelings (touch) of our existence.  The bird songs in early morning awaken our awareness that we are not alone.  The light and heat of the sun trigger our feeling of warmth.  The smell of bread cooking or roses blooming trigger memories of beauty through their smells.  The touch of a greeting of another alerts our joy in human friendship.  We have an inner spirit which communicates with our whole body if given time.  It is called meditation.

            I have not always understood the beauty of the inner spirit.  I saw American Indians beating a drum and chanting the same notes as they danced in a circle.  It was just strange to me!  I smelled exquisite perfume on some people and thought, “They’re just attracting others.”  I’ve sat by campfires, enjoying every minute, but not realizing the relaxation benefit of pine smell of crackling fire.  My husband and I loved to sit on Seal Beach pier and listen to the waves roll in or whisper as they drew back.  The ocean sounds were basic to our early being, but I just thought, “This is what we do on Saturday morning,” not realizing I was connecting my soul to the Earth’s forces or meditating with my inner self. 

            Our body has all the medication we need to live well and be healthy if we open up ourselves to our inner spirit.  Our national parks were created so that people could go and embrace their essences.  In order to save the most beautiful spots in our country, our government, beginning with Teddy Roosevelt, set aside Yellowstone National Park because of its uniqueness.

             John Muir had come from Scotland and written books about the joy of Yosemite.  He often had just a blanket and pieces of bread but climbed the mountains and drank from the rivers and distanced himself from civilization for days, enjoying the restorative effects of nature on the human soul.

            Time Magazine recently carried an article about how life past 2012 is going to change because the parks are not being restored due to the economic situation and the threefold increase in population.  More people crowd out space for each.  Family vacations of camping in national parks have been possible for years.  To get a reservation today takes sending a request at least six months in advance.  Can we develop a new way to restore our souls?  Considering the pressure of modern life, we need to protect our beautiful natural places.