A Lesson From a Forest Gnome

One of my biggest joys this year has been deepening my relationship with Nature Spirits. They have told me to come visit them in out of the way spots, off the beaten path. There are less distractions that way and I can immerse myself in the experience for deeper teaching.

Recently I took a new forest hike on an unmarked trail off a main trail.  I was looking for a creek that ran nearby and after a half mile or so I heard it bubbling and singing. The trail was uphill and winding and I kept going, looking for a spot where it met the creek. I rounded a bend and saw that the trail dipped down and the creek crossed it in a beautiful cascade of small steps before it dropped off in a tiny waterfall.  Upstream the ferns and bushes grew over a quiet area that looked to be an ideal place for faeries to play. It was incredibly beautiful, and a feeling of magic made my senses light up.

For a moment I thought about continuing to explore what might be around the next bend. I looked up the trail ahead and was startled to see a gnome staring back at me. It was easily seen in the mossy tree stump, and its energy felt a little stern. The first thing that crossed my mind was that it is guarding the trail and I’m not to go any further. I said hello and asked if I could go farther down the trail. I felt the answer as a definite no.  I asked if I could stay there at the creek crossing and did not get a no. In my book, that’s a yes. I took off my shoes and put my feet in the creek.  I glanced at the gnome every so often, amazed at how strong and animated its energy was.  

There is nothing quite like Elementals. Everything that exists on Earth is made up of Elementals, including our bodies. In ordinary realty we think of them as earth, air, fire and water, but they prefer to be called Gnomes, Sylphs, Salamanders and Undines. We can describe their qualities and meet them and engage with them. However, we can’t easily describe what they are because they are in both the physical and non-physical realms.

A gnome is an earth Elemental. It is earth, and it is also the spirit of earth. Great caretakers, they tend soil, plants, stones, minerals and are grounded, methodical and helpful with protection and abundance. I could also sense the undines, the water Elementals, in the creek, but I couldn’t really see them.  Elementals choose the level and form of interaction they make with us. I have never had an elemental interact with me in ordinary reality as strongly as this gnome did.

I left a small offering in gratitude for the beauty of the place and the meeting with the nature spirits and Elementals. I took a few pictures and headed back to the main trail. On my hike out, I thought about why the gnome had stopped me from going on down the trail. Maybe it was being protective of other beings that lived back farther in the forest. Or maybe it was being protective of me. I wondered if there was a cougar den back there, as sightings happened in the area a few times a year.

Later I looked at the pictures I took and almost fell over. In the very first one a trick of the sunlight and shadow had formed a detailed image of a cat next to the gnome.  I had a strong feeling then that the gnome was guarding me from disturbing a cougar.  Or guarding the cougar from being disturbed by me.

Gratitude filled me. This was a powerful lesson about trusting my second attention, and the messages I receive.  The experience also solidly brought home the truth that as we open to knowing nature as beings instead of objects, we can communicate in remarkable ways.  But it requires offering respect and a receptive heart instead of projecting the outward force of mental logic. That can be difficult for humans to do sometimes. It is fortunate that nature is patient.