REDEFINING ELDERSHIP: Earth Elders

By Valerie HD Killebrew

Nature has always had a strong place in my life. From spending many days outside as I grew up to now parenting a very curious child who loves all aspects of nature. My mother would often tell my brother, sister, and I about the fairies who live in moss, or that we should always ask a tree for permission to climb it. 

I remember once when I was an angsty teenager, my mother told me to go and sit against a tree. The tree is rooted in a complex system, deep into the earth. It will support you by lending you grounding. The tree also reaches high up into the air with supple branches that know how to flex no matter how much wind force is blowing. It will teach you how to bend without breaking. 

Since then, I have always found my way to a tree when I feel ungrounded or need support. When I considered the topic of Redefining Eldership, my mind went to how I have always gone to nature for guidance, wisdom, answers, or direction. 

In 2018, I attended a beautifully facilitated workshop led by Judy Sorum Brown called the Reflective Leaders Project. One activity during our week together was to identify a question we were personally facing. After writing about the question, our task was to go outside and identify an aspect, system, and/or element in nature and how it/they are answering a similar question. The question I pondered was how to continue supporting my reporting team members when I didn’t have support from a leadership figure. 

As I wandered around the beautiful woods outside our retreat location, I found a stream whose path had been blocked by a large tree that fell across it. Effortlessly, the stream found multiple alternate paths around the tree to continue its journey. It didn’t dry up, it didn’t back up into a stagnant pool, it just found a new way to flow. It felt so incredibly simple but added such perspective as I thought about my own situation. 

While I still consider myself a multi-faceted artist who practices several forms, the one I have most access to these days of busy parenting and working is writing. As I reflected on this idea of nature taking the form of an elder in my life, the following poem emerged.

Earth Elders

Valerie HD Killebrew, 5/8/23

The tall tree, 
silent and wise, 
has weathered storm upon storm
It weaves an intricate system deep into the ground 
And bends just enough in its dance with the wind
It finds a way

The tiny seed 
Pushed from its dying mother
Finds its way to the ground below
Finds its way into the soil
Finds its way to capture the raindrops 
Takes the resources it needs 
Forges a new path up
To meet the light and grow
It finds a way

The mighty sea
Rocking in perfect balance
Evolves, erodes, exists
Hosting the lives of countless creatures
Carrying the secrets of time
Never wavering, always knowing
Through damage and mistreatment
It finds a way 

I stare out, humbled
At the earth elders
If I need to speak, the flowers will listen
If I have questions, I watch the way the stream solves its own problems
If I need support, I sit at the base of a tree
And know I am held from ground to the sky 
They have all found a way,
Can I? 

…

I, like many, know I have a tendency to overthink things. Consulting with your elders always provides a space to be held or witness to a more learned individual- someone who can provide guidance, education based on experience. What better elder to look towards than nature? What questions or challenges are you currently facing and how does something in nature address a similar challenge?