Unimaginable magic waits in the wings. Here’s proof.

Unimaginable magic waits in the wings. Here’s proof.

So many of us are hardwired to need proof. As a creature that’s conditioned to live from our neck up, it makes sense that many humans crave data and facts. I’ve lived that way for most of my life—comforted by science, trusting non-fiction, rejecting sci-fi fantasy—but the mysterious inner workings of another world keep edging in!

There are some things science can’t explain. Wildly beautiful things that will never be figured out in a lab, a magic that could never be tidily explained or contained in a textbook.

Take the monarch butterfly. For many of us, it’s the only butterfly we know by name, but have no sense of what unfolds under that divine orange and black veined dress.

Brain the size of a pinhead. Perfectly engineered, yet outweighed by a feather. So dainty it could be accidentally crushed in the most gentle of hands, but somehow flutters against whipping winds you’d think would swallow it in a heartbeat. They enchant the two-legged, the four-legged, maybe even the eight-legged! But these little knockouts are not mindlessly lingering in our backyards waiting to be noticed. These seemingly mindless insects are on an epic migration, one of the most remarkable. 

No single butterfly makes the complete migration on its own. It takes 3-5 generations. That means it’s a family team effort to make it from the fir forests of Mexico, up to Canada, and all the way back to Mexico. They lay their little eggs on one specific type of poisonous plant along the way (milkweed is the only leaf picky monarch caterpillars will eat!) ensuring that their young will continue their journey and carry on the species after their life ends. And here’s the wildest part:  even though the “great grandchild” usually completes the final leg to Mexico, a creature that’s never even set foot there, it will return to the same tree where its great grandparents lived. Incomprehensible.

We haven’t even touched on the other wonder of every butterfly's story. Who can deny reworking your innards (brain! heart! gut!) from a chubby caterpillar into that divine silhouette isn’t pure magic? We hear the word metamorphosis and notice these creatures in the background of our day to day, but when you pay closer attention to the reality behind their life story it’s so insane it’s hard to grasp. 

So if fact is king—structured, organized, logical—then maybe mystery is queen—enchanting, magical, messy, unexplainable. And maybe even more undeniable and convincing because it’s a truth we cannot make sense of with our heads, but feel instinctually. You can’t deny chills or stop your heart from skipping a beat. And that wisdom is just as sacred as anything your rational mind can attempt to unravel.

To hijack the words of W.B. Yeats, “The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” Another I’m obsessed with from Paul Éluard, “There is another world, and it is in this one.”

Katie xx

PS: As I was jotting down notes for this piece, I got a text from an old friend. She said she thinks of me often and just woke from a dream where we were playing in a monarch grove.

Katie Losey works at the intersection of business and conservation. She is a director at Fragile Earth, a company focused on deploying life-changing  innovations to help rebalance our planet. Previously Katie worked at a travel company connecting others with the world’s wild places in an effort to protect and champion them landing her with orangutans and pygmy elephants in Borneo’s ancient rainforest, gliding alongside sharks in Cuba, and chasing orcas in Antarctica—mind-expanding experiences to explore life’s inexplicable magic! She has been a member of The Explorers Club since 2015 and is pursuing her Biomimicry Graduate Certificate. Katie lives in NYC’s West Village and tries to get off the grid as much as possible!

Keep up with her: Follow Katie Losey’s instagram
Get in touch: losey.kate(at)gmail.com
The Future of Innovation is Here: 8 Inventions from Nature’s Lab (Katie Losey for the Biomimicry Institute, 9.10.19)

Revontulet (Fox Fires)

A tale for the winter solstice—the returning of the light. Revontulet (Fox Fires), comes to us from Finland, told by Shawn Moriarty. (Click on the image to watch.)

Shawn is currently the Education and Camp director at Mass Audubon’s Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary in Sharon, MA. He has spent his whole career since 1983 working with summer camps and outdoor education programs. Along his journey Shawn got involved in learning primitive skills, deep nature connection, storytelling, and presenting at camp and experiential education conferences around the country. In 2018, Shawn had his first book published called The Ropes of Ecology that combines group initiatives with learning ecological literacy. And in 2019, he created a quote book called Around the Campfire.

Connect with Shawn and learn more about his work below:

https://www.asinglefootstep.com/
http://environmentaladventure.blogspot.com/
http://ropesofecology.blogspot.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Single-Footstep/109522572398807

Red Fox

Red fox
You walked along the roadside
Confident
Aware of more than me

You knew what you needed
And understood how to hunt for it.

You did so with a grace
That was just your way of being.
There was nothing forceful in your movements.
There was no demand in your actions.

Casually
You walked across the street.
You even stopped to stretch and scratch your ear.
You had no fear.

Then you leaped
A hop that was more of a bound.
And it was all grace-flight-and-a-jump
In one fleeting flow, non-stop.

You were precise
But not commanding.
Merely participating.
Engaging, choosing
Then activating
When you wanted to.

When we were done
You knew there was one more visit.

This time
You revealed that your target was chosen.
Though nothing about your energy revealed itself to be
Aggressive.

It could have even been a friend in your mouth
You were so casual and relaxed.
Nothing about your moves were violent
Nothing in your intentions was greedy.

You were simply participating
In the dance of life.

Oh, how much we have to learn
From you.

The hunters in our kind make prey of themselves.
The prey make poison to teach us.
They are not for the taking.
We are not king and queen here.
They are the great circle
And so, once, were we.

“Return,”
They tell me.
“It is time”
They whisper.
“The circle is ready.”

But are we?

______________________

This poetry story, Red Fox, comes to us from Unity J. Schmidt.

Unity is a life coach, spiritual teacher and author, with an Honors English Degree from McMaster University. She has developed her career from a background including practices in shamanism, energy and sound work, meditation, and coaching. Unity’s been published by Toronto Hospital News, Your Health Source magazine, and Evolving Wellness. She has interviewed environmental activist David Suzuki and author James Redfield of The Celestine Prophecy. Unity’s work has also been featured on radio, news and television. This year, she will be releasing a new book and online group coaching program to help participants overcome stress and anxiety, and empower their lives to achieve happiness and awaken purpose.

Connect with Unity and learn more about her work: 

http://instagram.com/unityschmidt

http://youtube.com/healingwithunity

http://facebook.com/healingwithunity

Sleeping Through the Storm

A young man applied for a job as a farmhand. When the farmer asked for his qualifications, he said, "I can sleep through a storm." This puzzled the farmer, but he liked the young man so he hired him anyway. A few weeks later, the farmer and his wife were awakened in the night by a violent storm ripping through the valley. They leapt out of bed and called for the new hired hand, but the young man was sleeping so soundly, he wouldn’t wake up. So the farmer and his wife quickly began to check if all was secure around the farm. They found that the shutters of the farmhouse had been securely fastened, and a good supply of logs had been set next to the fireplace. The farmer and his wife then inspected their property. They found that the farm tools had been placed in the storage shed, safe from the elements. They saw that the bales of wheat had been bound and wrapped in tarpaulins. The tractor had been moved into its garage. The barn was locked tight. Even the animals were calm and had plenty of feed. All was well. The farmer then understood the meaning of the young man's words, "I can sleep through a storm." (Author unknown, sourced from Inspire21.com)

This story was shared with me while on a National Outdoor Leadership School course some years ago, atop a peak in the Adirondack mountains. It was the combination of this story and being caught in a massive downpour while all our gear was strewn across the campsite for drying (ironically), that this valuable lesson of what NOLS calls “bomb proofing” camp, was forged into my memory. To this day, I make haste while the weather is fair, because in the blink of an eye those clear skies can disappear, as many New Englanders know. To the storms of lightning and of life, I say bring it on, I’m ready.

The Goose

Our first story, The Goose, comes to us from Shawn Moriarty. (Click on the image to watch.)

Shawn is currently the Education and Camp director at Mass Audubon’s Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary in Sharon, MA. He has spent his whole career since 1983 working with summer camps and outdoor education programs. Along his journey Shawn got involved in learning primitive skills, deep nature connection, storytelling, and presenting at camp and experiential education conferences around the country. In 2018, Shawn had his first book published called The Ropes of Ecology that combines group initiatives with learning ecological literacy. And in 2019, he created a quote book called Around the Campfire.

Connect with Shawn and learn more about his work below:

https://www.asinglefootstep.com/
http://environmentaladventure.blogspot.com/
http://ropesofecology.blogspot.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Single-Footstep/109522572398807