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Tuesday, June 21, 2011

COYOTE MAGIC

Coyotes are everywhere it seems gracing us with their symbolism and magic. I see them, I hear them, and so do my closest and most special friends.  So, I did a little research and found this wonderful article on said topic ... all rights reserved by the author and the photo is from The Daily Coyote.

Coyote, Power Animal, Symbol of Wisdom, Family Orientation, Illumination 

By Ina Woolcott 

Coyote's medicine includes understanding that all things are sacred and that yet nothing is sacred, teaching us that only when all masks have fallen will we connect with the source, illumination, stealth, intelligence, singing humans into being, childhood trust in truth, teaching us how to raise our young, they bring rain, give one the ability to laugh at one’s own mistakes, placing the North Star, shape-shifting, teaching balance between risk and safety, trickster, devilment, cunning, wisdom, folly. 

Amongst some native tribes, coyote is referred to as the trickster and there are many tales about the coyote. They are known as the great one and the foolish one - they don’t consciously try and trick us, rather they reflect back to us our own capacity for being clever and stupidity. 

When we are being too serious about life, Coyote may appear to teach us to laugh at ourselves and life’s ironies. Be prepared for your sense of humour to arise in full force in line with what is happening around you and to you. They also remind us that whatever we do to others will be done to us. You get back what you give out… 

The Coyote teaches how wisdom and folly go together. In others mistakes we see our own foolishness and can learn from their mistakes. 

The coyote’s energy is linked to simplicity and trust, spurring renewed innocence and a childlike wisdom in the world. Coyote's howl touches your soul, reminding you of your primal connections. People with this power animal adapt easily to new situations. They also usually have close families, especially when children are involved. Coyotes normally mate for life. They reside in the sides of hills or in underground dens where their family is pretty much safe. Coyote people will sometimes go to extremes to protect and nurture family members. Sharp cutting words that hurt another should be avoided. Energy bursts are common if this is your power animal, balanced action is necessary for overall well being. Coyote medicine people often put other peoples needs before their own - remember to give to yourself equally. 

Although they prefer open grassland and thinly wooded brush, they are able to adapt to almost any environment. This means that they have been able to survive and flourish, growing in numbers - in spite of humans interference who for a long time have been trying to wipe out coyotes by trapping, shooting or poisoning them. Condors and other birds have instead almost become extinct from eating poisoned meat! When hunting prey, the coyotes don’t use speed, but rather they pounce and snap their jaws. 

If coyote enters your life, you must look at something you have been avoiding. They are mirrors for the lessons we must learn so we are able to walk a good sacred road. The mirror will be held up incessantly until we finally get the picture. 

Like coyote, we can either work with others to get what we want, or we can dive into a lake to catch a reflection. We can dispel troubles or invite them carelessly. 

If you are stuck in a rut, call on coyote as an ally for negotiation. Or be grateful that he showed you a trap that you are caught in, or a way that you are fooling yourself. Powerful teachers when it comes to relationships coyotes are, as it is when we are in a relationship that we often fool ourselves the most. Coyote is not out to get us, but to teach us, whether we are willing students or not. 

source

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Elizabeth is Artemis

We took Elizabeth to San Francisco Archers today to participate in their community outreach program.  She was there earlier in the week with her Happy Hall campers and really liked it.  It's very awesome and empowering.  I couldn't  help but see Artemis, the Maiden Goddess of the Hunt, in my daughter each time she pulled the string!

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

When Telling Turns Out Alright


Last Sunday night was one of those nights when things happen for a reason.  Remember that post I did over a week ago about Elizabeth’s friend who threatened to commit suicide?  We were eating in one of our favorite restaurants tonight and this very girl and her family were there, as well.  Talk about serendipity.  We almost went to another place instead.  We were all at 8th grade graduation, and I even saw this girl at the 8th grade dance afterward.  There were plenty of chances to bump into her parents, but we didn’t bump into anyone.  Last night her mom came over to speak with us, and we shared a really heartfelt conversation.

The little girl is doing well, but it was a close call.  She was in observation for 72 hours and has received a diagnosis.  But the good news is that her family is tightly knit, is supporting her and things are going well.   Leslie and I were both really happy to hear that.  Everybody shared a big hug, and the little girl came and hugged me too ... which was nice.
 
It was nice to have it all come full circle.  

Monday, June 13, 2011

What's Coming Up Next?

I’m really excited about this summer.  I’ve had the time to focus on my art at long last and I am definitely making the most of it. 

I’ve entered three separate competitions and/or juried events including the “Figures & Faces” call for entries at the Pacific Art League, and the “My Art Contest 2011 Fantasy Art” competition on line.  I’m also excited to place an entry into the 33rd Annual Celebration of Craftswomen, which will be at Fort Mason Center on November 11 through 13.  Celebration of Craftswomen is also a juried show and San Francisco’s largest women’s fine crafts retail fair with approximately 200 participating artists.  It is the only show in Northern California exclusively for women artists, as well.

Leslie and I will have a booth at the 2011 Foster City Fourth of July Festival (the only fireworks left on the Peninsula) and we’ll present original, framed works of art, prints, cards, and my privately owned collection of classic comic books and collectibles.  I’m also going to focus on my custom gifts here, and with any luck we’ll muster a client or two.  We hope to be at San Rafael’s Food & Wine Festival on August 13 (more on that soon) and possibly the Castro Street Fair in San Francisco on October 2.  Acceptance would be simply awesome! I'll have more information on all events as arrangements firm up.

Finally, after talking about for a long time, look for original framed works of art, original cards and more in our brand new etsy store.  We’re adding things on a regular basis and invite you to take a look. As always, prints can be purchased at www.donnalouisefaber.com (see the Galleries) and in my Redbubble shop, but if you want a custom framed original work of art, etsy is the place to go.  You can also contact me directly for original art, custom tattoos or a commissioned piece. 
I hope we see you at some point over the summer!  I’m just so excited about everything! 
Keep creating!
D

Friday, June 10, 2011

Change is like Puppy Poop

I woke up to the world about fifteen years ago and stopped reacting and began responding instead.  Suddenly, my heart was plugged in where once it was held back for safe keeping.  It was a primarily spiritual awakening, but it was emotional, too, as I’m convinced that our spiritual and emotional bodies are intrinsically linked.  I began to notice the repeated presence of certain animals almost immediately and gradually I realized each had symbolic and personal meaning.

We had a macaw from 2002 to 2005. He was a beautiful bird, had lots of personality and was very deep emotionally. He was also an intense task master who demanded my full attention. When I strayed, he bit me. Have you ever been bitten by a macaw?  It’s extremely painful.  His name was General, and he was one of my greatest teachers.  From then on, I saw birds everywhere. 

Wild parrots, a sign of the Goddess, are all over San Francisco.  I bumped into them frequently near the Embarcaderos where they took over a local park and on Dolores Street where they’d invaded palm trees. They were all over Connecticut, too, nesting in telephone poles and causing all sorts of trouble.   Hawks frequently circle the mountains near our home, and I can hear them vocalizing when I walk the dogs.  Great Blue Herons have been a personal spiritual signpost since I saw my first in the year 2000.  They affirm I am right where I should be.   While we lived in Connecticut, I worked on an enormous 1,500 person pharmaceutical campus in Wallingford, and every day on the way in, a Great Blue heron stood in the pond assuring me that even though I didn’t like being there, I was there for a reason.  Here, I was gifted with very special time with my grandmother.  Symbolically, birds are a sign of the intellect or thoughts, and they remind us to be watchful, particularly hawks with their visual acuity.  I believe they want to put us in touch with our blessings.

Dogs, on the other hand, are all feeling.  They understand the world through their nose, but they feel and communicate with their heart.  Jack, our Golden Retriever, was a very direct communicator, and when he needed to go out for a walk, he made direct eye contact with me and wouldn’t let up until I put my shoes on.  Daizy, our Boston Terrier, is quite cerebral, and when she wants something, like more food, she points to it with her nose. Of course, we saw the depth of her heart when she grieved over losing Jack, who recently passed away.  Teddy, the new puppy, is learning very quickly and uses his eyes, nose, paws, voice, and other bodily functions to communicate his needs quite effectively. He’s got all bases covered. 

A few night ago, as we drove homeward on highway 101 down the hill into Pacifica, I saw a coyote.  It was standing atop a bluff silhouetted by the dusk sky.  I hear plenty of coyotes singing at night, but I’ve never seen one. This was clear as day, however, and it caught my eye immediately.

The coyote is considered a trickster by native americans. He reminds us to tackle life’s challenges with a sense of humor, much like the Devil card in the tarot’s major arcana.  Some believe he brings shifts of balance and consequently an ending somewhere, representing the natural cycle of life and death.

The next morning, my grandmother passed away in her sleep.  In the 10 years she was in convalescent care, she fought raging UTI infections and sepsis, hallucinations brought on by powerful antibiotics, and increasingly intense dementia.  She’d returned from death’s door more times than I can count, but she left this world with little fanfare or drama. Her heart simply stopped as she slept, and she departed quietly and peacefully in the night.  Thelma’s death wasn’t unexpected, but it shifts the balance in my life a number of ways by closing the door on the past, yet urging me to remember how she helped me when I was a child. It puts me poignantly in touch with my gratitude. 

Thelma’s obituary was posted on line and whoever wrote it rendered her grandchildren (my brothers and I) anonymous despite our having played a major role in her later life.  There is a lot of water under that bridge. Floods. I found this incredibly irritating and most hurtful, and I started to get hung up on it.

While walking the dogs yesterday, I noticed two Red Tailed Hawks riding the drafts together and singing songs of companionship with screeches and chirps. They were beautiful.  Then, I lowered my head just in time to see a monarch butterfly cross in front of me.  When I looked up again, there were four hawks instead of just two, and they were singing and playing in pairs.  It was breathtaking and gave me pause. 

Like the coyote, the butterfly’s message is about evolution and change.  While they are beautiful, they pass through an entire lifecycle very quickly, embodying the ability to navigate change successfully.  In fact, change happens whether we want it to or not. It is best to roll with it, lest it roll right over us.  The hawks remind me to remain focused on what makes me happy, but not to the detriment of my responsibilities.  There is always the need to balance economics with creativity, which was something my grandmother was good at in her day, and something I struggle with currently.

So, what’s the short version here?  First, change, like puppy poop in the house, happens.  Accept it.  If you don’t watch for it, you’ll step in it.  If you do, don’t dwell on it, just deal with it.  Like puppies that get into everything, blessings are everywhere, but if your heart isn’t open, you’ll miss them.  We may not get what we want in life, but we’ll get what we need. This requires faith, which is another good reason to keep your heart open.  Life is a gift, and our time here is limited.  But, like the hawks and the butterfly, perhaps if we observe change, our blessings will double.

Eyes open.

Heart open.

Faith.

It’s all good.
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