The Sacred Path

I typically journey about three or four times a week. Sometimes I have a destination or a subject in mind before hand and sometimes I do not. Sometimes after I get to my Sacred Garden an idea for a journey occurs to me, or is suggested by my helping spirits, and sometimes I just sit, relax and unwind.

Sunday night I didn’t really have anything particular in mind when I headed off for my Sacred Garden. After arriving I offered my customary greeting to all those spirits that are in relation with me, and then told my spirit helpers, guides and ancestors that I was leaving the journey up to them. I immediately found myself at the head of the trail off one side of my Sacred Garden that leads to the lower worlds; the dreamtime of the earth, animal and nature spirits. The trail emptied out into a large clearing, and in the middle of the clearing was the spirit of the tree I wrote about in my post titled Grand Tetons, The Patriarch. I greeted my friend and asked if he had a message for me. I felt the spirit of the tree embrace me and my journey began.

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The past few days have been hot with low humidity, and the Bone Creek fire in the Big Horn Mountains just west of me has picked back up. Most days, the smoke does not come down into Sheridan, but this afternoon the winds were out of the northwest, and the smoke descended on us, filling the air with that sweet smell.

I find the smell of wood smoke unbelievably intoxicating and if I relax into its sweet embrace it will carry me away. I’m not sure where this link to wood smoke comes from, but I’ve had it as long as I can remember. I spent about an hour sitting out on my steps tonight surrounded by it’s sweetness. At one point, I became aware of a soft distant drumming, then came the chanting of some Native American ceremony, and I could sense them dancing around a fire in their finest ceremonial dress. It was at this point that the mosquitos and bugs became too much of a distraction and I came back inside.

Tonight I will sleep with all my windows open and invite the spirits of the smoke to come in and again carry me away.