(Nimue)
The call to service as part of Druidry can seem like and intimidating thing. If you are already time-poor, already tired and struggling (as so many of us are) then how can you possibly add 'service' on top of that? It can seem like an idea that more properly belongs with anyone trying to take more of a priestly role.
However, there are many different ways of approaching this.
Anything we do to live lightly and sustainably is an act of service to the Earth. That includes your recycling. It can mean things like avoiding over-packaged goods and throwaway plastics. Cutting your food waste, composting your kitchen waste, avoiding microplastics, using more environmentally friendly cleaning products, keeping usable items out of landfill... all of this is service.
Any commitment you make to learning and growing is part of how you serve as a Druid. You may be laying down foundations for future service. The most important work to do right now might be the work you are doing in your own life that will give you more options in the future.
Looking after nature as it manifests in your own body is looking after nature. The things that are best for us are also best for the world as a whole, and this is good work to be doing.
If you give time to prayer, to ritual, or to any other form of honouring what is sacred to you, this is service to the divine. It doesn't have to be showy or dramatic. If you practice gratitude then you're honouring what's around you which is part of the same thing.
If you are drawing inspiration from Druidry to inform your everyday life, then you are embodying that Druidry. You're putting it into the world and living it in a meaningful way. This is also an act of service.
Everyday opportunities to practice kindness and compassion abound. We all get opportunities to act fairly, to speak up for justice, to bring wisdom and care into our lives. When we act thoughtfully and treat the people we encounter in line with our values, then that also counts.
Service is about making your Druidry real in a way that doesn't only impact on you. When we're thinking about how we impact on the world, and working to do that in the best possible ways we can, then we are making service part of what we do. Whether that's working to ease tensions in our families or workplaces, or trying to lift and encourage others, there are many ways of expressing aspects of your Druidry in your everyday life. Small everyday gestures matter, and often have far more impact than occasional big gestures.
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