WILDLY FREE ELDER
The Artistry of Aging
Breathe With Life
Wolf Creek, Grass Valley, California/Photo by Gaye Abbott 2019
Lost in the clouds – form, color and light.
Imagining into shapes creating stories unfolding overhead.
Dwell in the magic of the wind playing with the clouds.
A simple sacred beauty.
Reminder that life is always changing in every moment.
Impermanence.
Clouds seen in one moment shape shift in the next.
Looking away for a single moment
we miss the clouds breathing with us.
Weaverville, NC/Photo by Gaye Abbott 8/2023
Creek flowing home to a destination that is felt, but not seen.
Sound of water flowing over rock and earth
serving as a meditation on life constantly shifting.
Fluidly finding the way around and through crevices…..or flooding the surrounding land.
Marking this sacred space for remembrance of now.
Inhale and exhale
Water flows….breath flows
with stone, earth, plant, tree, feather
alive with the fluid pathway journey
of each moment that will never come again….
Wolf Creek, Grass Valley, CA/Photography & Altar by Gaye Abbott 2019
A necessary ingredient in the Universe is chaos. It can sweep you and the life you have so carefully constructed away. And it is also the place from which all things start anew.
Knowing that you can plan for something your whole life and still get taken by surprise.
BREATHE…
Sunset, Blue Ridge Mountains, N Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott, 11/30/23
December Practice Suggestion: Take time to breathe with life in walking meditation or simply in the moments of everyday life. Stop the busy holiday preparations, distractions and scattered thinking – even for a few moments each day. Loosen the reins of control and expectation. Dwell and breathe in life unfolding now…..
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 12/1/23
The Heart’s Yearning
“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray. In the silence, there is a sacred mystery, a path that shows the way not with words but with the heart’s yearning. ”
RUMI
Perhaps it is the yearning of the heart that draws us to notice the ordinary beauty all around us. To not only notice but to allow it to expand our perception of life in the moment. Through opening our hearts and minds to see beyond what can be the narrow confines of our present mainstream cultural narrative, dependence on technology, and our ingrained patterns of survival. Therein rests our hearts yearning.
There have been so many times in my own life, and I am certain in yours as well, that I was struck by the simple, extraordinary natural beauty before and around me, transported beyond physical being and placed in a spaciousness so vast that I forgot for some moments to be in fear or protection.
It is in those moments that you realize an interconnection so exquisitely woven together that you become part of the tapestry. No longer separate but vibrating with color, texture and elements with senses wide open.
Standing at the rim of the Grand Canyon. Tears flowing in the vast silence. Struck speechless like a child in complete wonder and awe.
Or being with the big trees in Northern California. Seemingly ageless and eternal. Wise and powerful with ancient stories wrapped up in the cells of their being and mine – our ancestral stories.
Giant Sequoia, Yosemite, CA/Photography by National Geographic
Easing into the warm ocean waters on the Bali, Indonesia coast with nearby village people celebrating the beauty of a single embodied life that had recently left them, watching the woven branches and flowers float away on the currents.
Communing with elder healers in the mountains above Mexico City within a sacred cave that held dreams and visions without words. The walls of the cave silent and smooth with the passage of time.
Walking a narrow original Hawaiian trail on the Napali coast in Kauai down to a secluded beach where there were prawns in the stream, waterfall for a shower, brilliant sunsets and a million stars in the sky at night.
Napali Coast trail, Kauai, HI/Photography by Gaye Abbott
Swimming with wild dolphins off the Big Island of Hawaii where their exuberant play and loving, healing energy opened every single cell of my being.
Witnessing the vibrant colors of the Aurora Borealis dancing across the sky on a cold Fairbanks, Alaskan night. Struck by the brilliance and magic of natures light show.
Fairbanks Alaska, Photography by Andrea Goodreau, 11/21/2023
This all within the ordinary beauty of my own life experiences. A part of the whole of the unfolding sacred mystery that is life.
You have been given a ticket to an embodied lifetime. Where is the unique ordinary beauty of your own heart’s yearning leading you?
Thanksgiving Address expresses the ordinary beauty of all that we are blessed with in everyday life. Take a few moments to watch the video below and re-examine your own relationship to nature, as well as a reminder that you already have everything you need during the coming holidays of giving and receiving.
To read the Thanksgiving Address, see the Naraya Cultural Preservation Council’s beautifully illustrated pages.
“You can’t listen to the Thanksgiving Address without feeling wealthy. And, while expressing gratitude seems innocent enough, it is a revolutionary idea. In a consumer society, contentment is a radical proposition. Recognizing abundance rather than scarcity undermines an economy that thrives by creating unmet desires…The Thanksgiving Address reminds you that you already have everything you need… That’s good medicine for land and people alike.”
Robin Wall Kimmerer, from Braiding Sweetgrass
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 11/22/23
In The Marrow of Our Bones
Big Laurel River, French Broad Watershed, N. Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott
In the Marrow of Our Bones
There is ordinary beauty everywhere
often unseen because of distraction
until revealed
at a depth right to the marrow of our bones.
Living in darkness it seeks a way out to the light.
through the cracks in our facade
that no longer are able to remain closed.
Cascading in multi-sensory spirals on a journey of belonging
we discover that beauty always sits right next to us.
Partnered with love and compassion
with eyes and heart wide open
walking down an unknown path
into the mystery
that beckons without words.
Gaye Abbott, 11/4/2023
Blue Ridge Mountains, Western N. Carolina at Sunrise/Photography by Gaye Abbott, 2023
.How often are we challenged by distraction missing the moments that are the very essence of life unfolding?
I pose that question to live within, not to answer. The shifts and changes continue in spite of our compelling need to control. That is the only part of this elder journey we can be certain of.
It is this complex variety of form, color, light and darkness where beauty emerges from. Our perception and filters color these moments easing them into our attention.
Where will you place your attention this week…..this moment?
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 11/17/23
Sunrise
What is the first thing you do when you awaken?
Being grateful for awakening into a new fresh day. Or perhaps stretching and feeling into this miraculous body you have been gifted no matter the challenges of aging you may be facing or feeling.
Since nature is such an intimate companion for me I often move the curtains aside when it is still dark in the early morning hours and set myself up to see the sunrise – a profoundly scared time for me. The beauty that light illuminates is awe inspiring.
A simple ordinary beauty from the bedroom window revealing itself through the now diminished leaves on the River Birch outside the window. Compounded by the surprise of open blossoms on the Christmas Cactus in the foreground.
A piece of art that is ever changing…..
Weaverville, NC/Photography Gaye Abbott, 11/2023
Starting the day with mindfulness and vision that perceives beauty seems to soften and enhance, at the same time, the way this day will unfold. A sense of possibility and opportunity to walk with eyes and heart wide open into the day.
Promising that the flare of color will show itself when most needed to inspire and nourish as the daylight increases…..and you begin to breathe fully into the moment.
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 11/10/23
Where The Light Shines
Photography by Gaye Abbott, 10/29/23
It suddenly captured my attention from the sofa where I was seated in the home of a client where I was staying to care for their German Sheppard. Sitting on the mantel absorbing the morning light and radiating out into the room. A simple object that in its simplicity and beauty reminded me of an ancient art piece woven with gold, bronze and light.
A representation of light capturing natures essence in leaf, spiral, curves and spaces.
In those moments I was catapulted into a different time and age of medieval artisan who created from the alchemy of metal, form and light. Precious objects that vibrated with an energy that told stories of long ago.
Alchemy is stated as the medieval chemical science and speculative philosophy that focused on the attempt to change less valuable metals into gold (which was discredited in the 19th century), to find a universal cure for disease, and to discover a means of prolonging life indefinitely. It was practiced in much of the ancient world, from China and India to Greece.
In any given moment something or someone can experience transformation or transmutation of a simple every day ordinary experience or creation. This is woven into the mystery of life unfolding.
Perhaps as elders we are actually in a state of transmutation as our bodies change. Certainly at times to our dismay. If we change the “falling apart” story, not ignoring the biology of aging, would we become through alchemy such as this – a golden apple filled with spaces where the light shines through?
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 11/3/23
Life Is Magic
“The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.”
Alan Watts
Alone in the beauty and magic of the natural world. An ordinary beauty that nourishes and expands breath weaving magic through all of the senses. Alone but not lonely.
Big Laurel Creek, Western N. Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott/10/2023
We are fed by beauty and especially that of nature. How often do we simply take our natural surroundings for granted. Forgetting that this part of us can be an elixir for despair and heartache in a world gone crazy. A remembrance of wholeness and interconnection…..not separation.
Not as a “prescription” taken to ward off the symptoms of brokenness we see all around us, and at times within us, but a way to return back to the source and ground ourselves in a landing back to the earth. To an anchoring to something that is as much a part of us as we are of it. A pathway to reconnect with the heart and soul of creation beyond the strife and challenges of being human.
From this connection and ordinary beauty we touch back into our lives and remember the magic that brought us into embodiment.
“Special instinctive natural magic – that is what life is” says Harry Owen now of South Africa, originally born in a harsh urban environment outside of Liverpool, UK, in the short Green Renaissance video below.
“When out in nature, we often feel so small, dwarfed by the grand sweep of the stars, the oceans, and the mountains. And yet we are still part of it all – connected to the miracle of the first flower to emerge from the soil, awed by the iridescent flash of wings in mid-flight, the feeling of a raindrop rolling down the face, or the spiralling song of a bird up above.
Nature can be a wonderful friend, a source of true healing and inspiration. It is full of enduring beauty, wonder, and mystery — a place that nourishes us physically and spiritually every single day.
In nature, we can know that, as small and short-lived as we are, we still belong to the universe. We are part of the everlasting grandeur and mystery. And our lives are inseparable from the world’s many different natural spectacles, breathtaking occurrences, and unforgettable magic moments.
“Magic, magic, magic – I am part of magic. What more could I ask for?” – Harry Owen
Filmed in Stellenbosch, South Africa.
Featuring Harry Owen.
Both poems which Harry reads during this film, are written by him. If you would like to know more about Harry and the books which he has published, visit his website – harryowen.co.za
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 10/28/23
The Beauty of Interwoven Connections
Beaver Lake, Asheville, North Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott, 2023
“…you and I don’t end at our fingertips or skin – we are connected through air, water and soil….we are quite literally air, water, soil, energy and other living creatures.”
David Suzuki
Standing on the wooden walkway at the Audubon Bird Sanctuary my companion saw her first. Long turtle neck stretching up to the sky soaking in the suns rays, her body grounded on the log in the lake water poised amidst the reflections of Fall color.
The energy that was this turtle, the calm water of Beaver Lake, the soil that nourishes the trees and plant life saturating the air around us, the still and peaceful energy woven with bird song, delivered us into the present moment – a woven tapestry of elements.
An expression of alchemy within interwoven connections expressing an ordinary beauty that was stunning in its simplicity.
Looking up, as the turtle was, the impact of the entire reflective lake surface and surroundings stunned me for some moments where silent appreciation almost brought me to my knees.
Beaver Lake is surrounded by houses and a road into downtown Asheville, NC yet in those moments all I saw and felt was beauty….and a deep connection to it all.
We are indeed air, water, soil, energy and other living creatures. There is no separation but that which our mind creates…..
Beaver Lake, Asheville, North Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott, 2023
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 10/20/23
Ordinary Beauty
“Elder Devotion” – Nature Park, Weaverville, NC/Photography by Gaye Abbott
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of the birds, the ebb and flow of the tides, the folded bud ready for spring. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature. The assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter. “
Rachel Carson
With so much violence and unrest going on among humans, I have recently gravitated towards consciously finding the beauty in everyday ordinary experiences. This soothes my broken heart, even for just a moment in time, and releases me into a calmer more peaceful inner being and appreciation.
Knowing that beauty is everywhere reminds me to be more kind, compassionate and trusting. To see and create beauty and find joy wherever it beckons. To be in nature often.
The couple pictured in the image above immediately took my attention as I walked the trail of our local Nature Park just a few days ago. The first interaction was a simple ‘good day’ and smiles as we passed each other by. When I had walked a bit more there they were again in front of me now, slow movers enjoying the moments in nature and with each other. I saw that they were holding hands.
A smile lit my face as I followed them down the path where we veered off in different directions. I allowed the feelings they evoked in me to come to the surface – joy at seeing them connected in this way, the beauty of elder companions enjoying each other and nature, and also some sadness that I did not have a devoted partner at this stage of my life.
Not thinking I would see them again I was finishing my walk and almost back to my car when I came face to face with them on the path and took the opportunity to tell them how much I appreciated seeing them holding hands and enjoying each others company. From that moment on we were connected for a period of time as they responded to my first question about how long they had been together. Over 56 years married and 63 years together having met at a high school dance so many decades ago. Love at first sight.
This led to a full in depth conversation as I learned they were in the area on vacation, originally born in the New England area. We covered so many topics in our brief conversation laced with laughter and the joy of simply being alive and in nature, as well as touching a bit on what is unfolding in the world and in our own country.
Simply grateful to be able to walk out in nature hand in hand with a beloved devoted partner. They were both articulate, present, and engaging. As we parted ways I continued to smile at the simple, ordinary beauty that I had witnessed and been a part of that day.
How often do we pass by ordinary beauty and opportunities for connection that can lift us from despair?
“ORDINARY BEAUTY” will be a series of short weekly blog posts through the end of this year on finding and witnessing ordinary beauty through the experience and wisdom of elderhood. Stay tuned!
If you don’t want to miss future posts simply sign up for the blog here: https://wildlyfreeelder.wordpress.com/blog/
Please note that all blog posts can be seen on the HOME page if you scroll down to the bottom for Archives
Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 10/13/23
Time Or Moments?
Blue Ridge Mountains at Sunrise, W. North Carolina/Photography by Gaye Abbott
“Maybe there is no such thing as time; there are only moments,
each with its own story.”
Robin Wall Kimmerer from “Braiding Sweetgrass”
Yesterday, when I realized that it was “already September” I felt a bit of panic rush in that “life was passing me by”. But it was my mind based in human time that created that feeling, not what I live these days of the seasons evolving, birdsong filling the airwaves each morning, brilliant sunrises to be in wonder and awe within, moments spent in nature, and sharing love and connection with friends and with animals.
It is easy to get sucked into the mainstream belief that there “isn’t enough time” and miss completely the precious moments we are gifted with and the stories that evolve out of them. Isn’t that where our living is rooted?
It is when we are in the moments that we perceive the beauty and preciousness of life, but also the suffering and death that is a natural part of being alive on earth. To ride that edge of being fully in the moment and at the same time make room to acknowledge it could be the last….of a partner, friend, beloved animal, …..or ourselves.
In indigenous wisdom all life is one and is inextricably interconnected. There is no separateness, only wholeness. The actions and choices we take and make create the stories that evolve. Where we place our attention grows to take over the moments – to explore, discover and creatively express.
Shouldn’t we choose wisely and see through the lens of wholeness with all of our senses…right now?
“I’m dying for everybody to see what I see, because it is so wonderful. The world that I dream of is the one that we’ve got, because I think it is absolutely incredible.” – Vicki Thomas
Vicki is a botanical artist, and from the moment she painted her first flower back in 1980, she knew that it would become a lifelong passion. Her work is a visual demonstration of her deep connection to the earth.
To see more of her work, visit – www.botanicalart.co.za
We, Green Renaissance, make these short films as passion projects, to share inspiration. You can help us make more films like this by making a tiny donation, so we can continue this journey with you – http://www.patreon.com/greenrenaissance
Who is Green Renaissance? We are a tiny collective of 4 passionate filmmakers (Warren, Jacky, Michael and Justine). We live off-grid and dedicate our time to making films that we hope will inspire and share ideas.
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 09/02/23
Tipping the Scales Away from Fear and Towards Love
There are times when I come across someone who aligns with the vibration I hold for myself and the world. A higher vibration of love, compassion, kindness and wholeness. Vivek Murthy is one of those individuals who sees and perceives from a much larger viewpoint. His clarity and transparency is refreshing and inspiring.
Vivek Murthy is the 21st Surgeon General of the United States having also served in this role from 2014 to 2017. He hosts the podcast “House Calls with Dr. Vivek Murthy” and is the author of “Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World”.
We are indeed “in a tender place” as Krista Tippett says in her introduction to Vivek Murthy in the podcast below. So many in loneliness and despair, especially our younger generations….and our elders.
Sometimes it isn’t until we are a “certain age” that we trust who we are inside and feel confident enough to bring that out into the world. Sometimes it takes a lifetime to get there. Many never do..
Personally I came into this life to be and become a “healer”. I can’t even tell you how many times that calling in life has changed faces. It began as “caregiver” as a parent, nurse, massage therapist. Then blossomed into yoga therapist/teacher and energy medicine practitioner.
Now at an age where I don’t seem to need labels of identity I have found that it is a simple matter, though sometimes wrought with challenges, to shift from fear to love – the foundation of “healing”. It has taken me this long to realize that love is the oldest medicine we have for “healing” and wholeness within ourselves and with each other.
Learning that our strength is the fundamental ability to give and receive love. Not a technique, a new therapy or pill…..but a vibrational heart and soul energy, if you will, that far surpasses any of that. In the face of pain, disillusionment, fear, loneliness and grief we do have the power to bring acknowledgement, comfort and support without needing to “fix” anything. To find “home” for ourselves and others without GPS or AI!
It comes from our actions and our interactions; our decisions and our choices. Our own self awareness and respect. These are our innate direction finders. to move us from contraction and protection to openness and trust in any given moment.
Vivek Murthy poses this question, “Who are we and what are our values?” and gives us some suggestions:
- Spend 15 minutes/day connecting with someone you love other than those you live with
- Give people the gift of your full attention when you talk to them – stranger, family or friend
- Find opportunities to serve others – forge connection and reaffirm you have value to bring to the world
- Within Solitude and Silence – know your own value – connected to others and the quality of relationships.
I invite you to listen to this powerful and transparent interview with Vivek Murthy below. Be inspired to improve and rebuild social connection, foundation and well being in the face of so much current upheaval. Each of us has something to bring to tip the scales from fear to love within ourselves and with each other.
“We need a modicum of vitality to simply be alive in this time. And we’re in an enduringly tender place. The mental health crisis that is invoked all around, especially as we look to the young, is one manifestation of the gravity of the post-2020 world. How to name and honor this more openly? How to hold that together with the ways we’ve been given to learn and to grow? Who are we called to be moving forward?
Dr. Vivek Murthy is a brilliant, wise, and kind companion in these questions. He’s a renowned physician and research scientist in his second tenure as U.S. Surgeon General. And for years, he’s been naming and investigating loneliness as a public health matter, including his own experience of that very human condition.
It is beyond rare to be in the presence of a person holding high governmental office who speaks about love with ease and dignity — and about the agency to be healers that is available to us all. There is so much here to walk away with, and into. This conversation quieted and touched a room full of raucous podcasters at the 2023 On Air Fest in Brooklyn.” Krista Tippett, On Being
More often these days it seems our ability to talk to each other is broken amidst the divisiveness. To have meaningful dialog and ask questions. This can then lead to experiencing loneliness, isolation and mental distress – a disconnection and feeling of not belonging. Perhaps the short meditation below can be helpful to bring us back to what really matters…..
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Gaye Abbott, Wildly Free Elder, 08/04/23
WILDLY FREE ELDER 