About two years ago, I was driving down a country road when all of a sudden my inner voice told me to slow down. I had this overwhelming feeling that something was about to happen. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw this giant bird flying out of a ditch, in a direct path with my car. Life went into slow motion as this beautiful hawk flew as if it were about to T-Bone my car. But instead of hitting the side of my car, it grazed my windshield and as it did this, it turned its head and looked directly into my eyes. To say this experience was bizarre, is an understatement. I didn’t hurt the hawk, it simply flew away. It was almost like my windshield gave it a little “umph” to get it going. I even came to a stop to see if it somehow ended up behind my car on the road. It wasn’t there. I was in complete shock. The hawk looked right at me. It was the most bizarre feeling that I will never forget.That’s all I kept saying, over and over in my head. What the heck just happened..??
At this point in my Spiritual Path, I had just started a “coincidence” journal that was advised from a recent book I had read. The book preaches that in the grand scheme of things, everything is connected and every person or animal comes into our lives to teach us something. The way the journal works is like this : start writing down things that you keep seeing, or things that stick out to you. It could be an animal, a name of an old friend you keep thinking about, a course, ect... The goal is to follow these “coincidences”, as this is the universe trying to make you aware of something.
The coincidence journal, is how I got to be where I am today. Almost everything I wrote down, I followed... including the school in which I am studying holistic health, Reiki, certain books, and even people. I can honestly say, that I would not be where I am today, if I did not follow “my path”. Even my husband keeps saying I should write a book about my path, because of how perfect everything fell together. It wasn’t that it “fell” together. I made everything happen by paying attention to what the universe was advising for ME.
Anyways, I started seeing hawks, left right and center. They would dive bomb my car, be sitting on street signs when I would just decide to take an alternate route for no apparent reason... one even showed up in my yard when I was an emotional wreck. I thought I was going crazy seeing hawks everywhere, and I'm sure everyone around me thought I was going crazy too. It wasn’t until I met my Reiki Teacher and told her about this, that I completely understood why hawks were coming around me. I will never forget what she said to me... “ Sarah darling, you couldn’t BE any luckier. People pay attention for years to figure out what their Totem Animal is, and yours flew right into your face! That doesn’t just happen! There is a REASON why the hawk is coming to you... so lets do some research.”
Hawks are visionaries and messengers. As a totem they help to open the higher chakras so that we may hear and see the visions and messages that Spirit and the Universe are always sending our way. There is never a moment when the Universe is not trying to get a message through to us but we are so often too busy or unaware of what it is we need to be watching for! Hawks helps us to not only be aware that we are receiving a message but how to interpret them. The Hawk is able to soar high above the earth to soar on the breath of Spirit, to commune with Spirit and thus understand through the intuitive level what the message means and with their keen eyesight, how to implement it once they return to earth through seeing the broader picture below. One of the greatest gifts a Hawk medicine person can give the world is their visions of a better and brighter future. Visionaries are always ahead of their time and it's not easy seeing what others are not ready to see. Often these people are not honoured and recognized for their work and efforts until long after they have crossed over. And yet their work lives on to touch and enrich the lives of people the world over! Honour the Hawk people you meet in your life. Encourage them to soar so they may bring their visions and messages back to earth that all may benefit. If you are a Hawk person yourself, understand that Spirit trusts you to a special task to hold the energy of what could be, of potentials that are waiting to be envisioned and thus expressed through the mass consciousness. ( There is MUCH more on the hawk totem! )
My jaw dropped as we read about the hawk. Just at a time in my life when I was trying to interpret the messages the universe was telling me, I had my own personal cheer team of hawks, showing their support. The hawk that flew into my windshield DID look into my eye and give me a message. And that message was FULLY received. “Pay attention... the Universe is showing you your path... it is time to wake up to your full potential.”
Some may think this is all nonsense, but when it happens to you, you can’t ignore it or brush it off as nonsense. Since the beginning of time, many indigenous and Native cultures believe in the power and messages of animals. With a little help, I paid attention to what was put out there for me to see and I have never been more healthy, successful and happy because of it. I have never had a more powerful drive to accomplish my goals and I know I will be successful with them. I FINALLY know what I am supposed to do in life all because I started to pay attention and I didn’t let people calling me crazy get in my way of success.
People can have more than one Animal Totem in their lifetime. They can show up to give you insight for a particular situation you may be going through in life. Pay attention to the creatures that you are drawn too, or ones that keep paying you unexpected visits... you never know what message they are trying to get across. Here a just a few common animal totems and their meanings:
Butterfly: Overwhelmingly, cultural myth and lore honor the butterfly as a symbol of transformation because of its impressive process of metamorphosis.The butterfly unquestioningly embraces the chances of her environment and her body. This unwavering acceptance of her metamorphosis is also symbolic of faith. Here the butterfly beckons us to keep our faith as we undergo transitions in our lives.
Dove: Did you know doves produce their own milk? Yep, it's called "crop milk" or "pigeons milk." It's an rare thing in nature for birds to produce their own milk to feed their young. From this unique ability, we can glean symbolism of nurturing. In fact, doves are commonly considered a symbol of motherhood. The dove is commonly seen in Christian art with Mary as a symbol of care, devotion, purity and peace.
Turtle :Those with the turtle as their totem can relate to the "sure and steady" message this creature brings to our lives. It is also a powerful totem for protection as withdrawing into it's shell is an amazing self-defense mechanism.The turtle has few predators, which gives it an innocent energy. This also increases its lifespan, and so holds the symbolic meaning for longevity in many cultures.
( The previous descriptions were taken from the website www.whats-your-sign.com . My favourite book on Animal Totems is : Animal Speak: The Spiritual & Magical Powers of Creatures Great & Small )
