My Tree
Eco-Spirituality Death & Dying Exercise
(Using nature for assisting self or another in facing death) by Marcia Beachy Taking a deep, relaxing breath and closing your eyes… Imagine your life, your long life—or your short life—as a tree… What sort of tree comes to mind as you consider your life? Is it old and gnarled or still a young sapling? Does your tree lose its leaves every autumn like the oak or is your tree evergreen like a ponderosa pine? Is it large and powerful or delicate and lovely? As you let the tree of your life come into your awareness, notice its color, its size and its presence…
The few live branches left on your tree are now losing their life force and surrendering their present form…Similarly, your body is losing its life force and letting go of its present form. Remember this: just like a tree that dies, a dying person is still giving to life all around them. A dead tree trunk continues to be a home for owls and woodpeckers. A rotting tree continues to create soil for those trees yet to come.
As you are letting go, as your body is no longer a fit home for your soul, life is still being nourished by the love you shared on Earth and the obstacles you mastered. Your spirit is still wafting through the lives of all who know you. The understanding you have contributed to the vast storehouse of wisdom, abides forever. As you leave your body, whenever that time arrives, rest peacefully knowing that your spirit lives on in those who come after you—and that you are and will always be a part of it ALL. |