My previous post published itself before the brilliance of its second paragraph – oh well!
Of course the second paragraph wasn’t brilliant at all – it was just something about how I enjoyed sitting, even scrambling a bit, in the dirt near the chook yards the other night. I was wearing my best white trousers because I had just come back from town, so I hesitated, not wanting to get them dirty.
Then, a swirly sort of thing happened and, without any hesitation, I plonked myself onto the ground and, yes, copied the dust bath antics of some of the birds. Well, I tried! I need a bit of practice I guess, but it was a hell of a lot of fun learning.
I am very glad Ming was out because he might have gotten the impression that I had gone mad. Not at all! Now that I am no longer worried about my clothes getting dirty, I am going to join the birds in more dust baths; it’s quite refreshing to get right down on the ground like they do.
What I like best about this dust bath thing is the way (if you are a human) you just have to let go of your uprightness, your inhibitions, your idea of ‘clean’, and every shred of your self-consciousness.
And once you are thoroughly dusted, you can lie on your back on the grass and look up at the sky and hope that one day Godfrey will love you back again. But, just in case he doesn’t, you say a prayer.
Dear God, I offer you my sleeping, so that you can rescue me from my nightmares and find me a small comfortable cave where I can rest.
Dear God, I offer you my eating, so that you can help me to swallow the fairy floss that tastes like lemon peel, so that you can help me to swallow the boringness of grated carrot, so that you can help me to climb the avocado tree for that one last piece of fruit.
Dear God, I offer you my walking around, so that you can help me to stop circling myself, and build a new path with lots of daffodils and maybe a few trees for the birds.
Dear God, I offer you my heart, so that you can help me get it off the treadmill and beat normally again. I offer you all of the ugly horribleness of me, so that you can help me to be beautiful again and, if isn’t too much trouble, I would like my freckles back please.
Dear God, how did you do all of that so fast?
I’m a little dusty!
jmgoyder 
Beautiful prayer Jules – I felt it in my heart. And is that Godfrey? I swear I have a crush on that guy..
That’s Gods before he became ferocious!
Love this answer!!!!!!!!
Now, those were some pretty powerful prayers and I love this post my dusty friend..not so much dust here…do you think it would work in mud?
Mud is good.
good…next opportunity, and if no one is looking, perhaps I can mud bath my way to realizing that kind of feeling….sounds wonderful.
You would love it!
Here’s mud in your eye! ha!
Gosh, Julie.
You wouldn’t survive holidaying with me. I kneel or crouch (or fall) down all the time taking photos – in the dirt, mud or sometimes even bird/duck poo – I only wear black or navy (so the birds I’m photographing think I’m a tree).
Wise colours!
There you go – making me laugh and cry all in the same post. Humor and playfulness – countering the tremendous heartache of dealing with life’s challenges that throw us to the ground. Instead, you are on the ground – playing, praying and appreciating life. You are such a beautiful human!
Haha – playing in the dirt is quite grounding!
You have such a dirty mind – filthy! 🙂
It’s good for the heart to every now and then get down and play in the dirt! Love it!
Diana xo
Do you do it too?
YES! I inherited playfulness from my mom and I could be walking down the street with a friend and see a park and climb the ladder of the slide and slide down and continue on my talking and walking.
I love sitting on the ground outside and the floor inside and sticking my hands into the soil and throwing leaves and jumping in puddles! haha
Diana xo
Ah – kindred spirits!
I Love Love Love this post — your prayers at the end are beautiful! Hugs.
Thanks Louise!
Love this one!
Thanks Paulette!
I love your prayer… but it is good for the soul to just get down and get dirty, not from work but just for the sake of it… loved this post…
You are right about the dirty!
I hope tomorrow that Godfrey is eating out of your hand again (without biting the fingers that feed him).
He is a little friendlier today!
Dust baths sound fun! You have me wondering if I should join the robins in the yard to scratch through the leaves. 🙂
I recommend it!
Your poat makes me feel warm and safe — I suppose i am praying vicariously through you! 😎
I love that word ‘vicarious’!
I thought the last post seemed to fall a little short…. ha!… I don’t see a picture though of you in the dust….
Anywayyyy I so understand your prayers …especially about the ‘horribleness’ … I’m in a ‘funk’ because of the ongoing saga of mine too…. But Julie your heart could never be considered ‘horrible’ and that’s the essence of who you are…. take heart… Diane
You take heart too, Diane xxx
My aunt and uncle used to go to a spa once a year for three weeks and mud baths were mandatory. These spa retreats were for medicinal purposes, and the mud baths were my uncle’s favorite. Dust baths to keep the sun and bugs away and the mud bath to soothe the aching joints, can’t beat Mother Nature.
Well I haven’t tried a mudbath before!
Well the dust bath sounds fabulous to tell you the truth! And the prayer….just perfect.
I’m heading out for another dust bath shortly!
ENJOY! 🙂
Yes I agree so beautiful prayers indeed
My praying is a bit rusty ha!
Julie, I do enjoy your wit and your truths. Thank you Bill;
You are welcome!
Sounds like you had a fun day. A good roll in the dirt helps erase all stress. Maybe I should try it!!!!
Or in the snow?
snow of course!!!! LOL
What a wonderful concept! I don’t think I have enough dirt to take a dust bath in but now I’ll be looking for some. …I used to love swimming in the Pacific when I lived – briefly – in Southern California because it was like going back to a big womb. I think getting down to the earth, so to speak, acknowledges a similar powerful essence. From dust to dust, with a little thrown in along the way maybe? Indeed!
With the beach so close I should swim more – thanks for reminding me!
It now occurs to me that I fell in the fluffy white snow (not quite like dust, huh?) sometime recently after tripping on the cord that leads to the heated bird bath, and it felt so good I just wanted to stay down there and play in it like a kid. Another variation on the theme!
Julie, this is such a beautiful post, and the prayer is wonderful. I love that you can talk to God and ask for his help with all the little daily details. Inspiring.
When I was young I could crawl through the grass and dirt and not think a thing about it. Now that I am “grown up” I have an aversion to getting down on the ground. Weird really, because I can garden and get so grubby I have dirt lines in the wrinkles on my neck, and realize a shower will be the cure.
So when did I become allergic to getting down on the ground and having fun? I can’t even remember.
The prayer derives from Romans 12. I know what you mean re getting down on the ground – it takes a bit of adjustment haha!
I’m not sure you’ve converted me to dust baths, but I do love looking at the sky and pondering big and small things. Sounds like a perfectly good way to decompress to me. Enjoy!
I like your word ‘decompress’ – perfect!
So that’s what it means to return to the dust. 🙂
LOVE this post. When I was a child there was an area down by the creek near my grandmother’s place that (after rain) had some squishy mud. We would go down after the rain and spend some fun time squishing through the mud with our toes. It is one of those memories of a care-free childhood that I look back on with happiness. It is a shame that we do not do these things as adults and are constrained by being sensible.