Day 36 - Free Or Safe - April 18

On the 36th day of her pilgrimage along the Michael and Mary energy currents, Liz passes a zoo and finds herself pondering the lives of the animals—well cared for, yet confined, far from their natural habitats. The sight stirs something within her. She recognises her own tendency to choose safety over freedom. Is this pilgrimage quietly challenging her to break that pattern?

Transcript

Hello and welcome to Five Minutes in Nature with me,

Liz Scott.

It's day 36 of my pilgrimage as I'm walking across England following the energy currents of the Michael and Mary line.

I am right in the heart of England now,

Not far from London,

Not far from airports.

You'll hear aeroplanes going overhead.

And I'm near somewhere called Whipsnade Zoo.

And I've been following the Mary current today.

I started at a place called Ivinghoe,

Climbed up a hill to a beacon,

And the Mary current comes through this beacon.

And at the top it was absolutely exhilarating.

There were lots of people there.

It's a popular place for walkers,

For cyclists,

Just a place that people come and stand and look at the view.

The view across the valley floor is extraordinary.

And you can look all the way,

And I was looking all the way towards the Chiltern Hills,

Which is where I am now,

The Chilterns.

And this is the direction of travel I came in from Ivinghoe beacon all the way to here today.

And for some of my walk today,

I've been walking around the perimeter of Whipsnade Zoo.

And I've never been to Whipsnade Zoo before.

I've heard about it but had no idea where it was.

And near the zoo is a church dedicated to St Mary.

And the church is Whipsnade Church.

And the Mary current goes through the church.

And the Mary current also apparently goes through the entrance to Whipsnade Zoo.

I haven't seen the entrance to Whipsnade Zoo whilst I've been walking.

I saw it earlier as I was driving or being driven to get dropped off to start my walk today.

But I have just been into the church.

And it's a very plain church compared with some of the churches I've been in,

Which are ornate,

Ancient,

Old,

Sort of hundreds of years old.

This one has a much more modern feel about it.

It's made of red bricks,

For example,

Rather than stone.

On the outside,

It looked a little bit unloved,

Actually,

A little bit unkept.

It looked like the tower had one time been painted white.

And it had sort of flaked.

I'm not sure whether that was the case or whether there's like a white lichen that grows on the tower.

It's on the north side.

So that might be that might be what's happened.

But it just looks a bit mottled,

A bit moth-eaten.

I didn't have high expectations of the church,

If I'm honest.

But I was walking by it and it just felt right to go in.

And I've had some reflections being here,

Being near Whipsnade Zoo,

Having that sense of exhilaration and freedom this morning on top of Ivinghoe Beacon.

And I guess my biggest reflection today is just contemplating,

As I walk past Whipsnade Zoo,

The animals.

Now,

They are well loved and well looked after.

There's no doubt about that.

And they're kept in enclosures and they're fed.

And I could see from looking through the fence as I was on a footpath,

I could see a herd of some kind of deer,

I think it was.

And they were grazing very happily.

And I just asked myself the question,

Is it better to be absolutely free and in the wild?

Or is it better to be in some kind of enclosure where you're kept safe,

You're sheltered,

You're fed,

And you're never going to be killed by a predator?

What,

You know,

What is the preference?

And I've got no judgment on it at all.

No judgment at all.

I just don't know the answer to that.

And the comparison or the reflection also came to me with the Mary Current,

This wide,

Wild,

Open space on the hillside,

And then here at the church,

Which feels much more tame and domesticated.

And the,

You know,

The energy current comes through here.

Which is the best environment for the Mary Energy Current?

Again,

I've got no answers.

And so my reflection today as I translate that for myself,

And maybe it's a question you want to ask yourself too,

Is it better to live in this wild,

Thrilling experiment of being human?

Or is it better to be in an enclosure where you're kept safe,

You're fed,

And you're watered,

And you're looked after?

Is one better than the other?

Is one more thrilling than the other?

Is one more satisfying than the other?

I don't have an answer for myself,

Because I am certainly a human being that lives in a very safe enclosure.

I don't know how I would fare if I had to fend for myself or live without the modern comforts of a civilised world.

But it's certainly a question that I'm reflecting on today,

Living wildly or being tame.

Reviews

Interesting questions today Liz! I'm not sure I have the answers either although perhaps we need a little bit of both to make us whole and balanced humans? It can be all too easy to allow the world to be restricted to a small space but personally I think we are all the better for increasing our awareness of and allowing our comfort zones to expand.

Edited to add: a therapist I know calls it 'testing your edges'. Each time you try something new, you do it as far as you are comfortable. However in doing so you 'stretch your edges'. The next time you come to do something similar, because you've already 'tested your edges' you can go that little bit further. Thus you can taste freedom and decide whether you like it or not!

That is a very good question Liz! I am definitely going to think about that.....🙏🏻♥️

A good question Liz. 🙏🏼🤔
I feel we can live both, that maybe it’s the case of knowing ourselves and what our limits are.
For someone who has been threatened, living in an enclosed space is reassuring and allows them a chance to thrive.
It really is an individual thing and ‘one size doesn’t fit all. ‘
🌿🙏🏼🌿

Good question, stay safe in our comfort zone or step out dispite the uncertainty a challenge for us all to think about.