March 2003

Dear Mother Earth,

A friend of mine recently joined an organization that is very dedicated to saving the planet and its resources. I feel their work is important and compelling and I am considering becoming involved, but I have doubts and reservations about the methods this organization employs in getting its point across. For instance, destruction of property and civil unrest is not beyond its scope. I care for the earth so very much and there is not much I would not do on its (your) behalf. I would feel better if you would address this as frankly as you have addressed other subjects.

Very well, a candid and frank position on this subject is that I have no immediate need of being saved. The organization you have named and others like it have drafted a charter that represents their interests, not mine. Now you must decide whether or not your own interests are being represented. If you find that they are, joining this organization will be the right decision. If, on the other hand, you discover that your interests are not well represented then other avenues of expression may prove more creative. In an effort to assist you, we will explore the subject further.

Contrary to popular public opinion, neither the planet nor the planet's resources are in need of saving. You cannot save the planet any more than you can save yourself. What would you save it from? Whom would you save it from? Who and what would you save it for? Future generations? This is a very popular response, but it is an incomplete one. The planet cannot be saved by humanity because it cannot be destroyed by humanity. This response may be difficult for you and others to fathom, but it is true. The celestial body called Earth and all that is a part of it continues to exist because it chooses to. There is purpose and intention in the continued existence of the Earth and all that is upon and within it. The Earth is part of something much greater than itself just as you are part of something much greater than yourself. You and I are part of a universal cosmology that blends structure, form and purpose with free will and divine intention. When the earth's purpose has been exhausted other avenues of expression will become available, but until then there is much work and play to be accomplished.

Humanity Is In Survival Mode

One of the reasons that there is so much current emphasis upon saving the earth is that its (my) resources are diminishing at an alarming rate. In addition, time seems to be racing against humanity rather than with it. This illusion creates a state of imbalance and unrest within various environments and species. When a being or species feels threatened its sympathetic nervous system takes over in order to regulate and guide the pulse and other vital functions. The sympathetic nervous system is most active during times of stress and danger. The acceleration in time that humanity is now experiencing creates a false positive within the nervous system, in other words, you (your body and personality) are reacting from a level of stress, fear and danger. This reaction places you in a state of unrest where survival comes into question. Survival is a natural instinct wherein the biological directive is to survive at all costs; this applies to all organisms including the smallest cells, all species and life forms, and to celestial bodies such as my own. Sometimes survival involves engaging automatic and semi-automatic defense mechanisms such as natural protective responses to danger or attack from outside forces, predators or invasion by disease agents. Survival responses are also triggered when a threat or potential threat causes emotional distress, destructive impulses, or a threat to self-esteem. In humanity this is especially true if one cannot suppress unwanted thoughts or memories.

When the desire to thrive is replaced by a need to survive creative processes are temporarily halted because an imperative situation in which a reaction is necessary takes precedence over all other creative functions. Have you noticed how difficult it is to concentrate on a creative project when you feel concern and worry in other areas of life? When a being finds itself in survival mode it tends to apply the same philosophy to its environment. This is why a natural disaster, for instance, triggers humans and other beings to react with abnormal and erratic distrust of others who would be otherwise welcome within the same environment. If a natural disaster can trigger fear and distrust, what do you fathom an unnatural disaster such as war, a depletion in ozone, or a reduction in resources associated with longevity can trigger?

Humanity is battling an unseen foe. It is fighting in the dark and because of this it is only fighting itself. If you fight only to survive you will most likely survive, but at what or who's expense? If you fight only to control you will most likely control, but again, at what cost? What is the answer, then? Can there even be an answer to this unnecessary paradox? Yes, and a solution as well.

Both the answer and the solution exist within the problem as with all things. The universe is a mathematical one conceived in divine geometry and played out in angles and configurations. All That Is is the sum of its parts and it is the whole; it is the absolute and the absolute is perfection. If a question is perfect then its answer is as well. The same applies to paradoxical questions. A paradox is a situation that seems absurd or contradictory and is almost always contrary or in conflict with conventional or common opinion, but in fact is or may be true. A paradox therefore exists in that the earth is being systematically dismantled, denuded and destroyed while at the same time this experience is quite impossible. Why is this experience impossible? Because you cannot destroy what you did not create and you cannot be less a part of what you already are. In order to destroy the earth, humanity would have to destroy itself first. Humanity cannot and will not destroy itself because imbued within it is a divine imperative not only to survive, but also to thrive. Your survival upon the earth is dependent upon both your body and mine. In order to thrive rather than merely survive humanity can and will rediscover itself and the earth in the process.

A New Experience of Time Will Emerge

Why has it not done so yet? Because humanity still sees itself as separate from itself and separate from me (the earth) and separate from All That Is. Lost in time it has forgotten that it is timeless. Linear time suggests a beginning and an end, a birth and a death. Time and space are sequential, but not linear. A sequence of events inserted into dimensional time and slowed down or stepped down to a frequency of personal and planetary experience would give the appearance of a beginning and an end. From this perspective, there is indeed an end and it is near. Do I mean the end of time? Yes, the end of time as you currently understand it. Time as you now measure it is short and for this reason you are short of breath, your breathing is shallow and erratic which in turn disrupts your sleep patterns. Because of this you breathe without depth or resonance. Without depth lives seem shallow and experience seems temporary.

Time as it is currently experienced will come to an end because a new experience of time will emerge. Space will prevail upon time for a new method in which to balance the universe and humanity will be guided to re-imagine itself and recreate itself within a new system of thought. Before the dinosaurs were destroyed they re-imagined themselves as different species within a different context of time and space, do you see? Humanity has a number of choices to make as time is currently measured and it is doing just that, you can see it all around you if you look. Many possibilities are being contemplated and many scenarios are being played out. These will lead to the evaluation, culmination and final matriculation into a higher echelon of education.

Do you remember when you were a small child and you took apart your toys to see how they were put together? In a sense that is what is happening today with the difference being that you are no longer tinkering with toys and you will not be able to put it back together as it once was. Do you remember that distinct moment of panic when you knew it would never be as it was? Most (but not all) of you will have that as well, because for the most part it is only when you determine that you cannot go back that you discover how to go forward. And so you will.

Does this mean that you should live upon the earth with disregard for its current resources until new ones are discovered? Should you turn away from those who cannot see tomorrow from yesterday? Should you ignore the struggles and hardships of those who impose them upon others or upon themselves? No, because you cannot ignore the reality that you have chosen to participate in and make no mistake, you have chosen this reality. You are here to actively participate in each moment of your life, in both subtle and grand ways. The choices you make broaden or narrow your path according to the action that accompanies the thought. In terms of the activities selected by the organization you are currently considering you must ask yourself: If the earth was not in need of being saved, what choices would we (I) be making today? If our choices determine the next moment and the one after that, what choice would I make next? Ask yourself if you would be willing to lead this organization rather than follow it and if so, would the directive be the same?

Surround yourself with those who support your ideas and your ideals. If you do not, you will not be able to support those of others. The earth needs partners, friends, allies, stewards and companions. Humanity needs the same. If you think in these terms you will see that your creative awareness will open other avenues of expression that are more pleasing to you. If you wear the insignia or banner of an individual, a group or an organization, make certain that you are willing to call it your own. This applies to all relationships including those that bind the heart by promise.

If it is still your intention to save the earth, seek clarity over conviction so that any guidance you seek (including this) will serve you well. Align with the highest truth you hold within you; the one you would swear to if push came to shove. Allow this truth to guide all of your decisions. If the harsh sunlight blinds you allow your inner eyes to reveal a more subtle light, and if by folly you have fallen in the dark be guided by the moon whose light is even brighter in the dark.

Copyright © 2003 Pepper Lewis, The Peaceful Planet