Earth has a favorite emotion, and that’s generosity. No- I don’t mean to say value, I mean emotion – Gaia is constantly wanting to give.  As someone who spends a majority of her time outdoors, I know this as sure as I know my own soul. That’s why big bursts of green reach out to us just about everywhere: even through cracks in the concrete. That’s why the ocean beats against the shore so persistently.  That’s why the sky is always a work of art, anytime you look up, free for anybody to ponder. Nature loves to give, wants to give, and needs to give in order to protect her systems.  And while it may seem profane these days to use the word “system” when referring to nature, we should remember that ecosystems are the most functional and miraculous in the world.  Humans would do well to study and understand them in the creation of systems we need to thrive, that will one day render all the dysfunctional systems obsolete. In that, we can infer that generosity is a goal for humans to pursue, the exact opposite of greed.   God may have handed down ten commandments, but nature has her own doctrine, and I am audacious enough to declare that generosity is the paper upon which that doctrine is written.

I notice I tend to surround myself with women who reflect that spirit: I’m drawn to big wide, open, warm and generous hearts.  I feel comfortable there.  I speak of this because I have voices in my life from cherished ones that don’t reflect generosity, but rather speak from a viewpoint of scarcity.  Scarcity motivates competition. Competition motivates sovereignty.  Sovereignty motivates war.  I feel fearful in those environments.  I’m big on personal responsibility, so I know my responses to context are my own: that I can choose how I react; but I also think it is telling to explore how feeling safe and feeling fearful support reflective actions.  What do each of these environments birth? I realize, as I watch the tiny vestiges toward climate-sane policy be decimated, that planet protection for me is distinctly not political.  It is about protecting generosity. I wonder what can come from its opposite: protecting greed.

I believe the  headwaters for generosity is love.  I’ve thought a lot about love.  The desire to show up for all of a person and their spiritual growth path, see them and their layers through compassionate eyes, bring joy and meaning and depth, make sure basic needs are met, allow space for honest authentic expression.  And to these ends there are many kinds of generosity: physical, emotional, spiritual, practical, and more.  Generosity and the insistent inclination to give can also kill a thing/person…especially if it is unbalanced and not being reciprocated.  These are nature’s laws, and man made laws simply do not and cannot supersede them.  Love is best practiced with actions, care and commitment: it’s at its best when it is a verb.

For me, working with the Motherline is about choosing to surround myself with generosity, and engage in purposeful actions to protect that foundational thing that makes us humans with hearts.  Being part of the line means protecting generosity: wherever we can find it, as an honoring of that precious emotion nature teaches us.