September 2026 - Nature Gathering
September Message: Freedom in Forgiveness
09/27/2026
GATHERING MESSAGE
✧ Forgiveness can be one of the simplest ideas to understand and one of the hardest things to practice. We may long to feel free of the pain we carry, yet when a wound runs deep, letting go can be the simplest hard thing we’ve ever done.
On this beautiful fall morning, we came together to explore forgiveness not as an obligation, an excuse for harmful behavior, or a requirement to reconcile with someone who has hurt us, but as an invitation to begin laying down the weight of what we've been carrying.
Sometimes pain remains with us long after the original experience has passed. We replay conversations, revisit old wounds, and hold tightly to the hope that someone will acknowledge what happened or offer the apology we need. Over time, this pain can lead our minds to build a kind of armor around us to protect us from being hurt again.
But the armor that keeps pain out can also make it harder to receive warmth, connection, joy, and grace.
Our exploration began with a heart-opening grounding practice. Through slow, deep breaths and a gentle focus on the heart center, we were invited to soften, become present, and make room for what we were carrying.
From there, we explored various perspectives on forgiveness and the possibility of reclaiming our own energy. Across traditions, we find the reminder that the deepest part of who we are remains whole, even when we have been hurt. Our pain may cover that inner light, but it does not extinguish it.
Forgiveness, in this sense, is not about declaring that what happened was acceptable. It is about loosening the ties that keep us bound to the past and allowing ourselves to return to the present. It is a way of reclaiming our vitality rather than continuing to pour our energy into an old wound.
We also explored the role of grace. Sometimes our minds insist on justice, explanations, or apologies that may never come. Grace offers another possibility: the willingness to receive support beyond our own efforts and to let pain soften into wisdom when we are ready.
There is no need to force forgiveness before our hearts are ready. Healing unfolds in its own time. Sometimes the first step is simply acknowledging our pain honestly. And sometimes, after we've carried it long enough, we begin to sense a small opening, a willingness to imagine that we might not have to carry it forever.
Our community readings brought together voices from Christian mysticism, Sufism, Sacred Feminine wisdom, and Indigenous writing, each offering a different doorway into compassion, freedom, and the possibility of release.
We took our exploration of forgiveness on a walk through the park. We were invited to find a tree that called to us and allow it to witness our pain. First, we were invited to witness the tree fully before we asked the tree to witness us. When we were ready, we were invited to lay down our burdens with the tree as our witness - to rest a hand on its bark and share what we were ready to release. The tree became a witness, holding space without judgment or the need for us to explain ourselves perfectly. Before returning to the circle each person gathered a fallen leaf from their witness tree.
When each returned from their walk to the circle, we listened to “Only By Love” by Alexa Sunshine Rose, and were invited to release our leaf into the stream as a symbol of laying some of what we are carrying and letting the water carry it away for us.
The gathering reminded us that forgiveness is not always a single decision or a neat ending. Sometimes it begins with the smallest willingness to open the door, let a little light in, and trust that we are supported as we find our way toward freedom.
SPIRITUAL PRACTICE
✧ The Witness Tree: A Forgiveness Nature Experience
Trees have witnessed countless seasons of growth, change, and release. They don't cling to every leaf or resist the natural turning of the seasons. In their presence, we were invited to consider what we might be ready to let go of, too.
Each person found a tree that felt right and took time to be with it. With a hand resting on the bark, we were invited to name what we were ready to release: a person, a situation, a lingering hurt, or even a story about ourselves that we'd carried for so long we'd stopped noticing its weight.
There was no need for perfect words or a particular outcome. The practice was simply to speak our truth and allow ourselves to be witnessed without judgment.
SPIRITUAL INVITATION FOR AUGUST
✧ Each evening, take a moment to notice whether you're carrying a grievance, replaying a painful experience, or feeling the familiar tension of an old wound. You don't need to force yourself to forgive or pretend you're no longer hurt. Simply notice what is present in your body. Place a hand over that tender place and give it room to breathe. If it feels right, gently whisper:
I bring the light of love to what is tender within me.
Allow yourself to receive a moment of grace. You might not be ready to let go today, and that's okay. The invitation is simply to create a little more space around your pain and remember that you don't have to carry it alone. By witnessing our grievances with compassion, we allow our hearts to stay open rather than armoring up.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION
✧ On What We Carry: What hurt, resentment, or unresolved experience continues to occupy space in your life?
✧ On Grace: What might become possible if you allowed yourself to receive support rather than believing you must work through everything alone?
✧ On Release: What are you ready to loosen your hold on, even just a little, so that more of your energy can return to the life you're living now?
PERENNIAL WISDOM SOURCES
✧ INDIGENOUS
"Embers: One Ojibway's Meditations" by Richard Wagamese
Order from a local Rock County bookstore here.
✧ CHRISTIAN MYSTICISM
"A Course In Miracles" by The Foundation for Inner Peace
✧ DIVINE FEMININE
"The Prophetess" by Chelan Harkin
Order from a local Rock County bookstore here.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
✧ The Ancient Hearts Collective Wisdom School: We're creating a new home within Ancient Hearts for deeper learning, exploration, and practice, with courses, listening circles, book circles, and workshops rooted in wisdom traditions and whole-person well-being.
✧ Community Care: If you are in need of support, you can find the Community Support form on the Giving Back page of our website.
✧ Giving Back: We continue to create opportunities to turn our shared values into action through community service projects. Thank you to everyone who helps make these experiences possible.
