Category: Nature + Moon + Tea

Osprey – a spirit messenger

There is a quiet joy alive in my heart this morning, a sense of gratitude for the gentle breeze resting against my skin and another beautiful grey day. Inside, I hear my inner voice chant the words ‘thank you, thank you, thank you…’ And with that gratitude comes the openness to what magic the day may bring.

Last night, when I was reading just before going to bed, my eyes came to a halt on the word ‘osprey’. It hit me that I’d come across the word four times yesterday, all in different places. It felt like a sign. A spirit animal message. So naturally, I researched the meaning of osprey. It carries many meanings. The osprey teaches about precise timings, clarity of vision, challenging comfort zones, setting boundaries, inner authority and confidence among other things. It is also connected with solar energies, which I found interesting considering that I’ve been doing work on my solar plexus chakra and meditating with a Sunstone crystal lately.

solar plexus

It amazes me every time how these spirit or power animals come into my life with messages that resonate so strongly with the space that I’m in.

Stacey LL Couch, the author of Gracious Wild: A Shamanic Journey with Hawks, put it very beautifully when she mentioned that:

“Simply put, a power animal is a guardian angel. A power animal is an animal in spirit form that travels with us, offers guidance, and protects us.”

I mentioned in yesterday’s post that I’d be featuring her here this week. I had the opportunity to ask her a few questions about her connection and shamanic relationship with Nature, so I’m really looking forward to sharing what she had to say on the blog tomorrow.

In the meantime, have a blessed day.

Meandering Musings for Monday

Thoughts meander like rivers, their tributaries gathering ideas, insights and inspiration along their fluid course. We can get lost in the undercurrents hidden from the surface, but like rivers, one can only hope that these thoughts carry us to that ancient and enchanted destination – the ocean of wild stories and intricate waves of musings – the place where deeper understandings and great tales of healing magic are born.

In the midst of this weekend’s peacefulness, family time and Nature outings, the thoughts that have been meandering through my mind are ones of sadness for the 150 lives lost in the terror attack at Garissa University in Kenya. The senselessness of terror and destruction in a world gone mad just leaves a big hole in my heart. I will write more on this later in the week, but not today.

So instead (and since I don’t do to this often enough), I’ll share some links that have made for interesting meandering musings over the last couple of week:

Clouds are dreamy shapes-shifters and a soothing point of focus in those moments when I just lie on my back and watch them as I breathe mindfully, but I’d never thought of them as “great behemoth nomads” until I read this fascinating piece on Cloud Nomads by Sylvia over at The Indigo Vat.

Vanessa Carnevale is hosting a #Mindful Prompt Writing Challenge on Instagram. I always find her prompts to be fun and a great source of writing inspiration. So if you are looking for some sparks of writing inspiration, its worth following your lovely prompts.

Mary Reynolds Thompson, author of Reclaiming the Wild Soul, runs a great interview series called Wild Soul Stories. I really enjoyed listening to her interview with Sharon Blackie.

I loved reading Sophia Rose’s latest post, The Taste of Spring: Wild Onions. She’s included a couple of recipes too.

I’m featuring Stacey LL Couch on my blog later this week. Stacey’s interesting blogpost, Angel of Fiery Red Trees, gives some insight into her work.

Lastly, this short essay by Jeri Studebaker offers an interesting perspective on the suppressed history of Mother Goose ties in a Goddess link.

Wishing you all a happy Monday and a week full of blessings!

4 Tips to Prevent The Abuse and Neglect of Rabbits this Easter

I wanted to share some information on a matter close to my heart today.

Six months ago, the sweetest dwarf rabbit entered my life (that’s her in the photo/meme). Her name is Yarrow, and she stole my heart from the moment I saw her. Yarrow is such a gentle, loving and playful little creature. Yes, she has a mood swings, but for the most part she is a bundle of joy who just loves hopping and bolting around, exploring her surrounds and she really loves food too. Every time I send time her, my heart centre opens up and whatever stress that I’m carrying just melts away.

So it really broke my heart when I recently discovered that this time of year seems to spark a rise in rabbit abuse and neglect.

Why and how?

Because the Easter period is synonymous with chocolate, eggs, chicks and rabbits, live bunnies come across as cute ‘low maintenance’ gifts for friends, family and kids. The truth is that that rabbits need lots of loving care (petting, massaging, clipping their nails), hatches or cages to live in, food and veterinary care too. They grow and need space to move and play around in. Since they love to chew cords, skirting boards and any wood objects, your home needs to be bunny-proofed to keep them safe and prevent damage to your furniture.

Unlike hamsters, rabbits live up to 10 years, so keeping them is a long term commitment. Under favourable circumstances where the recipients of these animal companions want and are able to care for them, they are indeed great ways to add some joy to someone’s life. But unfortunately it seems that many people don’t anticipate what raising a rabbit involves, so as soon as the novelty wears off, these poor little fellows are neglected and often dumbed in open spaces. Domesticated rabbits are vulnerable to injury, predators and disease. Left outside to fend for themselves, they are attacked by cats, dogs, owls and get run over by cars in many cases.

The thought of these gentle creatures suffering in this way makes me really sad. Humans abuse animals and Nature in so many ways. It is important that we think our actions through and be more cognizant of how they affect our animal friends and the Earth.

So if you are considering gifting someone a rabbit (or chick or duckling) this Easter, I urge you to think twice. Here are some tips to prevent the abuse and neglect of rabbits and other animal companions too:

  1. Do not give rabbits or animals as gifts unless you are certain they will be properly cared for: It’s best not to give someone a rabbit if they do not want it or will not be able to care for it properly. Do your research. Find out what kind of care the rabbit needs. Talk to people first before giving them one to see if they have the space, facilities and time to keep a pet rabbit.

  1. Don’t dump rabbits. Find them a new home: Rabbits are not toys to be cast aside when the novelty wears off. If you have a rabbit that you cannot keep or no longer want, find it a new home. There may be some kind-hearted people who are looking for new pets or who are willing to take the rabbit in. Advertise in the classifieds. Or find an animal shelter that could help.

  1. Hold people accountable for their actions. Report animal abuse: One way to discourage animal abuse and neglect is to ensure that perpetrators are held accountable. Talk to people about their actions and let them know that what they are doing is cruel and unkind. We all need to be considerate and behave in a responsible manner. If this doesn’t help, it may be worth reporting them to your local animal abuse authorities.

  1. Support animal rights groups, rescues and shelters: It’s always inspiring to know that people dedicated to making a difference. We can support them in continuing to do so by making positive contributions. Whether it’s by making a donation, volunteering your time and skills or being of services in some other way, every little bit counts.

Bunny Love