Denise Rushing

Meilin Ehlke gives us a way to listen for the New Story as it emerges within.It calls us and pulls us forward if we are willing to listen for it.

Pachamama Alliance has a course entitled "the Gamechanger intensive".  In it they share the qualities of a gamechanger in these times (Source: Pachamama.org):1. You understand that all life is connected.You see the human family, in all its diversity, as an...

Charles Eisenstein author of The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible, offers a heart-opening view of this moment in time.  Watch:If you haven't read his book, you are in for a treat.Want more insights and inspiration?  I'll be sharing these in a...

Learn more at http://www.breathablefuture.comThis weekend Loretta and I went to visit our grandbabies. And it occurred to me that it is important to me to be able to take them outside. But here's the thing--I can't. Why? Because I do not want them to breathe the air...

I've not shared the rainforest experience with anyone really... I somehow don't have the words. Loretta and I returned from the Ecuadorian rainforest only to be evacuated due to wildfire and now, with the air here so needing those "lungs of the planet," it almost...

Important safety tip— learn Spanish before you go.One of my biggest fears in traveling to Ecuador was not knowing the language.  As it happens, I was saved by a downloaded version of Google translate.

I'm heading into the Ecuadorian Rainforest to be with an intact indigenous tribe - the Achuar - a dream-based culture. Pachamama (Mother Earth) calls...It's time to get serious about changing the Dream.

So I am reading about the Achuar and the Amazon this morning and came across this description: "Potential dangers are ever present: quicksand, biting insects and spiders, poison snakes, thorns, and falling limbs. Attractive fruits and berries may be deadly. Predators...

Amazon Update: Body Prep Plan ~ phase one in place ~ I am walking one mile three days a week, 2 miles another three days, and five miles on the seventh day. So far ~ so good! Now I am beginning the Mind Prep Plan ~ phase one ~ reading three books from the Pachamama...

The decision is made! Denise and I will be journeying to the Amazon with the Pachamama Alliance in July 2018! Today I began my journaling - so appropriate on this Epiphany Day when we honor the three Kings/Wise Ones who "traveled afar, following the star." I am...

Believe that change is possible.Why?  Because it is!Here is how it happens:If you haven't already done so, be sure to join my "What can one person do to reverse global warming?" activation series.More information on the series at...

First, here is an excellent article by Bill McKibben on our current response to Climate Castastrophe:https://newrepublic.com/article/135684/declare-war-climate-change-mobilize-wwiiThe net of it is this: it is time for a world-wide large scale mobilization for a "war"...

When I was five years old, I was introduced to the Magic Kingdom.  I loved all the themes, but especially enjoyed Tomorrowland and "The City of the Future."  I knew in my heart that technology would make everything even better.Fast forward fifty four...

Cynicism is obedience. From a great article by Alex Steffan:"Entrenched interests use despair, confusion and apathy to prevent change. They encourage modes of thinking which lead us to believe that problems are insolvable, that nothing we do can matter, that the...

A powerful video - story in images. (not to time scale, obviously). Enjoy.

From Charles Eisenstein:"Every act that comes from the understanding of interconnection, of inner being, is a spiritual act, andalso a political act.By acting from a different story, we disrupt the psychic substructure of our mythology. And we offer an alternative......

Will Keepin’s Principles of Spiritual Leadership (also published as Principles of Spiritual Activism - Source: http://www.earthlight.org/essay40_deboer.html)  Explanation reposted...

I rarely seek out, let alone share, films that suggest personal action is useless.  It IS important --especially in its role in waking us up as individuals. So I'm not sharing this film for you to walk away with that message. The reason I am sharing is that, in...

"What did you do once you knew" poet Drew Dellinger writes in a poem about lamenting over the fate of his great great grandchildren.  What kind of ancestors are we?  Blogging for Sanity is back.  I am not sure whether I am blogging for our collective...

Yes, it was a writing retreat. No, I did not misspell the word in the title of this post.Last week I was immersed in a five-day writing experience with others here on Dancing TreePeople Farm. We met at the beginning of each day to set our intentions, in the middle of...

My starfish self loves the ocean! Usually it is a two-hour drive from my home to the Pacific Ocean - a little longer if I want to put my feet into the water or splash my face with its refreshing touch. Which is why I find deep delight when I am able to spend time at...

I loved my high school Civics class.  We studied the checks and balances to power that the US founders enshrined in the constitution.  We studied the Bill of Rights.  This class took place the year Richard Nixon resigned and when the rule of law...

When I saw the photo of Taliesan Myrddin Namkai-Meche, age 23, in his graduation cap and gown it Source: Facebooktook my breath away. It is not just that he was young. It was that, for just an instant, I thought he was my son who lives in Portland and went to Reed...

Paul Hawken:"There is another super power here on earth that Is an unnamed movement. It is far different and bigger and more unique than anything we have ever seen. It flies under the radar of the media by and large. It is non-violent; it is grassroots. It has no...

This is a great opinion piece in the Washington Post today:  Now it is up to us to Save the PlanetIt is.  And collectively we CAN and MUST take actionAs I see it, our individual action falls into three categories:1.  The Energy We Use2. ...

Today was joyful, peaceful, powerful... electric and spectacular! (In Napa, we even cheered and sent love to the loud guy with a Trump flag driving by.) We are not protesters. We are marchers who rise up and stand for what we love and value: dignity, justice for all,...

I went for a walk in the orchard this morning – in the rain. Magical. Peaceful. Refreshing. And yes, I was soaking wet when I came back into the house with my two equally dripping wet dogs, but we really enjoyed the sound, feel, and taste of the rain. We dried off...

I’m not certain of the exact moment it begins.  Maybe it is when I decide to cruise Facebook and online news sites in hopes that there will be good political news.  Who am I kidding?  Even if there is good news, I am pretty sure that the corporate media...

Welcome to the EarthLover blog.  Here you will find art that celebrates the beauty, creativity and sacredness of Planet Earth.50% of the proceeds of any original art featured on this site will go toward organizations and initiatives that help renew, restore and...

People keep asking: what can one person do about Climate Change? My simple mantra is this: Soil. Sun. Sacred. SOIL: building a living soil sequesters carbon SUN: The sun must become our primary source of energy. And SACRED Earth means honor nature--shop less love...

Nature teaches us: "The Problem is an Opportunity" Okay so give me every idea you can think of for how we turn this horrific and massive problem into an opportunity. I'll start.This is a very real real opportunity to:--shine a light on how the Tea Party actually...

There is a reason that FDR said “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”     He said this because, as we have witnessed in these past weeks, fear creates its own reality.  Above all, it creates more fear— a self-fulfilling prophecy.In...

When I was nine years old, my fourth grade science teacher had us plant pumpkin seeds in half-cut waxed milk cartons.  I eagerly anticipated the sprouting of the seeds and once they started to grow, I and my classmates measured our plant’s progress each day and...

This is a message to my Bernie Sanders supporting friends who are disillusioned by both candidates and are considering a "protest vote" for either Jill Stein or Gary Johnson.I get it.  I love that Bernie put a voice to what we know to be true--the destruction of...

Michelle Obama's Speech is a beautiful example of how to take a stand with clarity, resolve, and fierce love.  Beautiful. Appealing to our better angels: "When they go low, we go high."  I hope that every single American gets the chance to listen to the...

As we look to the future and our relationship with the next generation, we face a stark choice: a path View Form the Sun - Eco Art by Denise Rushingof fear, cynicism, denial and despair, or one of hope, renewal, restoration and of co-creating abundance for the...

This is a story about the power of connection.When I first bought what is now Dancing TreePeople Farm, I imagined that I was going to create a fully sustainable life... all by myself.I would grow my own food, make my own energy, put in place a permaculture oasis and...

Growth and new life, as well as innovation, comes from the edges where different systems meet.  "Edge Effect" celebrates one of the thirteen permaculture principles. From Tending the Soul's Garden:"Edge Effect refers to that which occurs in a system along its...

I am in an older house--it's the house I lived in when I was 19 years old. There is a gap between the kitchen cabinet and the floor. Through the gap I can see into the underside of the houseI see what looks like a very large rat and it is trying to get into the...

As the fire rages in South Lake County, we find ourselves once again praying for friends, neighbors and firefighters, checking our own "defensible space" and wondering if people, animals and precious places are okay.Today, my partner Loretta and I decided to run...

Nature is designed for abundance. 

The whole incident took maybe 10 minutes—yet is etched in my mind as hours.  Time was suspended.I wasn’t thinking about my grocery list, or getting my car repaired.  I want thinking about the money in the bank.  I briefly thought about would happen if I...

Celebrating the dance of life.  This painting is of Earth, our home, in the cosmic sea, in a dance with the energies of the cosmos and within.  In some sense, Earth is the "biggest why" of all.

"S" in the the Reclaiming Tuesday series, this painting highlights the permaculture principle: start small then expand.The entire series is a celebration of the wonder and awe at the heart of the Universe.

10 billion years ago, the star Tiamat exploded into a supernova.  From the explosion of Tiamat came elements such as carbon and oxygen--elements necessary for life on Earth. The solar system formed from the remnants of Tiamat...We are star dust.

Celebrates one of the thirteen permaculture principles. Growth and new life, as well as innovation, comes from the edges where different systems meet.

Here is the poster announcing the opening of my Art Show at the Lake County Wine Studio on August 5th and 6th, 2016.  Attendance to view the art is FREE.  $15 if you want to sample the wine and food pairings.The painting depicted on the poster is called...

Here is the poster announcing the opening of the Art Show at the Lake County Wine Studio.  This painting depicted on the poster is called "View from the Sun"  from the New World View series.Attendance to view the art is FREE.  Cost is $15 if you want to...

September 12, 2015On Display at the Lake County Wine Studio in August 2016

 The Dancing TreeOn display at the Lake County Wine Studio in August 2016

(Remarks shared with the UU of Lake County on 6/19/16)One of the things I have always admired about the Unitarian congregation around the globe is its long history of standing for justice in word and deed. My words for you this morning--entitled "You Matter More...

I've admired many people in life and all of them seemed to know exactly what they were meant to be doing from the time they were very small.  At least this is how the story goes.  It is as if they somehow popped out of the womb knowing they were meant to...

Google me and you might find that I once sat behind a mahogany desk In a corner office with a view of the bay I decided things of importance, and thought myself so  Awake. Ah, but wisdom found my hiding places,Haunting me with dreams of twisting...

2200 acres of sacred land on the James River. land that has been entrusted to the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, is at risk for sale under the rationale "money is needed to do our work".  This land represents the true legacy of this congregation and the most...

The Movie Trailer is out and the topic is more than a little bit horrifying.. and well worth watching:Michael Pollan is featured in Fed Up .  He is the author of : "Food Rules"--a wonderful little guide  that's essentially a really really short version of...

Origins of the Word “Ecozoic”"The etymology of “Ecozoic” is that it is based on the prefix “eco-,” derived from the Greek word “oikos” meaning house, household, or home, and the suffix “-zoic,” from the Greek word “zoikos” meaning pertaining to living beings. Thus,...

If you are following Permaculture Soul, you know that our associated eco-farm -- Dancing TreePeople -- is offering a new product that can help you make tasty walnut milk (or other nut milk) at home.  Here is a video that shows you how to make it.Dancing...

I thought I was doing great to have only a tiny bag of trash each week.  Lauren's choice is inspiring:

At last, a product I can believe in!Peace Out.

In the midst of the California drought, I admit, I think about frogs.  I think about them a lot. So last summer, I hatched a plan. I decided to hand dig a miniature garden pond.  My intention was to create a tiny oasis for creatures who might need water—and...

How to Thrive and Prosper While Changing the World.  Some thoughts on social and spiritual permaculture with the good folks at Benicia Community Gardens.

Earth Day 2015... we awoke to ten deer in the orchard.  Deer represent gentleness and self care, and that is how we plan to celebrate this most holy (whole) of days.Happy Earth Day

I share the following reflection with those gathered at my sister Cammie's memorial service on April 19, 2015. --DeniseRecently, I read the book “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” by Mitch Albom  The story is about a man named Eddie who dies thinking that his...