Breathing and Walking ..

With such beautiful weather recently, it was time to dust off the walking boots and venture out into the wilds of Sussex for a medicine walk!.

I’m very lucky to be living near the South Downs Way and in the South Downs National Park. What better way to spend part of my weekend than to honour my local ley lines, dragon lines or energy lines, across the spine of the downs from Devil’s Dyke to Lewes.

I took with me corn and tobacco as offerings for the ancestors and the land spirits or elementals who may need sustenance along the way.

My Intention

My intention for this walk was to find a clear way through a complicated situation I had been drawn into. Walking is great because it’s healthy and it’s free. It gives me such a sense of freedom and happiness when I can see for miles all around me.

Walking takes me back to being a child, hearing the larks in the summer meadows and smelling the gorse in Purbeck, Dorset. A friend says that when gorse isn’t in bloom, kissing goes out of season, meaning of course that gorse is always flowering – but it’s particularly gorgeous at this time of year. When I looked up the shamanic meaning of gorse, it said ‘enduring affection’. I loved seeing the bumble bees gathering the nectar from the gorse flowers. That was beautiful to witness and bee energy reminded me very much about the importance of community living. The bee also reminds me of hummingbird medicine, sipping the nectar of life in the sun, a liquid sugar mellowed by sunshine.

Beautiful Moments..

One of my favourite times was walking through a field of rape. This is a cultivated plant related to the brassica family, so it has quite a strong smell and a beautiful bright yellow colour that would cheer up anyone needing a boost of positive energy. Another special time was seeing the light reflected on the sparking water of the dew pond. There was just so much light out there on the surface !

Philip Carr Gomm inspired me to walk the land in Sussex with his book ‘The Druid Way’ .

As I walk the land where I live, I’m brought back into right relationship with the earth. I find it incredibly grounding and it helps me to be present. I got a sense of the thousands of people through the ages who walked on these paths before me. Different historical filters moved swiftly infront of my mind’s eye as I walked along the beaten chalk paths.

Another beautiful moment was when I walked back through Lewes and stumbled across a beautiful apothecary called A.S Apothecary with natural, local beauty products. I got to try out some of their skin serum on my sunburn. If you get a chance, you must go !

A medicine walk should really be walked alone, as then you’re not distracted by walking and talking. Then you notice the shapes of the clouds and the auditory , kinaesthetic, visual, instinctual messages you may receive from spirit. However, for me walking is also about celebrating relationship and friendship with another.

I’m doing another medicine walk this next weekend – I hope I’ve inspired you to try it!.

If you have any questions about Medicine Walks or would like me to help you create one, please contact me on ali@lucidhealing.co.uk.

May you flow with beauty,

For all our relations.