Hilariously, I “open” this website – all about being original, alive, and aware, in the moment – with one of the oldest conventions of public speakers, from elementary school onward: the etymology of the title. Turns out it works pretty well.
“Open” is from upo, meaning under, up from under, or over, which aren’t contradictory at the deeper root: the Sanskrit upa, meaning “near to.” So, opening is about getting close to: expanding outward from the core, and allowing impressions to come in, knowing them as simultaneous, identical. We are above AND below. Opening.
The first site design floats in lotuses. For a long time, I felt they were too exotic for me, the province of yoga masters. Eventually I felt at home with them when I read about their muddy feet, their heroic stems reaching from the mud to the sun. I love pondering the massive green leaves holding them up, their petals throwing themselves open to receive sunlight and bees and tiny frogs, their pods glowing gold before resting into gray-brown seed-protectors for new generations. So this site opened with lotuses, and humans are celebrated for having feet of mud, resilient stems, generous leaves, ecstatic blossoms, and fruitful pods – be our fruits babies, activities, or media-borne art.
The idea of “Divine Nature Gateways” is that we open more joyously into full life when we honor, listen to, and admire the genius of our Natural embodied selves – with reverence and appreciation for Creation, including all our thoughts, words, deeds, and feelings.