Hello and welcome to Five Minutes in Nature with me Liz Scott.
It's early morning,
The sun is rising but I can't see the sun because there are layers of cloud and the clouds are tinged orange and silver as I see the light emerge as the sun comes up from behind the clouds.
And if I turn away from that,
I'm up the hill here on Dartmoor so I'm quite elevated.
There are ribbons of mist following the river valleys and there are hills that are poking up from these ribbons of mist that almost look like islands in the sea.
And it's a beautiful morning and as I've walked up here today the grass has got a heavy dew on it and I've been following a horse that's obviously been up before me walking up the hillside following the track of the horse because it means my shoes don't get so wet because the majority of the wet's on the horse's hooves.
The horse is nowhere to be seen but I could see the tracks followed that up today.
And as I was following up,
I was trying not to get too wet with my feet on this dewy grass.
I then followed another track,
A muddy track,
That many people and probably animals have used to navigate through the moorland.
And it occurred to me about walking a path,
A track in life,
And how it feels that we follow tracks,
We follow paths in life,
Because they're there.
And that's what I want to reflect on today because for me,
Where I am in my life is I'm not looking to follow a well-used path that others have trod in this phase of being a wise woman,
An elder,
As I move into this new phase of life and I experience and express and find expression for where I am moving on to in life.
So for me,
The temptation can be just to look around me and see what others are doing at this phase in life.
And I can only talk for me and you might have very different stories.
But many of the people I know are slowing down,
Women I'm talking about.
Many are taking a pension,
They're reducing their hours at work.
They are,
A lot of them are giving additional needs to care,
Whether it's with grandchildren or whether it's with elderly.
Parents.
And it feels to me as though this is the path many people take.
And in a way I'm on that myself because of my elderly mum and my caring responsibilities with her.
But I'm really aware that I have probably another path to pick in life and it might not be one that is so clear.
It might be one that I can't quite see at the moment.
Maybe others have trod it and I've yet to find the track.
But I really see that as I move into this phase of elderhood,
I am looking for.
.
.
And waiting for that purpose to emerge.
And as you know,
If you've been following me on Insight Timer,
You'll know this real draw to be around older women,
Wise women,
Women who are in a phase of life where society encourages them to step into the shadows rather than stepping forward and taking up a role,
A valuable role in life.
And I'm looking for that valuable role for me.
And I want to support other women in finding it for themselves.
So today's reflection is all about that.
It's all about finding your path in life and realizing that the paths that are already laid out in front of you,
That many have trodden before,
They might take you in the direction you want to go,
And that's great.
And you've also got to be aware that maybe there isn't a path for you that's immediately visible.
Maybe you've got to find it.
And maybe you've got to be the first one to make the track yourself.
So a little bit like that horse this morning that had walked up through this long grassy field and had flicked all the water off with the hooves.
I followed that path of the horse,
But maybe I'm going to be the one that has to create the path for others to follow.
And that's a reflection for you to reflect on today.
What is your path?
What is your way forward?
What is it you feel you're being drawn to contribute,
Engage with and be acknowledged for and give acknowledgement for in the world?
What is your path?
I'd love to know your reflections and of course don't forget to join me again tomorrow for another five minutes in nature.
