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(10) TURTLE AND TREE TALK TIME AND MIND Great grandmother galaxy says, time and mind you can't see or taste. Mind is what knows. Time is what flows. Without knowing your mind and being in time, your life could be a terrible waste! My grandchild, Earth, knows this much. Her choice of guardians was wise. Who knows better than turtle and tree that only time exists for mind to be! Listen again to the story of turtle and tree! After mother Earth had chosen the two guardians of the two living kingdoms of the biosphere, turtle came up out of the stream to rest at the powerful round base of tree's tall trunk. Both turtle and tree knew that they should have a council. They wanted to make sure they both had their signals straight. They especially wanted to know that they were in it together for the long haul. Stretching her wise and ancient head of her shell and looking admiringly up at tree's branches spreading all the way to the sky, great grandmother turtle spoke: to live in time is one thing, tree. To know the time you are living in is something else again. What do you know? Great grandmother tree looked down at turtle. What I know my rings keep hidden. But I am like you, turtle. Keeping time within my trunk, keeping my trunk still, time lives in me and I last long. So do you, turtle. Many rounds of thirteen moons come and go. Many rings expand my trunk, extend my roots deeper into the Earth, and raise my branches farther into the sky. Living so long, enduring many seasons of change, what is there I do not know? Like you, turtle, I remain forever green. Turtle replied, I see, tree. Like my shell, your trunk is special. Through the center of your trunk which counts the years, there is something that remains the same, what is it? Tree answered, my nature is still. This stillness is the center of my trunk. My trunk is my axis. This axis holds me erect. But you are right, turtle, what is this stillness inside of me? Once I was a seed. A new shape in time was dreamed into that seed. And from that seed I grew up into the light. But I cannot tell you what it is that keeps my trunk straight and tall. Is it the original dream of time? Turtle smiled, and said: my nature is constant. I came from an egg. A new shape in time was dreamed into that egg. From that dream, I crawled out into the warm mud. My shell makes me strong and sturdy like you. I move slowly when I need to. No one can move faster than a day turns, anyway. So my constancy is enough for me. Not only do I carry the nature of time on my back, but nothing in time can keep me from my planetary rounds. I can see why mother Earth appointed us as the guardians of the biosphere. In our simple forms we can withstand most anything. We are quiet but unbeatable! I think what keeps your center straight is nothing more than mind. Tree answered, Turtle, you are wise! Tell me more. What do you mean by mind? Turtle laughed quietly. Tree, nobody knows about mind until someone points it out to them. Mind is the still center of Hunab Ku. Hunab Ku is in every dream of life. Mind is what you are. Nobody can touch it or take it away. No one can give it to you or tell you what it is, or what it isn't. Mind is like time. It has no taste or smell. But unless you know you have a mind, what can you know? Now tree laughed, I see turtle. Mind is always holding my center. I have been in my mind all the time. Or my mind has been in me! It is what keeps me round. It is what makes the ring of time every thirteen moons. It is what I cultivate through my stillness. And the stiller I become the more I can do and be! Tree was triumphant stretching taller than ever, scraping the clouds in the sky. Turtle stood still for a very long time, her head tilted upward at tree's distant pinnacle. Beneath tree's awesome height turtle felt small. Tree looked down at turtle and spoke softly as the wind gently tossed her fine green top. Tree said to turtle: my lower trunk and roots can always be a place for you to rest and think. If the sun is too hot by day, my leafy branches will shade you. Whatever thoughts you must think, I will share with all the other trees, for we trees are all one tree. By the way, turtle, you have been around longer than me, what do you think, what have you seen, what do you know? Turtle thought for a minute, and said to tree: You are a good match for me, tree. I will carry your stillness in my center wherever I go. In my movement I am like time, just like in your stillness you are like mind. Time is constant, mind is still. Mind needs stillness to know, time needs constancy to go. Be constant like a turtle After turtle sang her song, a strong wind arose, causing tree to bow and shake. When the wind died down, tree thought for a moment and said: turtle, that wind was very strong. But in my center my mind remained still. Now I can tell you what I think: stillness is for knowing knowing mind in my still center in my stillness I know you When tree finished, turtle remained at the base of tree's trunk for a very long time. After many moons had passed, turtle looked up at tree and said: I am going now, tree. At last we understand each other. We will find many ways to cooperate through the time of the becoming. Remaining still and constant we will be able to endure to the end of the becoming. We will be able to complete our task for mother Earth's sacred biosphere! We will keep Earth's sacred time within ourselves, no matter what else happens! There are my thoughts, tree. This is what I have learned from you, this is what I have to share with you before I go: Stillness is knowing that mind is all Stillness holds me in my constancy All creatures of the animal kingdom My constancy is for navigation Tree, wherever I travel through land and sea your friendship will be with me constantly Be who you are, time is yours to know hold steady as you go, it's all in the flow Turtle then slipped noiselessly back into the stream. Tree nodded dreamily in the moonlight. All was well in the biosphere. Next Page >> Jump to page... 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25
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