The thinning of the veils
We are nearing Halloween and the thinning of the veils, a time of year when we have assistance peering into other realms. Pagans follow the changing of the seasons and honor the winter and summer solstice and the spring and fall equinox. They also celebrate the cross quarter days – the days approximately halfway in between. In the pagan calendar, these are considered holy days. February 1 - Imbolc May 1 - Beltane August 1 - Lammas November 1 - Samhain The veils between the worlds thin on and around these days, and there may be increased...
Animal awareness
My dad had great animal awareness. If we went for a drive in the evening, he would be the first to notice a hawk perched on top of a telephone pole or a deer standing against the tree line at the edge of a field. Although he wore glasses, the vision in one of his eyes was 20-10, better than the usual 20-20. But for my father, it was more than just great eyesight. He knew the most likely places to watch for animals and was alert for their presence. Years of hunting taught him about their natural habitat and activities. He looked forward to...
Feeling safe in nature
Once while walking at Steinke Basin, I came face to face with a coyote. It was a breezy day so the sounds of my footsteps were muffled, and apparently I was downwind. As I rounded a corner on the trail, a dog was walking toward me. I immediately started looking for its human companion, thinking to greet it and then wait until its person caught up. But with no human in sight, I realized this wasn’t a dog, it was a coyote. By then, we were nearing each other. We shared a look as if to say “good morning,” then we both kept walking. As the coyote...
The difference between linear time and circular time
One morning lying in bed still half awake, my mind started preparing to get up and go feed a friend’s cats. As I roused from sleep, my conscious mind engaged and reminded me that my petsitting date was two weeks in the future, not today. Momentarily half of myself was in the future and half of myself was in the present. It was an odd sensation – a bit jarring and confusing for my human body and brain to make sense of. I sat up and shook my head, which brought me completely into the here and now. As I pondered what had happened, I realized...
We’re all doing our best
I’ve often wondered what it would be like to live during times of intense planetary shifts. How did people manage? What did their day-to-day lives look like when things around them were falling apart? How did they handle living through an extended period of chaos? What did it do to their human psyche? As we find ourselves living in the midst of a challenging time in human history, we’re getting firsthand experience. Here’s what I’ve arrived at… I truly believe that we’re all doing our best right now. And of course, what could be considered...
Empathy and compassion
Early on in my shamanic practice, I was newly equipped with healing techniques and eager to use them. The softer side of working with people was more difficult for me, so I trained myself to be more empathetic in order to connect with my clients. This did not come naturally at first, so I used a question. Whenever someone shared a challenge that was going on in their life, I would ask myself, “What might someone who is going through this be feeling or experiencing?” This helped me relate better to others. Over time I no longer needed the...