International Earth Day 2021
Restoring ourselves from within to restore Mother Earth
A Global Meditation Online Event with Indigenous Elders from Colombia, Canada, New Zealand and Guatemala Organized by Susan Stanton, Glenn Aparicio, Amanda Bernal-Carlo and Lucía Saiz – Members of The Great Balance
COVID-19 turned the world upside down. People were dying and no vaccines or cures were available. In the midst of danger, an opportunity arose. A tiny virus did what climate scientists and the Paris accords could not do. It shut everything down. Mother Earth took a breath. The air and water became clearer and cleaner. More people planted gardens. We had time to think. And most importantly, time to reset our thinking. The truth is that Mother Earth will always survive. It is we that are out of balance with her. As we come into the season of rebirth we call spring, it is time to renew our relationship with the earth. Time to say hello to the earthworms named after their mother, now awakening after the worm moon. Time to say Hello to the mushrooms, bacteria, viruses, nematode worms, and all the other microorganisms that make up our living soil. Time to remember our radical interconnection with all living things. To remember that all living things are our relatives. We are made of Fire, Air, Water, and Earth. We are the microcosm of the macrocosm. We come from the same source. We are one. It is not necessary to kill or conquer nature. It is only necessary to reset our thinking and come back into balance.
On this EARTH DAY 2021, we of The Great Balance call upon all peoples of the world. We invite you to a series of sacred ceremonies to honor, reconnect, and reset our relationship with the elements: Fire, Air, Water, and Earth.
Eight elders – four women and four men – will enact these series of Ceremonies. Each element will be introduced and honoured with a Ceremony from one pair of elders, one woman and one man.
We welcome your participation and will pass each Ceremony on to you for your own Medicine Bundle. Please plan to have with you a special small cloth or rug, a feather of any kind if you have one, a glass of water, a candle, a small plate or shell that can handle heat and a match. If you have access to sage, cedar, sweet grass, tobacco, any kitchen herb such as thyme or oregano, please also bring a small amount. We are all about bringing forth the Great Balance ~ beginning with Ourselves. We look forward to being together in the Circle.
Aloha ke Akua Kuleana • Nya:wen • In La’kech Ala K’in
SPECIAL GUESTS
Mamo Hipólito, Mamo Luis Eduardo and Mamo Dwawiku
Sierra Nevada, Colombia
Abuela Elisabeth Babin – Algonquin – Turtle Island Grandmothers Council
Wahgoshig Canada
Elder Abraham Bearskin – Cree Elder
James Bay, Canada
Elder Kevin Deer – Mohawk Faith keeper – Kahnawake Mohawk Territory
Quebec, Canada
Elder Barbara Brant – Kamik Elder’s Lodge
Quebec Canada
Grandmother Moetu Taiha – Aotearoa North Island
New Zealand
Hoksila John – St. George Utah
Aotearoa, NZ
Grandmother Marsha Forrest – Turtle Island Grandmothers Council
Ohsweken, Ontario
Tata Erick Gonzalez – Mayan Elder
Guatemala
DAY AND TIME
22 April 2021 – 11am – 2PM ET (Estern Time)
PLEASE NOTE! PRE-REGISTRATION is necessary for this event
The event will take place on the online platform Zoom, on 22 of April at 11am ET Please specify that you would like to receive the participation link for THE EARTH DAY sending a message to the following email address (We will send you the link for your use only, thank you!)
* This event is sponsored by Hostos Community College of the University of the City of New York (CUNY)