PEGI EYERS
"Piel de la Tierra" © Gabriela Campos
For every age and demographic today, our lives are keeping pace with climate disaster events, in an unprecedented era of massive change. Culminating in a perfect storm of toxic technologies and tropes such as the endless growth paradigm, ecosystems and human structures worldwide are beginning to crumble. Warming temperatures are unleashing fires, floods, hurricanes and rising oceans as never before, and late-stage capitalism is also a time of eroding (if not disappearing) social programs that used to serve the common good. But we are not going silent into that dark night. Resistance to Empire has been mounting for decades, and new initiatives today hold hope, largely due to the protests of young people as led by Greta Thunberg, Autumn Peltier, Isra Hirsi, Xiuhtezcatl Martinez and many others, and “on-point” movements such as Extinction Rebellion. As Greta Thunberg is telling us, “This is a crisis. We have to act like our house is on fire, because it is.” Young people from Standing Rock, Houston, Flint, Mauna Kea and countless other places are declaring an urgent, major crisis, and they are right. Following their lead, and in collective response to the emergency, radically different modes of engagement are needed to contend with the existential, spiritual, political and civilizational crises of our time.
Understanding root causes, or the “cause and effect” for any scenario is always a good idea. Today’s crisis is the result of the rise of capitalism and imperialism, the hegemony of land ownership, and a long-held worldview that separates us from nature. And yet, Euro-colonization is NOT inevitable, or part of human nature – it’s a set of very specific decisions that led to the way technologies and worldviews were forced on lands and peoples. Knowing the full backstory may empower our perception to shift from fear and uncertainly (although that is certainly present) to wonder and awe, as we ask ourselves why we were born to "be witness to" such a momentous era. Times of collapse and extinction are impossible for anyone to comprehend, and yet facing reality is our best response. The youth of today are not turning away, but are creating their own “rites of passage” though rigorous activism in anti-gun legislation, climate change action, lawsuits filed against governments and corporations, and other creative forms of resistance. Momentum is building, and young people are fully prepared to achieve their goals, such as winning lawsuits that require an immediate shift to the divestment from fossil fuels.
Understanding root causes, or the “cause and effect” for any scenario is always a good idea. Today’s crisis is the result of the rise of capitalism and imperialism, the hegemony of land ownership, and a long-held worldview that separates us from nature. And yet, Euro-colonization is NOT inevitable, or part of human nature – it’s a set of very specific decisions that led to the way technologies and worldviews were forced on lands and peoples. Knowing the full backstory may empower our perception to shift from fear and uncertainly (although that is certainly present) to wonder and awe, as we ask ourselves why we were born to "be witness to" such a momentous era. Times of collapse and extinction are impossible for anyone to comprehend, and yet facing reality is our best response. The youth of today are not turning away, but are creating their own “rites of passage” though rigorous activism in anti-gun legislation, climate change action, lawsuits filed against governments and corporations, and other creative forms of resistance. Momentum is building, and young people are fully prepared to achieve their goals, such as winning lawsuits that require an immediate shift to the divestment from fossil fuels.
© Morgan Wade Photography
In dire times of shifting foundations, asking “what are we initiating into?” is a valid question to be sure. As guardians, teachers and mentors, we need to seek new possibilities, instead of replicating colonial (or western) thinking. Solutions and actions can be sourced from praxis as old as time, such as forming healthy group culture modeled after ancestral wisdom and Indigenous Knowledge (IK). Under the layers of modernity, our Earth is still a primal planet, every natural process is still part of an ancient tradition, and we can still live for the wild, revere the land, and discover that the other-than-human is not quite as “other” as we had once believed. "Rethinking the world as alive" is the fierce promise we make when we spend more time in nature, bond with the earth, discover what our local bioregion has to offer, and find new skills and community supports in the process. For initiation ceremonies and rites of passage we offer or participate in, we are all on a journey to decolonize ourselves, as we partner with the other-than-human, re-frame our identities, and re-imagine our place in the world.
For a powerful example of a living worldview embedded in the land we can look to the great Okanagan storyteller and orator Harry Robinson, who was wholly immersed in the natural world in every waking moment. During the transcribing of his priceless story-cycles, scholar Wendy Wickwire tells us that “Harry traveled to Vancouver to undergo medical treatment under the care of an elderly Chinese herbalist. Only then did the depth of Harry’s mythological world become truly apparent. As we passed through downtown Vancouver on his visits to the doctor, I realized that all the traffic lights and cars meant nothing to Harry. They were almost an abstraction, an interesting but fleeting diversion from the timeless real world of Coyote, Fox and Owl.”[1] In our own work to reject the failed experiment of industrial civilization and connect deeply with the land, can we also have no doubt that entering urban space is an illusion and an aberration, an insult to ourselves and Earth Community? Can we too walk among the ruins of Empire and see it as an abstraction, a fleeting diversion that for a long and merciless time tried to demonize Gaia and separate us from our one true home?
For a powerful example of a living worldview embedded in the land we can look to the great Okanagan storyteller and orator Harry Robinson, who was wholly immersed in the natural world in every waking moment. During the transcribing of his priceless story-cycles, scholar Wendy Wickwire tells us that “Harry traveled to Vancouver to undergo medical treatment under the care of an elderly Chinese herbalist. Only then did the depth of Harry’s mythological world become truly apparent. As we passed through downtown Vancouver on his visits to the doctor, I realized that all the traffic lights and cars meant nothing to Harry. They were almost an abstraction, an interesting but fleeting diversion from the timeless real world of Coyote, Fox and Owl.”[1] In our own work to reject the failed experiment of industrial civilization and connect deeply with the land, can we also have no doubt that entering urban space is an illusion and an aberration, an insult to ourselves and Earth Community? Can we too walk among the ruins of Empire and see it as an abstraction, a fleeting diversion that for a long and merciless time tried to demonize Gaia and separate us from our one true home?
"Soul Encounter" © Doug Van Houten
The land is both archive and ally, and the source for both our resiliency and our roots. It’s time to turn to the Ancestors, dust off the old texts, find the enchantment that lives in the dark, and “go underground” again to feel the messages of the land. What are the trees asking of us? What does the salmon and cougar want us to do? What are the lessons we are learning from our ancient elder the snapping turtle? Remembering our interdependence and recovering deep listening skills, enhances our adaptability and resilience, and revives our love for self, others and the land. Having somatic body experiences in the wild, and creative expressions such as singing, dancing, drumming, painting, storytelling and ceremonial art, allows us to work through our fear, anger, grief, yearning, guilt and tenderness, in response to massive change and climate disaster. And to arrive full circle, embodying our eco-self and holding the land in our bones, leads us to participate on the front lines, and ongoing activism on behalf of Earth Community.
The ability to listen to nature’s promptings cannot be overstated. Many are already suffering from the catastrophic effects of climate change such as fires, hurricanes and floods, and are experiencing displacement and/or the loss of hearth and home, and having to start again. Perhaps the lesson is to live minimally with few possessions, as many of today’s youth are already doing. Rejecting the values of the dominant society, “going feral” and shifting to holistic solutions is the best way forward in times of massive change and climate disaster. Extreme social dysfunction, mental suffering and a sense of powerlessness have been generated by Empire, but we can temper these dire realities by acknowledging that human beings are not in charge. Mother Earth holds us all in her embrace, and as we trust in Her antediluvian forces we give way to the wisdom of the land. Going forth into an uncertain future, we already have everything we need in the regeneration of our hope and resilience. The eternal power of the "green fuse" continues to spark the growth of new life, and the love at the heart of the interconnected web empowers us. Be ready, be flexible, guide each other, and prepare each generation to live sustainably on our beautiful planet!
The ability to listen to nature’s promptings cannot be overstated. Many are already suffering from the catastrophic effects of climate change such as fires, hurricanes and floods, and are experiencing displacement and/or the loss of hearth and home, and having to start again. Perhaps the lesson is to live minimally with few possessions, as many of today’s youth are already doing. Rejecting the values of the dominant society, “going feral” and shifting to holistic solutions is the best way forward in times of massive change and climate disaster. Extreme social dysfunction, mental suffering and a sense of powerlessness have been generated by Empire, but we can temper these dire realities by acknowledging that human beings are not in charge. Mother Earth holds us all in her embrace, and as we trust in Her antediluvian forces we give way to the wisdom of the land. Going forth into an uncertain future, we already have everything we need in the regeneration of our hope and resilience. The eternal power of the "green fuse" continues to spark the growth of new life, and the love at the heart of the interconnected web empowers us. Be ready, be flexible, guide each other, and prepare each generation to live sustainably on our beautiful planet!
© Sacred Feminine Art
NOTES
[1] Harry Robinson and Wendy Wickwire (editor), Write it on Your Heart: The Epic World of an Okanagan Storyteller, Talonbooks, 1989. From the first of three volumes, the stories of Harry Robinson (Interior Salish, Lower Similkameen/Smelqmix, B.C.) as collected by Wendy Wickwire.
RESOURCES
Pegi Eyers, Chapter 6 “We All Have IK,” Chapter 27 “Entwining Heart and Mind,” Chapter 28 “Ancient Spirit, Modern Voice,” Ancient Spirit Rising: Reclaiming Your Roots and Restoring Earth Community, Stone Circle Press
"Initiation Now: Rethinking the World as Alive" was written for the Youth Passageways project LAND {CULTURE} CLIMATE in 2019.
 | Pegi Eyers is the author of "Ancient Spirit Rising: Reclaiming Your Roots & Restoring Earth Community," an award-winning book that explores strategies for intercultural competency, healing our relationships with Turtle Island First Nations, uncolonization, recovering an ecocentric worldview, rewilding, creating a sustainable future and reclaiming peaceful co-existence in Earth Community. Available from Stone Circle Press or Amazon |
