I was a shy quiet child raised in the ilk of a patriarchal industrialized society, but for some reason, my ancestral indigenous roots came through strong in me. Some of the most beautiful music to my ears is the music of nature: rain on the roof, thunder in the sky, the sweet sound of baby kittens meowing, the wind and birds singing throughout the trees, the rhythm of the ocean waves and rippling mountain streams.
Perhaps, my simple love for nature came from my ancestral potato famine roots in Ireland or maybe from my Native American great grandmother whose name I, sadly, never knew because of discrimination from the other side of the family. I love to find stones with interesting designs that ignite the storyteller in me. I love the spiraling pine cones that are always so centering. Animals and trees are precious to me. I see and hear their music in the rhythms of their lives. I have often found strange sorts of comfort in the natural mysteries of life, and it saddens me that so many people have been taught and programmed to be afraid of these things. It isn’t healthy to separate ourselves from what is a natural part of us, because it stands in the way of our unfolding. ~ Patty Ann Smith
