Honoring Death

An Entosophy Interview with Weeping Willow

Entosophy
An Interview with Weeping Willow
Received by Amanda Nicole
South Carolina Botanical Gardens
7.5.2023

* The quality of this recording is different from previous offerings. My voice is quieter and sounds far away — the effect of a mistake I made while recording, but I chose to present it in its original, imperfect form because I believe it supports the expression of Weeping Willow’s message — which is to say: I believe it is as it was meant to be.

Q: What is your view of Ultimate Reality?

it is a succession
we follow each other
one by one
to the End
which becomes
our Beginning
and we begin again
some think this is magical
i find it heartbreaking
beautifully heartbreaking
there is such repetition
however new
we are born
we live
we die
that is Earth
that is Earth’s reality

i am for those who wish
it could be some other way
in other places:
it is
it is another way
but here
the reality of here is:
hearts get broken
love gets lost
we are all dying

Q: What Ethics flow from this view of Reality?

do all you can
to make this journey
loving and gentle
the pain of loss is inevitable
we will all -- you will all
feel it
so between the Beginning and the End
be loving
be gentle
treasure the Space Between
it is shorter than
you might think

you feel it, don’t you?
the brevity of it all
doesn’t it make you want
to grab hold
and never let go
kiss until your lips are numb
and then
kiss again

love
come into union
stay there
hold it
savor it
doesn’t the thought of
The End
make you want to Live
to feel
to be
Right Now?

do that:
do the thing that makes
for Beauty
Right Now
it is not the money
it is not the fame
it is not the success
(though you are welcome
to enjoy these)
it is the Love

whatever you can do
to make the journey of another
easier
do it
do that thing
do what you can to
slow down time
draw it out
step outside it
find ways to be timeless
if what you are doing
rushes you
busies you
slow down:
make more time
make more time
more space
for the In Between
for moments like this
where you sit beneath
my branches
and listen to cicadas sing

Q: What Embodied Expressions -- or, Policies -- flow from these Ethics?

union
policies that make for union
Oneness
Communion
we walk this path alone

but it is so much better together
make policies that bring people
together
there is no separation
it is an illusion
let the veil drop

death
honor the dead
honor death
honor the process of dying
return to the Earth
make willow baskets
wrap yourself in willow branches
let the Earth hold you
acknowledge that you will
return to her
let go of the chemicals
do not embalm
what a horrible way to end
let your veins be filled
with water
with blood
with lymph
with Love

what?
what are you doing to yourselves?

honor death
it is beautiful
let it be beautiful
make it be beautiful
where has your ceremony gone?
these chairs in a line
this box at the front
this is not a ceremony
this is a separation
bring me your bodies
bring your bodies to me
let me adorn them
weep over them
bathe them
anoint them
prepare them
rest beneath the willow tree
lay here
make love here
marry here
live here
die here
all in Beauty
all blessed in Beauty
honor the dead
honor death
live like you’re dying

Q:  What challenges do you anticipate?

there’s no money to be made
in a beautiful burial
there‘s no money to be made
in returning to the Earth
to the place from whence you came
there is no money to be found
in simplicity and willow leaves
there is no money to be found
in the sacred
profit
profit is the problem
you create structures
systems
complexes
that want
need
to feed
themselves
so they feed off
You

the problem is your law
the problem is your policy
the problem is
you think
you can regulate something
as beautiful and wild as
Death
have you sold your souls --
literally?
let your souls return

honor death
honor the process
honor the passage
honor the portal
honor the melting
the decaying
the disintegrating
honor the compost that is
You
give yourself
your whole beautiful self
to the Earth again
go to sleep in a willow basket

Q: What is the Ideal Society?

it is gentle
it is intentional
it is present
it is Now
It is the society that sees
acknowledges
honors
your Soul
in the Ideal Society
you are carried gently
from birth to beginning
(there is no ending
just a transition
a crossing over)

yes, there is a river

you are carried lovingly
gently
with honor
always with honor
we do not take from you
we give
we honor your path
we honor your You
in the Ideal Society
you carry
you accompany
one another
you are companions
walk with me, will you?

[ she reaches for my hand ]

Q: Do you have any final thoughts?

celebrate death
as you celebrate birth
both are the completion of
an arduous journey
both are courageous crossings

honor the bravery
that exists in
every human heart
honor your coming
honor your going
honor your being
honor
bow with Gratitude
bow with Love
bow with Awe
to the wonder of the miracle
that is
the Human You
humans are incredibly brave
there is no one like them
we love you
we honor you
we will carry you

step into the river

as i approached the willow, i could feel her sadness. in times past, she has felt so alive to me — vibrant, beautiful — like a song. but on this occasion, i could feel her sadness from a distance, and when i arrived in her space, it was evident that she was not well: she was not thriving. she began by saying to me: “this is my last message. this is my will and testament.” i do not think she will live long.

as i sat down to settle in and listen, i noticed one of her branches: it was lined with cicada exoskeletons — one after another. what had once been present and alive no longer was.

since my last visit to this willow, this dedication was a new addition to its space — and quite a strange one to discover, considering the nature of her message.

can you see and feel how sad she is?

when i sat down, this caterpillar immediately appeared, crawling across my leg and through the grass. as of this posting, i haven’t yet identified it or sat with the possible medicine and message it offered during Weeping Willow’s interview.