Animal Spirits: The Goose

Lately there has been a flock of geese that has been passing directly over my home and sounding their horns both in the morning and in the evening as the fly to and fro. Currently I am working on my second fairy tale, and so I immediately thought of Mother Goose and her fairy tales the first time my geese encounter happened. Being a new mother this felt even closer to home, as the goose is very protective of their young, and I felt a sense of affirmation that my baby is also watched over by Spirit.

Geese are also protective and faithful to any in their own flock and will never leave one behind. They work as a team, communicating with their horns or honks, and anyone who has gotten too close to a goose knows that they are not afraid to show their bravado. As migratory birds, the animal spirit goose can symbolize one’s soul’s or one’s personal journey.

The Goose Symbolizes:

  • Protection of the Young & the Weak or Ill
  • Fellowship, Community, & Comradery
  • Teamwork & Communication
  • The Soul’s Journey
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Animal Spirits: The Lobster

This yellow lobster was caught by Jim Coffin, of Brunswick.A few nights ago I had a very interesting dream that had three different animal spirits in it: raccoons, lobsters, and crows. I’ve written about crow symbolism here, and raccoon symbolism will come. In this post I will focus on the lobster.

A brief summary for those who are curious: In my dream the lobsters were yellow – an extremely rare color. About 1 in 30 million lobsters are yellow. They also kept growing or getting bigger, and one had attached itself to my jacket.

Lobsters are solitary and strong creatures who, as they grow, must molt or shed their outer shells, which provide protection. This process of molting is symbolic of regeneration and transformation, while the process of releasing hard outer shells represents transcending fears and blockages of the ego or mind, reminding us to let go of our attachments or whatever we are gripping onto. The lobster’s growth and molting is continuous throughout its lifetime, showing us that our cycles of inner growth and healing are continuous as well.

Emotional regeneration, transformation, detachment, and inner growth are all processes that involve deep introspection to trigger deep emotional healing and bring it up from our psyches to our conscious awareness. The lobster that had attached to me in my dream reminded me of the lobster in the Moon card of the Tarot. This lobster is coming out of the water, bringing forth wisdom, insight, emotions, and intuitive guidance from the depths of the waters of the psyche to the surface of consciousness.

The Lobster Symbolizes:

  • Seeking Solitude & Finding Deeper Meaning Within
  • Inner Growth & Transformation
  • Healing & Regeneration
  • Strength & Patience
  • Bringing the Unconscious to Consciousness
  • Psychic Awareness
  • Shedding of Emotional/Mental Attachments
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Returning to a Yoga Asana Practice

For most of this past year my yoga Asana practice has been on hiatus due to a very challenging pregnancy and traumatic labor that led to an emergency c-section. All things considered, I am healing well and am now slowly returning to a yoga asana practice as part of my healing process.

Now begins the study/practice of yoga. – Yoga Sutra 1.1

As I begin, I remind myself of ahimsa. Ahimsa is the first Yama of the first limb of yoga, and it is an important foundation to all the other yoga practices as well as for life. Ahimsa translates as non-violence (it can also be translated as Love), and being gentle and loving to my physical form is important and necessary for recovery. About 15-20 minutes of Asana and Pranayama is my limit, yet I can already feel how not only my body, but my energy, my mind, and my emotions are coming back into balance, helping me to process all the thoughts, worries, and feelings of my childbirth experience.

Yoga is the practice of bringing stillness to the fluctuations of the mind.           – Yoga Sutra 1.2

More importantly, however, my return to a yoga asana practice has helped me to center myself back into my own Self.

Then the Seer/Self abides in his own nature.  – Yoga Sutra 1.3

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Spring 2017 Newsletter – A Time for New Beginnings!

I just sent out a newsletter about new beginnings, my creative projects, and my sabbatical. Check out the newsletter here!

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Animal Spirits: The Coyote

coyote_snowWhere I now live, there are coyotes all around. I’ve encountered a young, curious one in a park while walking my Alaskan Malamutes. I can often hear them singing to each other during the night, and occasionally I will see one on the road nearby that separates the residential area and the farmlands that lead up to the mountains. I feel connected to them when I see or hear them, as if they are guiding and affirming the changes and transformations in my own life.

Coyotes are a skillful, intelligent, and resourceful canine (Canis latrans), and with their playful and seemingly fearless behaviors they symbolize youth and trickster energy.

coyote playful

In Native American cultures, the coyote is seen as a shapeshifter, reminding us to be adaptable to change and that by removing our masks/personas we find our True Self. They are also seen as a transformer, bringing both endings and new life, including singing humans into being. Listen to coyote:

The Coyote Symbolizes:

  • Transformation, Change, Death & Rebirth
  • Shapeshifting
  • Playfulness, Stealth, & Trickster Energy
  • Intelligence & Resourcefulness
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Santa & His Shadow

Santa‘Tis the Season of Santa Claus, the jolly ol’ soul who traverses the globe with his sleigh driven by reindeer on Christmas Eve to bring toys to all the good girls and boys. The name Santa Claus morphed from Saint Nicholas, a bishop in the 4th century who helped the impoverished. However, Santa is also known as Grandfather Frost and Father Christmas, whose appearance was influenced by the Germanic and Scandinavian god Odin. During mid-winter (Jul or Yule) Odin would ride his eight-legged horse delivering gifts to the people, and thus he is believed to be one of the precursors for the modern day Santa Claus.

Overall, the persona of Santa Claus is that of a kind, giving, and benevolent being. But, like most of us, Santa has his shadow side too, and this should be acknowledged, lest his shadow side unconsciously take over his generous nature. When we suppress our shadows, our “dark side,” and pretend it’s not there, it will try to sabotage us. By acknowledging it, understanding it (this may take some time, of course), and integrating it into our being, that is, once what was subconscious comes to our conscious awareness, we enter into a state of becoming whole, of holiness, and of healing.

Knecht Ruprecht

Santa & Knecht Ruprecht

 

There are a few characters, known mainly in Europe, who represent the shadow side of Santa. Santa Claus is only concerned with those on his Nice list. Those on his Naughty list are for his dark companions or followers to deal with. There is Knecht Ruprecht, Santa’s servant companion, who may give bad children lumps of coal or broken toys, beat them with ashes or a stick, leave sticks for the parents to beat the naughty children with, or even abduct the children.

 

 

Krampus & Santa

Krampus & Santa

 

There is Belsnickel, a ragged-looking Nicholas (-nickel) who goes to homes to pelt (Bels-) or beat naughty children into being good. And there is Krampus, a demon-looking creature, who may also beat children with a branch, or he may take evil children to eat or kill. On a slightly lighter note, there is also Santa’s servant Zwarte Piet (Black Pete), who might leave naughty children coal or a bunch of twigs instead of gifts and sweets.

 

Belsnickel

Belsnickel

Santa Claus

Santa Claus

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Santa is looking over his Naughty or Nice List he must acknowledge his shadow side and toss the list out, for true giving is neither conditional nor judgmental. Santa and his shadow self united as a whole being knows that compassion, love, kindness, and charity for all is what the meaning of Christmas is all about.

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Home Sweet Home

flymetothemoonI had an interesting dream last night, that left me feeling grounded and peaceful. It was another of my “house” dream series, where I return to my old home. You can read many previous entries in my posts Butterfly Journal: GratitudeTime Machine Blogging Challenge: Traversing the Timelessness of the Dreamworld, and Butterfly Journal: Self-Reflection. In summary, most of those dreams had the themes of me going back and packing more, cleaning, seeing it empty, not selling or buying it back, or just curious to check on the house and see the changes. In Butterfly Journal: Gratitude, I wrapped up with a feeling of being home sweet home:

As I’ve mentioned before, a house or home symbol in dreams often symbolizes the psyche, and for me the psyche is where I have been doing much, much cleaning, clearing, and healing. As challenging as things had been, especially over the past few years, I am thankful for all of it, for without those experiences I would not now be “home.”

The few house dreams that I have had since the last December 2015 entry in Butterfly Journal: Gratitude show that, not surprisingly since healing is continuous, more cleaning, clearing, and releasing deep in my psyche was taking place:

3/31/16: Then I was at my old house. It was empty and never sold. No one ever moved in. I went through the back door, and the key was the same. (I still had the key – This is another theme within this series.The house was as I had left it. In the front yard someone(s) had removed some of the bricks that were underneath the soil (near where the bamboo was) in 2 or 3 spots revealing the hollowness underneath. I wondered how they had held in place. Even though no one had moved in, I did not want to move back!

7/7/16: In my old house. The walls were green again. I had left someone living there, and thought that I needed to tell them I wasn’t coming back. There was also some stuff there I needed to finish taking care of.

10/15/16: I was at my old house just to see it. It was empty and deserted or neglected. I was in the living room looking out the front windows at stuff left out for donations and trash pick-up. Then I was in the backyard, and like the front yard, it was all just grass. Everything was removed – the pond, chickens, trees, etc. Some people were there just talking but unaware of me (?). I may have been talking to someone. I saw/found a small pile of things in the dirt that had been left or forgotten, but they were falling apart/decaying. 

by_the_light_of_the_moon

These three dreams show that there was/is more in even deeper layers of my psyche that need addressing, healing, and clearing out. I hold the key to this process and have access to it, yet at the same time I know that I am not going back to the old struggles I once had and am moving on towards the future. And then last night’s dream:

11/12/16: I went back to my old house. It was fully lived in by the couple that bought it, and I as aware that it was no longer my home. I had come in through the back. At first I thought no one was there, but the woman was coming out of the bathroom. I explained I didn’t have their number and couldn’t call ahead to let them know I was coming. My dogs and cats were with me, but one of them had also stayed at the house to help with the couple’s baby. I was going to bring her (the dog) back home with me. I had forgotten to pack pet food, but there was dog and cat food there I could use. 

The husband then arrived, and he showed me the out the back and how they had moved the garage from the side to the center-back of the yard. They also had built a covering from the back door to the garage, which they also did from the front. The sides of the house we’re open and exposed. 

Last night’s dream was different from all the others, and shows that I have or am coming to closure, completion, and a wholeness or healing within my psyche (very synchronistic with the super full moon coming up!). My conscious, subconscious, and unconscious have accepted, integrated, and are coming to a deeper understanding of the process of the past 4.5 years since moving from my old home. It is no longer my home (Reminder: “home/house” is symbolic of “psyche.”); it is the old struggles that I have let go of. By releasing ownership of the house (struggles within the psyche), I no longer identify with them. They are no longer me, but lessons and experiences that have led to inner growth.

This process is also reflected in my real/conscious life. For the first time since moving 4.5 years ago and embarking on an intense journey of psychic, psychological, familial, and ancestral healing, I am now living in a home that is not someone else’s. I am home sweet home – feeling safe, secure, supported, whole, grounded, and settled.

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Synchronicity & Spiritual Affirmations

g-highpriestessIt’s been a while since I’ve posted a written blog post, but I am now ready to get back to more regular writing. Much has changed and transformed in my life in the last few months, which has led to much inner healing and understanding of myself: who I have been, who I am, and who I am becoming. This intense inner transformation and growth has been reflected by expansion in my outer life as well, not only personally, but professionally. I’ve also had several astrology and tarot clients who have been going through similar transformations, and I have seen clearly that the synchronicities of these client sessions have been affirmations to me for my own spiritual journey.

Synchronicity and spiritual affirmations can come in many forms and in many different ways: a song playing on the radio, a bird tapping on the window, a tarot reading, or a vision in our dreams. The possible ways Spirit tries to communicate with us seems limitless.

Last week as I finished unpacking and sorting through boxes from my recent move, I looked through a deck of cards gifted to me when I was packing up boxes in August. The cards are called Goddess Knowledge Cards, and as I went through the beautiful cards I was reminded of an old post of mine: The Fourteen Names of the Goddess, a post about a message I got while sleeping that led me to connecting deeper to the Moon (change, mother goddess, etc.), deep healing within my psyche, and healing ancestral karma. As I looked at and read the cards, I could feel each message bringing affirmation for processes and experiences of my inner journey.

g-changingwoman

The Changing Woman

The Goddess Knowledge Cards are a set of 48 cards depicting goddesses from cultures across the world, but as I re-acquainted myself with each of them I realized that my deck actually had 49 cards with two copies of the goddess, The Changing Woman. The Changing Woman can change form, but more importantly she embodies the cycles of nature and of life and death. She is Maiden, Mother, Crone, – a cycle that continuously repeats.

The only constant is change. – Heraclitus

I smiled at this discovery, thanking the goddesses for their affirmation of both the changes within and the changes with-out in my life, and especially for the reminder that everything and anything can change.

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Animal Spirits: The Heron & The Falcon Revisited

Today while out on a run, I ran by a beautiful heron, who seemed to be looking right at me and talking to me with her “tweets.” It brought me back to this post from almost a year ago, which applies very much to the new stage of independence and abundance that I am now entering. Synchronistically, I have been pulling the Nine of Pentacles regularly for myself lately…

Through the Peacock's Eyes

falconOn my recent trip to Mount Shasta, I had two animal spirit encounters, not during my hikes, but on the drives beginning and ending my trip. On the drive north towards the mountains, I saw three falcons perched on fencing along some farmlands within the span a few minutes. The day before I had read a blog post (sorry, can’t remember whose), which focused on the symbolism of the animals in some of the Tarot cards, particularly the Nine of Pentacles, which has a falcon in it. I took a mental note of this because this month I had and have been getting the Nine of Pentacles nearly every day in my personal daily spread. It also came up in at least half of the September Monthly Tarotscopes and in this week’s Weekly Oracle Card Reading (see videos below).

mucha2I have written about the symbolism of the falcon before…

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Animal Spirits: The Dolphin

23e3bb_882fd8fdb3594cf0aa87ac28252ab352Dolphin symbolism, like the oceans that are their homes, is vast and deep, and it is very similar to the symbolism of the Animal Spirit: The Whale.

Dolphins are one of the most intelligent animals on the planet, and they are believed to feel emotions, such as joy and grief. They are also very social creatures, living in pods or families. As a group they harmoniously play, teach, and work together. Like the whale, dolphins have many ways to vocalize:

The Dolphin’s deep knowledge and wisdom of the sea gives them an aura of mystery, power, and authority over the oceanic unconscious, dark, and invisible realm. In ancient Greece, dolphins were associated with Poseidon (Neptune), god of the ocean, who in astrology rules the sign of Pisces, the sign of the unconscious, the dreamtime, the psyche, and emotional depth. More interestingly though, the dolphin is associated with both Aphrodite (Venus), goddess of love and beauty, who was born from the ocean; and Apollo, an ancient Sun god whose temple housed the Oracle at Delphi [Δελφοί – dolphin in Ancient Greek].

With this connection with both Aphrodite and Apollo, the dolphin symbolizes both the goddess and god, the feminine and the masculine, the hidden & receptive and the vibrant & active, bringing together energy in a balanced and harmonious expression of life.

Akrotiri_dolphins

A couple of months ago, for the first time in their natural environment, I saw dolphins swimming in the ocean while on one of my morning dog walks along the beach. I was too mesmerized watching them to try to get pictures, but there is a beautiful dolphin statue by the beach:

dolphin2

dolphins

The Dolphin Symbolizes:

  • Communication & Community
  • Working Together & Being Harmonious with Others
  • Playfulness
  • Balance of the Masculine & Feminine Energies Within
  • Intelligence, Knowledge, and Deep Wisdom
  • Trusting Intuition
  • Power & Ability to Navigate the Emotional Realm
  • Exploring the Psyche & Unconscious Realm
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