“Fall has always been my favorite season.  Photo by A.Almamour; NY Last week we entered the autumnal equinox. Fall is my favorite season of the year. I love the cooler, crisp air; the apple picking and apple cider; the colorful leaves that fall to the ground later to be raked up and jumped into by laughing children; carving pumpkins and pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting; hot chocolate - with marshmallows; football games, corn maizes and hayrides. In the fall, we are shedding the old where we then rest and reflect during winter, before welcoming the new in the spring. It is a time of great beauty and of letting go - recognizing and then releasing what once was. It's a time to celebrate one of the amazing cycles of life. It is a reminder that we all fall down, yet we pick ourselves back up again and start anew in some way or another. Happy Fall everyone - Adrienne :)
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 The other week, I was walking through the woods with a friend. Our trail crossed another where we ended up behind two teenage boys. The boys were picking up large sticks and branches and were hitting the trees with them or were throwing them as far as they could, cheering after the sound of branch smacking into tree. As this behavior continued, my blood began to boil more and more. Here I was seeing primal behavior at its finest, aggression against Nature and I know what most people would say: but it's no big deal, they're just trees, who cares? you're making a bit deal out of nothing...
I tuned into the land spirits in the forest and asked what they had to say about this. Their words: "calm down." Calm down? How will that get them to stop? I finally asked my friend to say something to them and it turned into a huge learning experience for me. My friend was so calm. He asked them, "why are you doing this?" "Are you bored?" "Are you taking out aggression?" They didn't know how to answer. The one who was doing it the most, almost let a smirk cross his face, but I think he saw my face (when I'm angry - it's not pretty). My friend commented that what they're doing is destructive and unless they had a good reason for it, why continue? The teens mumbled and shrugged their answers, but didn't pick up another branch for the duration of the trail. The way my friend handled the situation was significantly more effective than how I probably would've handled it. If I'd said something, my emotions would have taken over and it would have been more of a lecture - to which they probably would've shut down and shut me out. The entire goal was to get the boys to reflect on what they were doing and why and maybe that it's not a nice way to treat Nature. Thanks to my friend's calm questioning manner, it got them thinking, owning what they were doing and they stopped. The next lesson was when we walked out of the woods. I drank some water and realized something wasn't right. Whenever I fill my water container, I always bless the water. I thank it and infuse it with the vibration of love. Water carries energy like you wouldn't believe, so why not put some great vibes in while hydrating? What I became aware of is the irritation I was feeling in the woods carried through to my drinking water. The water was holding my anger energy. This really got me thinking as I'm also aware that our bodies are made up of more than 60% water. What had the anger and irritation done to my body and well-being??? Maybe that's one of the reasons why the Nature Spirits asked me to calm down. I re-blessed the water and took some deep breaths and exhales. When you see something that bothers you and you know it isn't right, SAY something. Better yet, turn the tables - ASK:
The goal is to get the person to think about it. They could be acting out or simply don't know any better. By asking them, they have to own what they're doing and it leaves the choice in their hands of whether they continue or not. Hopefully, at the very least, they will reflect on it. I'm grateful to the teen boys and the very valuable lessons they taught me. I guess we really are each other's teachers and students. - Adrienne :) No one is born hating another person because of the color of their skin, or their background, or their religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite. ― Nelson Mandela Humanity is defined as human BEINGS collectively. In no dictionary will you see it defined as humans, but only those of certain religion, gender or race. We are a collective and the truth is - no one is any better than anyone else. To believe so is a matter of ego. We all have feelings and emotions, we all bleed when cut and mourn when we lose a loved one. We desire love, freedom and opportunities. To survive, we all must have our basic needs met - food, water, shelter, knowledge... We all have the capacity to feel sadness, fear, joy and excitement. We aren't born disliking someone due to the color of their skin or if they're male or female, Christian or non-Christian. You only have to watch young children interact to know this is true. It's easy to learn to dislike, look down upon or even hate other humans who have specific traits. This learning comes from our family, our community, our culture. I've seen the experience over and over again where people meet, interact and get along incredibly well until they find out the other person is from an opposing religion or from an opposing country. It is then, you would hope, that they open their eyes and heart to the truth that the 'other' person is just like them, a human being. Humanity is also defined as the quality of being humane; benevolence. Every single human being has the capacity and capability for immense compassion as well as horrific destruction. Overall, we seem to lean toward our compassionate side, benevolence and BEING humane. Otherwise, the homo sapien would have eradicated itself long ago. If you feel an animosity towards someone due to their race, beliefs, gender, sexuality or what have you - ask yourself why? Where did this animosity come from? Is the belief I'm holding 100% true? - Can all (insert group here) be evil or are lesser people? Why do I think this way? Do I truly believe this? Remember, there are loving compassionate people as well as violent destructive people. Can we really label an entire group based on a few experiences or based on no experiences or interactions with them at all? The following video contributes to the point I'm trying to make. It actually just goes to the 1:45 mark. Destruction, hate, violence and the non-valuing of human life takes place across the globe. Look to any part of the world and you will find examples of this. What's important to remember and act upon is we always have a choice. Below is the story of Zak Ebrahim - son of one of the terrorists involved in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend you watch it. He is a living, beautiful example of choice - choosing not to hate, choosing not to be "like father, like son." "I'm tired of hating people." In that instant I realized how much negative energy it takes to hold that hatred inside of you. - Zak Ebrahim I'll leave you with this...  Love, Adrienne :)
I love Nature. I've really enjoyed all of the different insects, reptiles and animals that call the desert their home. I love observing them. I’ve been very fortunate, this year especially, to have had some pretty cool encounters. I'd like to share a few of these encounters with you. I'd like to note that with all of them, my camera zoom was not working - so I had to get close to take the photos and videos. Lizards, lizards everywhere! This one really impressed me as he situated himself on this rock and allowed me to get really close to take his picture. He got off the rock and then came back and posed again. So cool.  I'm quite amazed at the quantity of snakes I've seen this year. The one below was on the trail not far from the parking lot. It was halfway off the trail and I almost didn't notice it. At first, I thought maybe it was dead as I'd seen a lot of "roadkill" on the trails from the mountain bikers. Then, it started moving again. The Gophersnake is the longest snake in AZ. They can grow up to 92 inches.  I saw this Striped Whipsnake after one of the first rains this summer. It was hanging out on the rocks above a small creek and didn't seem to care that I was there. Yet, when two more hikers showed up, it threw itself off of the rocks and into the water and then made its way up under the rock ledge.  This next one was near a spot I tend to frequent. It did not seem at all bothered by my presence. I was fascinated. I'd never seen a snake dig a hole before.  Last but not least, I was hiking out from a spot and had the setting sun right in my eyes. As I rounded a corner and hit some shade, I saw this guy coming down the trail towards me. My mind was a bit confused at first as I wasn't quite sure what I was seeing. It's kind of a surreal experience. The picture and video do not do justice as to how big the tarantula actually is.  I'm guessing some of you might be squirming by now. Every part of the nature kingdom has its reason and design. Please remember that they also come from Creator and deserve our respect and love. We were not put on this planet to dominate other species, we are here to live in harmony with each other, as best we can.
- Adrienne :) 
Photo from curiouscatontherun
"Autobiography in Five Short Chapters" by Portia Nelson from There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk Chapter One I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in. I am lost . . . I am helpless. It isn’t my fault . . . It takes forever to find a way out. Chapter Two I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend I don’t see it. I fall in again. I can’t believe I am in this same place, But it isn’t my fault. It still takes a long time to get out. Chapter Three I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it there. I still fall . . . it’s a habit . . . but, My eyes are open. I know where I am. It is my fault. I get out immediately. Chapter Four I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I walk around it. Chapter Five I walk down another street. Through the power of the internet, I somehow came across this poem. I absolutely love it. As you walk down the sidewalks of life, what hole do you keep finding yourself in? How long does it take you to get out? How often do you find yourself back in that hole? How many holes have you learned to walk around? It seems that the holes are inevitable, but how long we spend in them is up to us. What I find uplifting is that once we become aware of the hole and see it for what it is and how we got there, we can avoid it in the future. May your path be smooth, but when it's not, may you have the mindfulness to see why that is and then continue on your way. - Adrienne :)
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July 2024
AuthorHello! I'm Adrienne Almamour, an empathic intuitive conduit. I assist people by detecting and clearing their subconscious emotional energy blockages. This blog is a commentary and reflection of life from an intuitive standpoint which also incorporates ways that allow us to be from our heart. |
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