Free Life Blog

Barefoot Hiking

Natural Living by Chris Bunton

Hiking has been a part of me since I can remember. Even today I need to get out into the wilds and walk. Whether it is alone, or with others. Hiking quickens my soul.

We live in a fast paced world of busy, busy, busy. No time to slow down and release all that stress and drama. No chance to get away. Hiking is an escape. Getting away and thinking of nothing but the walk, the trail, and nature.

Barefoot hiking is a way that I use to alter my reality. It is the simplest thing in the world. We did it when we were babies, and wild eyed kids. Just go barefoot. Take off your shoes and enjoy.

“But, I’ll get injured!” Your fear screams. Yes, you might. But, you will survive and your feet will get used to it. Just like life in general. We live in a rough world, bad things can and do happen. But, to gain the good, we must deal with the bad, and we do get stronger. Perhaps we can even learn to enjoy the bad.

Barefoot Hiking is not like traditional hiking. You do not trump down the trail from point A to Point B. You walk slowly, observing the sights around you, communing with nature, talking with God, and meditating. Since you are moving slowly, feeling the earth under your feet, the odds of injury are very unlikely. I have barefoot hiked for years, and with the exception of a few splinters, or stone bruises, I have never had a problem.

It can also be healthy. It can bring stress relief along with strengthening your feet and calves. Also, there’s an alternative healing method called “Earthing” or “Grounding”, which brings health by connecting us to this Earth, God created. Our modern world separates us from nature. How many illnesses do we have because of it?

I pull up to my hiking destination. (Not all trails are suitable for barefoot hiking unless you are used to it.) I am wearing loose, comfortable, clothes in earth tones or even camo. I remove my shoes, and put on organic healthy sunscreen or bug spray as needed. I put on my gear, as minimal as possible. Water bottles, survival kit, first aid kit with splinter removal tools, and snake bite kit or sometimes no gear at all. I tie my hiking shoes to my belt. Because sometimes you’ll encounter terrain that requires shoes. Then I grab my walking stick and head out.

A walking stick or trekking pole has many uses when hiking. Just the other day, I went hiking and came to a very muddy hill. The walking stick helped me safely climb and descend the hill without sliding all the way down. Find a stick you love, and use it.

When you enter the forest and have walked far enough inside to leave everything behind, just stop and listen. Clear your mind as best you can. Notice the changes in nature around you. All the beings in the forest know you are there and have reacted. Wait a bit. Perhaps sit down. You will slowly become one with the forest and nature will return to normal. This might take different amounts of time. But, the purpose is to leave all those concerns about time behind you. Now rise and walk slowly. Feel the dirt, stone, mud, and grass under your feet. Walk a little bit, then stop and listen, Watching. Then, repeat.

When you walk slow, going barefoot and silent, while wearing earth tones or camo, you will be able to see more wildlife. I have stalked up to many creatures and enjoyed seeing them wide-eyed wondering how I ever got so close.

When you come to a mud hole, or stone place on the trail, walk through it. Do not avoid it. Experience it. Live in the moment. Feel the squish between your toes, or feel the cold hardness of the stone

You will most likely meet people on the trail. Don’t worry about what they think when they see your bare feet. Just smile. Many of them secretly desire to do the same. Many will try next time. Some will be afraid, talking themselves out of it. Just move along. They are on a different journey than you are. Just like life. Keep trekking. Enjoy.

(Now be aware that not all trails are conducive to walking barefoot. Be smart about it. Don’t walk the Pacific Crest Trail carrying a pack barefooted, then blame me if you get hurt. BUT…If you decide to be the first person to hike the Appalachian Trail barefooted, I would love for you to give me a shout out. Course, do not start out on long treks barefooted. Work your way up.)

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(Photograph is by the writer. A trail in the Shawnee National Forest of Southern Illinois)

New Dystopian Fiction eBook

By Chris Bunton

I have released my new eBook called “The Future is Coming”. It is a collection of short and flash fiction stories with a dystopian theme.

You can purchase the eBook everywhere online except for Amazon. Amazon doesn’t like when you post things previously online. Some of the stories in my eBook had been been published in online magazines.

But anyway, despite Amazon thinking that they rule the world, other book sellers have the book and are happy to sell it to you.

You can find it at Barnes and Noble HERE

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Fight the Crab Mentality

Breaking Free by Chris Bunton

What is it?

Well, the idea comes from what happens when you put crabs in a bucket.

One crab will see a way to escape, and as he is climbing up out if the bucket, the other crabs will grab a hold of him and pull him back down.

What you’ll find is that as you try to change your life. People around you will do things to shoot you down.

This can come in many forms.

Let’s say you want to lose weight or be healthy. Well, you’ll find that people around you are not as supportive as you’d like. It’s not just that they live their lives like normal, which is their right. They are not required to support you. But, they seem to actively shoot you down. They invite you to meals, then when you order a salad they make comments about it. They might call you a crazy vegan. They might invite you over to a party and have nothing for you to eat.

Let’s say you want to stop drinking or taking drugs. You’ll have friends trying to get you high or making various comments to stop you, saying things like “Quitters never win”. They will show up, wanting to take you out to party. They will call you while they are drunk, trying to get you to come out with them.

Maybe you want to try a business idea. People like friends and family might tell you it will fail, or how you can’t get a loan, or how they tried and it didn’t work. Just all sorts of things to put fear and doubt in your heart. Do your research and prove them wrong.

They might not mean to. They might think they are helping. But, like a crab they pull you back down into the bucket where they think you belong.

I’ll tell you a story. I knew a young girl who was in grade school. She was thinking about being a dentist. She mentioned this to an older woman who said, “It would be great for you to be a dental assistant, or dental hygienist.”

To which I said, “Why can’t she be the Dentist?”

No answer was given. But, knowing the older woman she probably thought that girls can’t be dentist’s. Or that it cost too much or was too hard.

All these ideas are designed to keep us in our places. We all go to school to be molded into good little employees. Then, we go into college programs for jobs that keep us in the bucket.

Everywhere, we are surrounded by things that keep us in the bucket of our servant lives, for generations. When one industry closes another is created and jobs are pushed in it.

Do not get me wrong. I know we are responsible for ourselves and our own success. I know that blaming others does not help. But, whether we like it or not we are impacted by others. Sometimes, things in our past keeps us down and we do not realize it. Sometimes, we don’t see the control people have over us. Each of us have our own mountain to climb, with all its pitfalls. I simply want to point out a monster that lurks along the way.

I know a boss who constantly ridicules things in his employees private lives. If they have a hobby. He attacks it. If they like to travel, he dumps on it. Instead of lifting people up he drags them back down. It doesn’t matter what it is. You could be the best painter on Earth, and he’ll make snide comments and dump on it. He thinks he is funny and a people person. But, he’s not. You know these people in your own life.

Be aware of the crab mentality. Anytime you try to change things or step out of the mold. You will encounter people and ideas that seek to keep you trapped. They plant seeds of failure, and help water them.

Sometimes, these ideas are in your own mind. You were raised to think it. You had an adult or a whole family of adults who let you know where you should be. These ideas, even manifest in your mind in the voice of the person. Such as, “Quit with these ideas of yours and just go get a job at the factory like everyone else. Grow up”

When I have a thought of fear or failure, I can see exactly the person who has propagated that thought in my mind or life. When I seek to do something new, I can hear the voice of the person who will make the snide comments about it.

It can be family, friends, co-workers, bosses, teachers, or even the music you listen to, or shows you watch. All putting ideas in your mind to keep you in the bucket. To keep you from rising above your station.

Escape the bucket you dirty peasant. Shed off those pincers that grab and pull you back down. How far would you be if the crabs around you had helped instead of dragging you down? Get away from the crabs and find people who are on your side.

The failure I’ve had to overcome would be far less, if I had pulled away from some crabs in my life, long ago.

If only we honestly helped each other.

Maybe that’s the difference between successful people and failures.

Maybe most successful people were surrounded by folks who encouraged and helped them in every way they could.

But, the rest of us were surrounded by crabs.

Fight the Crab Mentality. Many have overcome it. You can too.

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Photo by the writer, Gulf Shores, Alabama. A tropical storm slides by.

Empty Shells

Spiritual Poetry By Chris Bunton

The sea waves,
washing empty shells clean.

Laid in the sand,
just where each should be.

The being,
gone from inside the shell,
leaving colorful beauty behind.

In life’s waves,
we are born and we grow,
only to die and be lain to rest.

Our soul is gone,
from this now worthless shell,
leaving behind only memories.

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Photo by the Poet.

The Princes of This World

Spiritual Truth by Chris Bunton

Let’s talk about some conspiracy and spiritual truth for a moment. Because you must understand that there is only ONE conspiracy. And that’s the spiritual battle behind the scenes, that we all can see parts of, and have a feeling about, but cannot completely prove.

The people who rule this world are controlled by spiritual forces, whether they know it or not. So, let me show you some verses from the scriptures that speak of the true nature of our world behind the veil.

Let’s start with this one.

“Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”— 1 Cor. 2:8

This verse in 1 Corinthians is very interesting and says a lot more than what it appears.

If you recall the story of Jesus’s crucifixion in the Gospels. You have to ask the question. “What princes?”

The story tells of Pilate who is an administrator not a prince. He might be of aristocratic bloodlines, but he is not a prince.

King Herod is not a prince. He also did not actively put Christ to death.

The religious leaders are not princes, although they are called the children of the devil, which could make them princes, possibly.

So, who is the verse talking about?

I believe it’s talking about Satan and his fallen angels who rule this world with him.

In second Corinthians…… Satan is described as “the god of this world”

“In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”–2 Cor. 4:4

In Ephesians it speaks of him ruling again

“Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:”— Eph 2:2

He is the ruler of this world and has been from when he stole dominion from Adam in the Fall.– Genesis chapter 3.

God gave Adam dominion, and when Adam chose to obey Satan instead of God. He handed that dominion over to the enemy.

That is why there’s so much evil in the world. Satan has authority and is building his kingdom for his messiah, the Anti-Christ to come.

So, how do I know this?

Well, we have this verse in Ephesians, that seems to be referring to demonic forces that rule the world, and do so through their human slaves.

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places”— Eph 6:12.

Also, in the book of Daniel, Chapter 10. Daniel is praying but the prayer is delayed because of demonic activity.

The passage speaks of the Prince of Persia, and the Prince of Grecia, who hinder the prayer.

It seems that these are demonic leaders who rule over these areas and people groups.

These verses seem to imply a global demonic network that rules everything.

This is what Christ came to set us free from. Our Sin and the Dominion of the Enemy.

When you look at history you can plainly see the workings of the enemy as he uses humans to conquer and set up systems of control.

You can see how he keeps people enslaved and in poverty. Deceiving the masses and building the structures that will allow his messiah, to have the power to rule.

Satan desires to be worshiped as the most high God, and works to dethrone God everywhere he can.

Watch what is happening in the world today, and filter it through the idea of these control structures, and let the Holy Spirit open your eyes to what is really going on.

—–

Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry eBook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery eBook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“ His newest book is called “The Future is Coming” and is a collection of dystopian short stories.

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

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To Tears

Quatrain Love Poem by Chris Bunton

I brought her to tears.
It’s not what I want to do.
I feel that I broke her,
And I’m broken too.

How do we get us back;
To find ourselves again?
There’s an awkward thing now;
A shame that’s insane.

The makeup was hot and dirty,
a grudge and a love.
Can we go back,
And fit like a glove?

I’m sorry for that.
Thrown stones can’t return.
It’s part of our trip;
To live and to learn.

Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry eBook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery eBook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

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Support the work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=13514235&fan_landing=true&view_as=public

Conspiracy Theorist

Rebel Poetry by Chris Bunton

I am a Conspiracy Theorist.
I can’t help it.
Maybe it’s genetic.
Maybe I learned it;
when those I trusted lied.
When those who should know,
didn’t.
When they just told me,
what they were told,
to tell me.
When they say, “Because I said so.”

Maybe I’m a rebel.
Maybe you are too.
I see things, that don’t add up.
I hear things, that don’t match.
I have a funny feeling, something’s wrong.
My Spidey Sense is a tingling.

Everything seems to be moving,
in a controlled direction.
Someone must know more.
Someone must be in control.
It always goes a certain way.
Can you guess why?

Politicians lie, preachers lie,
doctors lie, scientists lie,
teachers lie, media lies,
Oh why oh why, do they lie?
It makes me wonder.

What came first? The lie?
or conspiracy theory?
Who has more reason to lie,
in this age of Great Deception?
Can anything be trusted?

I trust God. He has always brought me through.

(From my recently released poetry book “Against The Man“)

Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry Ebook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery Ebook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

Buy a cup of Coffee

Support the work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=13514235&fan_landing=true&view_as=public

Photo by the Poet. Washington D.C.

I Want You

Love Poem by Chris Bunton

I want you in my life;
more than anyone else.

I want to hold you;
till Earth fades away.

I want your kiss;
till we can’t breathe.

I want you;
while we live.

Just you;
till death.

You;
me.

Free.

On The Beach

Poetry By Chris Bunton

Sitting on the beach,

watching the awesomeness of God.

Waves crashing

Wind blowing

Sun warming the white sands

and my toes below.

Peaceful

Joyful

Happy, happy, happy

Till she shows up,

blasting music.

She wants to invade,

my world.

Maybe I’ll toss her tunes into the sea.

Maybe I missed the point.

Maybe I don’t care.

It’s the beach, after all.

I Die Daily

Spiritual Truth By Chris Bunton

There’s a verse in the Scriptures which says, “I die daily”. (1 Cor. 15:31)

It is a small quote, within the context of a larger concept, but it’s a powerful tool for life improvement and spiritual growth.

We often wake up in the middle of the night, or in the morning, full of anxiety. Our mind races after problems, troubles, worries, plans, goals, mistakes, and depression.

But, if every morning we make the simple act of “dying” a reality, then none of these things matter.

Let me explain. This is not real death, although, in a way it is. When we say ” I die to self today.” And we believe it and accept it, a transformation occurs in our mind.

When we announce to ourself. “I die to self today. I am going to live for God and others.” Our focus moves from ourself to God and others.

We then live that day focused on serving God and others.

How can you serve God and others?

You serve God by being a vessel for Him to do His work through, to save and help others.

Our will. Our selfishness. Our sin, prevents that.

So, where are your hurts at? What has God brought you through? Drug addiction? Health issues? Divorce? Job loss? Prison? Homelessness? Death of a loved one? Suicidal thoughts?

These things are an indication of where we can let God work through us to help others.

When we die daily, we open ourselves up to see the hurt in others. We are not looking at ourselves, but outwards.

By doing this, it also works to heal us of what we struggle with.

We are what we think about all day long.

If our thoughts are always on depression, trouble, suicide, drug use, fear, desire, loss or anything else that hurts us, then it becomes magnified, or can manifest into our lives even more.

Dying daily can get our head out of those things.

I am not saying it’s easy. But, if you make a habit of dying daily to self, and speaking positive things to yourself, it can make a huge difference in your life.

In Christian concepts, we turn to God and give ourselves to Him. By doing this we die with Jesus Christ, and are buried with Him, and rise from the dead with Him.

When we believe this, and put our faith in Christ, confessing that Jesus is the Lord, it cleanses us and we are reborn.

Think about it. When we die, nothing can hurt us. Nothing can be against us. Because we are dead.

Imagine the freedom that brings. All the pain, all the rules, and all the evil of this life does not really hurt us.

We are not of this world, and the suffering here ends in death.

Dying daily is a powerful tool for life improvement, it will transform you. Giving yourself to Christ will transform you in ways you can only hope for.

(1 Cor. 15:31)