Business as Usual? Really?
What if we stopped following the siren’s call to business, as usual, and listened instead to Earth's wisdom?
Be a person here. Stand by the river. Invoke/ the owls. Invoke winter, then spring. – William Stafford
See with every turning day,/ how each season makes a child/ of you again, wants you to become/ a seeker after rainfall and birdsong/… - David Whyte
Now is the time to know/ that all you do is sacred. – Hafiz
Have you read any poems lately that implore you to stay the course of business as usual? Do you hear sages and spiritual leaders, past or present, crying out for us to become more efficient and productive? Are we less lonely for consuming more? Has treating land, river, and people as disposable resources stirred our hearts, filled us with a sense of life and liveliness?
Is it possible that modernity has promoted a model of scarcity, competition, and, yes, cruelty for personal gain instead of collaboration for mutual well-being? Have we declared the living Earth to be dead and people who seem unlike us to be lesser humans so that others might be used in an attempt to slake a collective hunger that is never satisfied by increasing consumption?
I worked in corporations for several decades. I have done my share of searching for ways to increase productivity, scheduling to increase efficiency, managing “human resources,” deferring to the “highest ranking leader,” and preferencing short-term thinking focused on the bottom line. I wish I could tell you that in the decades that followed that work I have freed myself from the model of business as usual. I have tried. Am trying. Yet practices repeated often become habits, paradigms held within a dominate culture wear a disguise of truth, and shared language unexamined locks in concepts. The very phrase “business as usual” invites us to continue to live in ways that harm Earth and all her beings.
Business as usual is killing life. We know this even as we feel how hard it is to admit. We cannot reach a future worth living by pretending that corporations are people or that they hold inherent wisdom we should embrace. Profit at the expense of life is not a life-sustaining model.
We have chosen the wrong teacher and are following a deadly path.
At some level deep within, I realize that I must change. It’s insufficient to rail against the cultural mores that keep me tied to a worldview unfit for purpose. It feels instinctive to want the culture to change first. But how long should I wait? Until everything about this Earth that we’ve known and loved has been destroyed? It’s past time to imagine and embrace another way.
Ecosystem as teacher. Mountain as wisdom. Watershed as sage. Soil, a proponent of connection. Forest, a soul friend. River as guide. Sky as visionary.
It’s time to allow my heart to crack open with deep grief and boundless wonder so that compassion can prevail. To plunge into the well of soul until I can say yes to the tiny but unique place I occupy in life’s vast tapestry. To commit my life to teachers whose ancestors go back hundreds of millions of years, emerging from great extinctions, who speak to resilience, reciprocity, interwoven connections, and mutual thriving.
The journey of heart and soul will be fed by reweaving connections to this incredible and wise living world. As I open my senses to embrace the wren’s morning song, the fragrance of milkweed, the rich red ripeness of elderberries, I trust my heart and soul will respond, deepening my sense of unity, nudging me toward the path to which I’m invited.
My hope is that we will notice when we are operating from within a business paradigm, defaulting to language that limits possibilities, or taking for granted assumptions about “how things are.” Then we can choose to move into a more contemplative presence. From this space, we slow our busy minds, sink into our spiritual hearts, and seek to listen- in whatever form that takes – with our entire being to the sacred web of life pulsing around and within us. Open, present, and connected, we take a “long, loving look at the real,” see not only beauty and heartbreak occurring side-by-side, and sense emerging pathways toward Earth’s dream of well-being. With that invitation to co-create with the living world, we open heart and soul to engage in work that reaches beyond the limits of our knowing and lifetime.
Beloved leader, writer, and wisdom teacher Joanna Macy once stated: “It’s all alive. It’s all connected. It’s all intelligent. It’s all relatives.” Such a belief takes us far away from a focus on business, as usual. It points toward the wisdom way I want to follow.
I am so grateful for hearts, comments, and shares. It’s a way for us to connect, and I love knowing that you’re there.
Please, never feel pressure to pay for Reweaving Earth & Soul unless you wish to do so. It’s free to read and comment.
One of the ways that helps me move away from business as usual and toward Earth’s wisdom is though taking some time apart from a busy life to spend time in the living world accompanied by like-hearted people. This is why I have committed the past dozen years to leading retreats that focus on attending to the beauty, wisdom, and wonder of the living world and that encourage us to consider how we might reciprocate from a sense of gratitude and kinship. This is also a constant theme of Church of the Wild Two Rivers that I lead monthly.
Here are some opportunities if you’d like to join us. I would love to have you in the circle.
RETREATS:
Deepening Earth Connections – An In-person Retreat
August 15-17; Virginia Mae Center at the Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC
Everywhere we turn, we see signs of disconnection: an epidemic of loneliness, fraying community ties, fading empathy, a disregard for the Earth. And yet, the living world continues to sustain us—offering wonder, wisdom, and the quiet strength of deep time and mystery. Join us for a contemplative retreat in the tranquil surroundings of the Cathedral to awaken our sense of wonder and reflect on how the living world sustains us. Through plenary sessions, small group conversations and reflection, poetry, music, and quiet walks through the Cathedral grounds and gardens, we’ll attune our hearts to the spiritual guidance found in nature.
Residential and Commuter Options Are Available
Leader: Leah Rampy
The Spiritual Wisdom of Trees: Lessons from our Elders
October 8-11; Montreat Conference Center, Montreat, NC
The Spiritual Wisdom of Trees explores the ancient spiritual and ecological wisdom that trees offer for living into deep connections with our human and nonhuman kin, Earth, and Divine Mystery. Trees, our elders who have graced Earth far longer than the human family, beckon us to wisdom, beauty, and peace. During our days together, we’ll engage in rich conversations in plenary sessions and small groups, take time for spacious silence and reflection with the trees, and listen for their wisdom on this beautiful land. Practices that encourage spiritual deepening through connections with the living world will be introduced throughout the course.
Leaders: Beth Norcross and Leah Rampy
Listening to the Trees: A in-person silent retreat
October 17-19; Dayspring Silent Retreat Center, Gaithersburg, MD.
Come, be taken in by the resilient and steadfast trees on the grounds of Dayspring. You will be invited to rest in their presence during the quiet weekend as we reflect on the many ways we are gifted by trees. Listen for what they may tell you. Open to what they may share. Through readings, journaling, and silent wandering, we will soak in the divine wisdom of these radiant beings as they prepare for the coming winter.
Leader: Leah Rampy
OTHER EVENTS:
Bookmark the Park
Sunday July 20, 2 - 3pm; Viola Devonshire Park, E German Street, Shepherdstown, WV
Join Leah Rampy at Bookmark the Park sponsored by Shepherdstown Parks and Recreation Committee. Bring your favorite nature book - picture books, fiction or nonfiction. You'll be invited to read a paragraph or two and share what makes the book special. Can’t decide what to share? Come and listen! Leah will highlight a few newer releases that you might want to add to your reading list.
Free; no registration required.
Lawns to Life and the Soil Carbon Sponge
July 26, 11am - 12 pm; Sponsored by Town Run Watershed at Shepherdstown Library, 145 Higbee Lane, Shepherdstown, WV
Right now, trees and plants are reaching into the mysterious world beneath our feet to collaborate with a host of life hidden within healthy soil. Our daily practices can help to sustain or destroy this vibrant network upon which the health of ecosystems and watersheds depend. Join us to explore how healthy soil helps to minimize drought and runoff, purify water, encourage rainfall, store carbon, and cool the air around us – and how you can make a difference.
Presenter: Leah Rampy
Free. No registration required.
Church of the Wild Two Rivers - Special gathering on the grounds of the Washington National Cathedral
Sunday, August 17, 10:30am - 12:30pm; Washington National Cathdral
Free event. RSVP to prayerandpilgrimage@cathedral.org to receive instructions about parking and where to meet
Leader: Leah Rampy
Discovering the Spiritual Wisdom of Trees for Challenging Times
Saturday, August 30, 5:00 PM to 5:50 PM; Wild Goose Festival, Harmony, NC
Authors of the recently published Discovering the Spiritual Wisdom of Trees will lead a guided, interactive conversation and offer practices that draw on what trees can teach us about resilience, resistance, adaptation, collaboration, and renewal.
Presenters: Beth Norcross, Leah Rampy
Book Signing, Meet the Author
Saturday, September 13, 11am - 1pm; Winchester Book Gallery, 7 N Loudoun St
Winchester, VA
Leah will return to the Book Gallery to sign copies of both Earth & Soul: Reconnecting amid Climate Chaos and Discovering the Spiritual Wisdom of Trees. Stop by to say hello! Both books will be available for purchase. If you cannot attend, please note that the books are also available via Bookshop.org and very likely your local, independent bookstore.
Free. No registration required.
Trees Create Community in Our Forests and in Our Towns
Nov 11, 2:30pm; Presented by the Luray Garden Club; Luray American Legion, 106 Zerkel St, Luray, VA
Trees play a more vital role in our well-being than we might imagine. In this conversation, we'll explore amazing stories of how trees collaborate for the health of the forests - exchanging nutrients, sharing information, and joining roots for stability. In human communities, trees play an important role in healing our bodies and enlivening our spirits. Indeed, life on Earth would not exist without the gifts of these incredible team players!
Presenter: Leah Rampy
Check back for more information.
Church of the Wild Two Rivers
Generally meets the first Sunday of each month, 3-5pm, in an outdoor setting.
We are an emerging community, meeting in the midst of and sharing with the abundant life all around us. Our intent is to deepen our connection to the sacred by being more fully present, open and available in each moment. We learn from the earth and trees, the waters and sky, and from all living beings, human and non-human.
Leader: Leah Rampy
Sign up for the newsletter via the website to receive announcements each month. Registration is free and requested.
Long after we had retired from the Central Intelligence Agency, one of my mentors - a very senior and storied officer - asked me what it was about Americans that caused us to never feel like we had enough, never feel satisfied. It's a question I ponder often. Business as usual is indeed killing us. I hope we can learn new ways and teach new ways. Thank you for your beautiful thoughts, Leah.
So beautiful and heart wrenching This is why I’m studying the way of the Druid focusing on the divine in every being and all around me