My Animal Totems

Freeway. Medicine Hat Gelding.

Since the early beginnings of my Pagan path I've known that horses are a permanent animal totem of mine. They simply have had such a huge impact on my life that I don't think they could not be a totem. Freeway was one such horse who had a major impact on my life. Though I had him in my life for less than a year, he embodies everything I sought for in a horse.

However there have been others totems over the years to come in and out of my life.Totems do not have to be a permanent one. There are times in your life when a certain animals lesson is important.

The Tigress taught me how to be more assertive in my life. She also taught me how to reserve my energy for the most important matters and when to exert my energy. For any new witch, learning to control ones energy is a major lesson.

At the beginning of motherhood the turtle fascinated me. This was a time of grounding with mother earth and seeking out her bounty so it makes sense that I would need turtle energy. This is also a time when our finances was careening out of control. Turtle taught me to slow down, get a hold of our credit and spend less and live more simply.

Image Source

Lately I have been drawn to the Dragonfly. Though this creature is often overlooked because of its small size and the fact that it's an insect, it's message is no less important. Dragonflies teach us to see things from a different angle. It takes two years for a dragonfly to reach maturity so whatever plans we have in motion may take that long to reach fruition. This makes a lot of sense right now to me because its been about 1 yr and 7 months since we made the move to Ohio. If I've calculated correctly, it will take another 5-7 months to save enough money to move out of MIL's home making our transition almost or just over 2 years. That seems like such a long time. Certainly more than the few months I originally thought it would take!

 What have been your animal totems over the years and the lessons they brought you?

PBP: Light & Dark

Prompt: Light and Dark

How do you balance Light and Dark in your Path?

There's lots of angels to take with this, depending on what you choose to apply it to. Should be interesting to see what you have to share on this topic....

 

You know I find this to be a very good question, especially for Wiccans because I think we tend to focus more on the positive and less on the negative. Which IMO isn't particularly a bad thing, but it isn't balanced. I do try to bring in masculine energy in my rituals. I associate light with feminine energy (the Goddess) and dark with masculine energy (God). 

Right now I know my energy is in a dark place. Its not often I fall into depression, but my living situation and our lack of options has really brought me down lately. So I'm embracing it for now because these feelings are natural. I know eventually things will turn up and I'll be happy once again. But for now the dark calls to me. 

Lately Dragonflies have been on my mind. I don't know why, but while driving or just sitting here thinking I find myself drawn to them. I'm even thinking of redoing my blogs layout to include dragonflies. The meaning of dragonflies seem to depend on what part of the continent your on. But here is what I've found. 

Maturity and a Depth of character
The dragonfly, in almost every part of the world symbolizes change and change in the perspective of self realization; and the kind of change that has its source in mental and emotional maturity and the understanding of the deeper meaning of life.

The traditional association of Dragonflies with water also gives rise to this meaning to this amazing insect. The Dragonfly’s scurrying flight across water represents an act of going beyond what’s on the surface and looking into the deeper implications and aspects of life.

Source

Sticky Art Studio. Dragonfly Yin/Yang

Now that I read the symbology associated with the dragonfly I have no doubt that this lovely creature is a new totem for me. It may not be a lifelong totem, but its message of change and self realization call to me.

But I suppose I've gotten a little of topic. Darkness of mind is where I am at the moment. And I try to balance the light and dark by embracing both. All things in moderation right? I don't feel guilty if all I can do is sit on the couch and watch re-runs all day. I may need to go to the store but as long as their is food in the house it's not an emergency. One more day of eating leftovers is fine by me.