August Sarasota Almanac

Full Moon: August 24
New Moon: August 10
Meteor Shower: the Perseid meteor shower peaks August 12
Other Astronomical events: Venus, Mars and Saturn are very visible by the moon on August 12 immediately after sunset; Jupiter rises later. Should be a good show! On the 13th as well. Saturn looks yellowish and Mars looks orange.

Other Events in the World Around Us:

Temperature, weather, etc: Hot, humid, lots of afternoon thunderstorms and rain. Mid August is the start of the heart of hurricane season, so be prepared. Usually mid-August to mid-October is the most intense.

Foliage, etc: Some varieties of bananas, figs and guavas ripen. Some varieties of night blooming cirrus blooms. Sea grapes begin to ripen and leaves slowly turn color.

Animal Activity: Snake breeding season--watch for pygmy rattlers. Frogs singing.

August Ecopsychology Event:

Open to the Wellness Education Club and the general public: You are Invited - Please join Aquarian Quest August 7, 2010 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. aboard the Sea Dragon Catamaran. We will have a "Circle of Song". We'll be leaving out of Nokomis for a relaxing and fun time on the water with sounds of music wafting across the waters of our beautiful Gulf! The best way to assure your spot on the voyage is to email Annie at naturespirit123@gmail.com. Please feel free to bring musical instruments, food and drink to your liking--and big smiles. Look forward to seeing/hearing you there!

July 2010 Ecopsychology Events:

Saturday, July 3, 2010 Grounding/Earthing for Wellbeing. Science is finally proving what indigenous and nature people have always known, that there is healing power for us from the energy of the earth itself. It is available free to all of us! Learn basic grounding techniques and experience the changes within you. You will also hear about recent research as reported in the new book “Earthing”, by Clinton Ober, Dr. Steven Sinatra, and Martin Zucker. $10; 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. R.S.V.P. to Annie Cederberg by July 2 at naturespirit123@gmail.com. Location TBA

Saturday, July 10, 2010 Kayaking. Trying to put together a kayaking/nature tour. Cost would be approximately $30. I need to know how many people are interested in order to set the details. Catch a cool breeze on the water, gaze into the secret worlds at the bottom of the bay and relax! Please email Annie Cederberg by June 30 at naturespirit123@gmail.com. Location TBA based on event enrollment.

Anyone interested in a Paddleboarding (standup on surf board and paddle!) nature trip? Paddleboarding is becoming popular on the East coast of Florida. Supposedly anyone can do it! It’s a great work out, and an excellent way to see Marine Life, even better than kayaking. I’d love to get a trip together. Mark your calendars: there will be a big Paddle- boarding event on July 17, including yoga instruction on Paddleboards! Please email me at naturespirit123@gmail.com if you’d like to be part of a nature trip in the near future.

July 2010 Sarasota Almanac

Full Moon 25

New Moon: 11

Meteor Showers: No major showers

Other Events in the world around us:

Light: starts to decline very slightly from the summer solstice June 21

Temperature: Hot hot and hotter! Gulf water temperature very warm, fueling storms. Summer weather pattern of afternoon thunderstorms.

Foliage: Golden poincianas still in magnificent bloom! Lychees are ripe. Rain or Zephyr (or "Resurrection") lilies in bloom after storms and rain. Also Resurrection ferns have risen from the dead again, due to rain.

Animal Activity: More baby ducks and baby birds (song birds such as Mockingbirds, Blue Jays, Doves, Cardinals, etc.)

Wisdom from Jean Houston

Jean Houston sent this out yesterday, 6/16/10 about the Gulf Situation:

Our hopes and dreams are too small for the world these days.

It’s time for an upgrade in energy, skills, commitment, and effectiveness. Our work in Social Artistry is growing into Social Alchemy: beginning with the oil spill. Let’s join together to stop it. Let’s work at it in alchemical ways, beginning with its sludge and devastation and adding coherent intentional energy in a variety of ways to transform it, such as:
Pay attention to the wise counsel and prayers coming from many sources, such as the suggestion that we hold clear intentions for all marine life to move wisely, swiftly, and safely away from the spill.

Take responsibility for the “oil on our own hands,” acknowledging that our demand for this fuel has brought us to this earth-cry place. As global citizens, we can stop pointing fingers at “them,” and choose to encourage effective action to reduce personal and community oil needs.

Empower the chemical geniuses working on the problem to find a perfect solution soonest. While we’re at it, empower others working on alternate energy resources.

Envision the earth’s capacity to reduce the pressure that is spewing the oil, and to find another channel underground into which it can flow. At the same time, remember to thank the earth and her oceans for their loving support of all of us living beings.

Decide on a time of day each day to focus mindful compassion and prayers on the scene; the first part on relieving the anguish experienced by the sufferers, the second on collectively stopping the spill.

Give hands-on help, in person or through contributions, to help with the clean-up.

Notice what happens in your mind and heart as you do these practices.
Let us know what else you believe is needed and may be useful.

Jean Houston

Ways to work in consciousness towards change in the Gulf Oil Spill

There are a number of ways to support efforts to help in this crisis. Here are a few. We will also be publishing a number of prayers to help with the healing of this situation; please leave comments with prayers of your own!

1. Brad Yates, who is a master EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) healer, has a great You Tube video about the oceans. You can access it at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlyxubOTJk4

*EFT works through tapping on acupuncture meridians. Although it may sound difficult, it’s not.

2. EFT radio has a 15 minute special “tapping*” session on the Gulf Oil Spill. It is available here:

The Oil Spill – A Tapping Meditation for Healing
Hosted by Carna Zacharias-Miller and Betty Moore-Hafter

Using tapping to send healing and loving support to the animals, plants, ecosystems and humans affected. http://www.eftradioonline.com/mtt-audios/schedule-june-7-14th/

3. Brad Yates also suggested that there are many physical things we can do (send donations, help clean up) and there are the things we can do energetically, like asking “yourself what might be going on inside that is a possible reflection of the oil spill, and allow it to be cleansed.”

4. Replay available - JOE VITALE [THE SECRET] joins host Nicole on News for the Soul to talk about AND DO a unique collective energy clearing directed at the BP oceanic oil spill! Tune in and lets work on cleaning up the mess together… Using Hooponopono clearing techniques brought forward by Dr Hew Len and more, the clearing we will do today will be directed at helping to clean up the most major oil spill in history - at the energetic roots. Go to www.NewsfortheSoul.com .

Look for the blue box on the lower left of the page. It has the player, and listing of recent recordings. Click on Joe Vitale.

5. Masaru Emoto’s healing prayer for the Gulf:

from an email that’s being passed around:

This is based on Ho opono pono (a Hawaiin healing method)

Dr. Masaru Emoto's Healing Prayer for the Gulf

Focusing our energies in response to the Gulf tragedy and for healing the waters and its inhabitants -

Yesterday at our spiritual center we read a letter from Dr. Masaru Emoto who many of you will recognize as the scientist from Japan who has done all the research and publications about the characteristics of water. Among other things, his research reveals that water physically responds to emotions.

Right now, most of us have the predominantly angry emotion when we consider what is happening in the Gulf. And while certainly we are justified in that emotion, we may be of greater assistance to our planet and its life forms, if we sincerely, powerfully and humbly pray the prayer that Dr Emoto, himself, has proposed.

"I send the energy of love and gratitude to the water and all the living creatures in the Gulf of Mexico and its surroundings.
To the whales, dolphins, pelicans, fish, shellfish, plankton, coral, algae, and all living creatures . . . I am sorry.
Please forgive me.
Thank you.
I love you. "

We are passing this request to people who we believe might be willing to participate in this prayer, to set an intention of love and healing that is so large, so overwhelming that we can perform a miracle in the Gulf of Mexico.

We are not powerless. We are powerful. Our united energy, speaking this prayer daily...multiple times daily....can literally shift the balance of destruction that is happening.

We don't have to know how......we just have to recognize that the power of love is greater than any power active in the Universe today.

Please join us in oft repeating this healing prayer of of Dr. Emoto's.
And feel free to copy and paste this to send it around the planet.
Let's take charge, and do our own clean up!

And so it is! Pass it on.

6. The Global Coherence Initiative. As we've mentioned before, this is an amazing project bringing together people from all over the world to focus healing love and energy on different world crises. go to glcoherence.org (based on the work of the Heartmath Institute).

Sarasota Almanac June 2010

Full Moon: June 27

New Moon: June 13
Meteor Showers: no major showers
Other Astronomical Events: June 21 is the Summer Solstice.

There is a major event in the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction on June 8. There should be a burst of new energy and leaps forward in our growth from what I've been reading about this conjunction. Early in the month, Jupiter is visible in the eastern sky before daybreak. With binoculars, look to the left of Jupiter for what looks like a blue-ish green star. That is Uranus!

Saturn is high in the southwestern sky at dark (early in the month) and looks golden.

Other Events in the World Around Us:

Temperatures: Water in the Gulf is really getting warm this time of year; humidity and air temperature are both high and will remain that way for 5-6 more months.
Foliage: Frangipanis often bloom now; some varieties of night blooming cirrus, Poincianas (first orange, then yellow) too. Mangoes become ripe! Some passionfruit are available and lychees for those lucky enough to have trees!

Animal Activity: Baby song birds, including woodpeckers, jays, crows, mockingbirds and more. Baby ducklings, too!