Feeling Rootless?
The word “Roots” has many meanings and significance in various contexts. In literature, we analyse the root of the meaning of words and we often discuss “the root causes” of worldly issues. Often in religious prose, we read “to root out evil” and often in a quest to know our ancestors and to learn about ourselves, we read about the roots of Homo Sapiens.
In this piece, I shall keep things simple and I will just write about botanical roots and their significance to me. Roots, are fundamentally the source of nourishment for our beautiful nature, sourcing our plants and trees whilst promoting growth as they grow stronger. Roots help trees to communicate with one another too, the hairline root tips of trees join together with microscopic fungal filaments to create a pathway of exchange of nutrients and possibly to communicate encouragement if one particular tree is feeling a little under the weather. I simply love the name scientists have coined for these networks: the Wood Wide Web! Just as we human beings need roots to feel physically and mentally nourished, I see quite a lot of commonalities between the great oak trees in our local heath to us mere souls. In times of joy or distress, we all rely on our network of soul family and loved ones to communicate and share. Just as our trees need to resource vital energies from each other, so do we.
With our lovely world being partially in shut down mode, and with shorter days, visits to our beloved local heath is a bit sporadic, but I do my best to get myself, Tween, and Flower Angel resourced in open space as much as possible. The great outdoors, the fresh air, the natural medication of the body, mind, and soul. Seeing people walking their dogs, children running about freely in muddy wellies, chirping of birds and the scent of happiness is for sure a serotonin booster and can give us a natural and healthy dopamine rise as one becomes addicted to the walks and sweet perfume of purity. It is during one of those sunny walks in the cold that we came across a rootless majestic Oaktree. Standing straight and proud, some of its roots had been chopped off presumably to give this great being another lease of life. To me, it was still alive, dormant no doubt, bare in its slumber, but still breathing life. Will it show shoots once spring kicks in? We shall have to wait and see. The tree triggered a line of thinking? We all need roots, we all have roots, we are connected to mother earth and our roots keep us grounded. We need connections with one another, being social or packed animals. Even the introverted or the natural loner, has moments of chronic loneliness or social isolation, forcing him or her to reach out to loved ones. Even the quiet ones need to be heard and seen.
But unlike the great oak trees, we have this beautiful ability to take our roots with us, in whichever place we choose to. Our roots keep us grounded and humbled but never so static. Our roots nourish us and perhaps bring us spiritually together as we learn not to ever take one another for granted. Perhaps our roots keep us in a space of mutual respect, compassion, and love. Perhaps when one looses one’s sense of direction in life or just navigating blindly from shores to shores in sheer escapism, one may have a sense of being rootless? Unlike the great oak tree with amputated roots, human beings often require a strong sense of being rooted somehow. Perhaps that is what gives us our purpose ultimately, a nourished soul has strong roots. And a strong sense of purpose gives us this everlasting passion to create something special for humanity.
The world is in semi-lockdown: many of us are feeling a bit weary and very helpless. Some may even say that we are at breaking point. Perhaps this is when I could interject with the analogy of cultivating strong roots to keep us grounded regardless of the uncertainties and adversity. Humanity will move onwards and forwards, we are not facing the end of us just as yet (I am not into doom gloom or conspiracies, but I do pay attention and respect anyone who is!). We will come out the other end stronger even, as we would have learnt to nourish ourselves, mentally and physically. We will relearn to get to know one another better, appreciate each other, and above all, respect one another’s many differences. For many of us, this feels almost like a mammoth task, an impossible conundrum and swimming against stronger currents especially as perhaps we are surrounded by a sense of unease and silent chaos. In the meantime, hold on to your roots, hold on to one another, we have nowhere else to go and no one new to meet. Finding this inner stillness and growing stronger grounding roots may be the answer to create resilience.
As this portal gently closes, and we slowly come out of this Pandemic world, we will certainly see our world and Mother Earth with more loving eyes and choose to give her the respect she sorely craves. Just as we all do, just as every being does. Perhaps it is about time we saw all beings as just One, all beings connected in a network of micro roots and ultimately connected to the Divine. Be strong, be present, be still, and above all stay rooted. Raising our self-awareness is the consciousness of our state of being, just as the great Oak tree with amputated roots is very much aware of his state of being. This winter please be strong and healthy above all, eat and breathe healthy. Be there for one another as we all need loving compassionate support. We all pray and hope that better times are not far ahead but till then, just as the dormant beings around us, allow Mother Earth to do what she needs to do. If we could hear her speak, I feel She would ask us to stay rooted and feel more connected to her in a space of calm and patience. She would also ask us to surrender to life and allow life to flow through our roots.
Sending you all light
