The Queens and I

For the last 3 nights, my dreams have been extremely vivid, speaking to me about the future while referencing the past.

How do your dreams relate to you?

Three nights ago, Bailey came to me. Some of you may remember me mentioning her as she is my beloved psychic feline who passed as a result of my 2016 house fire. When she was alive, she loved to dance with me as I hummed "Shall We Dance" from the King and I (video attached). I would literally (attempt to) ball room dance in the bedroom by twirling around and keeping rhythm with a box step while she sat gently in my arms. I would rest my cheek on her back with my nose nuzzled in her fur. It's one of my fondest memories of her, and she brought it back to me so brightly in my dream. It felt real.

Two nights ago, I had several sweet memories flood through my dreams about my paternal grandmother who passed a few months ago. Baking peanut butter cookies, making my own paint by rubbing rocks and painting her face with it, playing airplane with her feet (she also liked the exercise) and holiday traditions. I awoke from my dream to feeling her continued presence. Then, later in the day when running an errand, she came to me again when an Oldsmobile Bravada (her car model from about 10 years ago) stopped in front of me at a stop light. I haven't seen one of those in many many years. I whispered, "Hi Grandma." as a tear dropped from my cheek.

Last night, Bailey came to me again. Despite being an indoor cat in her life with me, she was in my dream, sitting outside my previous home on a table by a fence. She let me pick her up to hold her tight and I remembered what she felt like in my arms. I hadn't thought about her luxurious fur, her rosey smell and her weight laying flexibly in my arms in awhile. As I looked down at her, realizing I was in a dream, she transformed into Asti, my astral manx feline who lives with me now. They are both frequent celestial travelers. It brought me to tears, not only as I write this, but also in my dream.

These dreams came in a set of 3, which to me symbolizes "Pay Attention!". I needed a reminder to let myself feel these moments again, despite the pain associated with the loss I feel. Thank you, "The Queens” (Grandmother and Bailey). Thank you, Universe.

We all have our humanness to experience. The animals want to help us. So do our ancestors.

Let’s let them help us.

My friend and teacher, The Vulture

One of the ways that I have developed my animal communication skills is through a deeper understanding of shamanism, and my connection with the earth and all of its living mysteries.  While I was still living in Houston, TX in the Fall of 2015, I scheduled a day for self-discovery through journeying in a nearby public park.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with journeying, think of it as a self-guided meditation into your inner conscious where you gain guidance from your guides.  The most profound experience that day was when a wild animal friend came forward with a message.

There was a small awning with benches used as an observation location, which is where I sat as I started my reflections on my journeys that I just completed. When I looked up after writing in my journal, I saw a black vulture across the field about 100 feet away (see photo above.) He was standing on a bench, staring at me for at least 15 minutes, as if he wanted to say hello.  As I peered closer, I could see that he was injured – possibly a broken wing. My initial reaction was to help him “get better” by calling a wild rescue, however I thought twice and decided to use my heart first.  I connected to him intuitively to ask “Do you want help from a rescue team? You will be in a building with lots of other animals and healed through western medicine.  You may or may not be brought back to this location as your home.”  Then I waited as he decided. His response was, “I do not wish to leave my home. If I cannot be healed here, then I would like to leave my injury as it is. I am not in pain.  I cannot fly, but I have been able to survive so far.”  If I had listened to my human conditioning, I would have just called a rescue immediately rather than finding out what the vulture really wanted.  I was able to investigate rather than assume what he wanted.  What an honor to have a skill that is so useful!

One of my friends who was with me (to assist in holding space) asked me how we could help our new friend.  So, I asked him, and his response was that he would really like some food.  As we were in a remote location, my gracious friend asked if she could walk to the convenience store and buy him a fried chicken breast.  When she returned, we placed the meal in the middle of the field.  The vulture hobbled over to the chicken within a minute or two and chowed down for about 30 minutes.  In the middle of his meal, I intuitively asked “That must feel good. Are you happy?” and he looked straight up at me and into my eyes to say “Thank you”.  He then hobbled over to the awning, stopping just about 8 feet away.  My friends and I sat in awe of such a magnificent creature blessing us with his presence. 

He returned to finish his meal, and I asked one more question, “Would you mind coming closer to me? I would like assurance that my skills are real and tangible.”  Within seconds, he flew (as best he could with a broken wing) right to me and landed less than 2 feet from me. He stared me right in the eye and stood there for about 3 minutes. He even let me take a photo of him.  As someone, who at the time, was building confidence in my skills, I was so pleased that he was willing to extend his trust to me.

To me, this vulture’s presence represented two things. First was being misunderstood, as a vulture often is, as someone who identifies with both her mind and her heart in her work (my background is engineering yet my work is intuitive).  Second was to accept that death and decay are not the end; rather it is the nourishment for the next beginning.  A cleansing to make room for new visions, perceptions and representations.  I gained a whole new appreciation for these magnificent birds, and they will forever hold a special energy within me.'

Originally published for The LightFoot Way on March 11, 2018. Written By Lanna of Sentient Beings.

Holiday 2017 Post: Perspectives on Stress

Seasons Greetings and Warm Blessings to You All

With a sentiment of reflection as we enter into our holiday season, the topic of this letter is the perspective and experience of stress.  I know the holiday season can bring joy, but also stress as we try to do and see so much. The following message is an inspired and guided wisdom, and at the bottom of the newsletter there is a special offer. 

The way animals and humans physically experience stress are similar, but the reasons for causing the stress are usually different.  Animals (and humans) generally feel stress when their environment changes unexpectedly or too quickly, they don’t feel well, their food sources are scarce, they are mirroring someone’s condition, or they are trying to offload stress from another being experiencing stress.  This stress manifests as medical ailments or behavioral shifts.  Being a human experiencing stress, there are added reasons of “I don’t feel as happy as I think I should be thus I feel stressed”, “my expectations are not met thus I feel disappointed”, or we try to do too much in the precious time we are given. The following is advice our animal friends give us:

“Slow down to gain perspective. 
Life is not about how fast we go, what papers we sign, or who we physically see without eagerness.  It’s about the small moments where we feel deeply together.
Each moment is permanent and eternal. 
We encourage you to shift from a do-er to a be-er.”

The animals encourage us to reach out and lean in for love, in both giving and receiving.

Bailey is my beloved cat who lived with me for 7 years before passing away as a result of health complications from our devastating house fire in July 2016.  When I sat down to write my holiday article, with just the glow of my laptop and the fragment of the sunrise light in my window, sweet Bailey came to me with a keen interest in this newsletter. I had always joked that she was my “grandma cat” as she took little interest in typical house-cat adventures, so it is fitting that she has continued to be my guide for animal kingdom wisdom.  Her main role is that of a teacher to me and all those connected to me, in physical and in-spirit.  Thanks for the inspiration, Bailey-Boop-Boop-Be-Doo!