Insight 4: Animal Messengers

Animal Messengers —

It is the most joyous feeling when a hummingbird flies up to you and looks you right in the eye. 

This beautifully vibrant being stops me in my tracks from the busyness of life — to admire, respect, and appreciate the beauty and wonder right in front of me. 

As if to say, “Are you paying attention?” 

“Are you noticing the beauty around you?”

Currently it is Spring time, and three busy wasps are building their nests on my patio. At first I tried to knock them down, afraid that I may be stung, but they’ve returned — firm and confident in their choice of nesting location. 

I admire their hustle. It’s as if they pick up on my day-to-day too, focused and busy as a bee building the life I want to live. 

The concept of animal messengers is something I’ve learned from my mother. She first read about this message system in Native American texts, then she began to notice it in her day-to-day. Animals would appear to her: on our hikes, while working in the garden, alongside the road while driving...she would relay these encounters to me and then I started to notice them too. 

Ancient wisdom tends to do this — show up in various forms. The animals had likely been appearing to us all along but now we were aware and noticing. 

When I lived in Santa Fe, I began to feel a different kind of connection to the Earth, or Pachamama, as I sometimes like to call her. 

I learned of the “Earth Mother” goddess, Pachamama, during my yoga training. In Spanish, the term can also be understood as “Mother Earth” and I have been told her origin is with the indigenous people of the Andes. Other cultures refer to her as Gaia. Once I learned of Pachamama, it felt familiar for me to perceive nature in this way. 

Connecting with Pachamama highlights an awareness of the sacred when I think about or appreciate our Earth. 

Small moments become more intentional: the stillness of the forest on a hike, the way a coyote watches me from the road, or the frightening engulfment of forest fire smoke piercing a clear blue sky. 

Living in the mountains, I felt drawn to be outside more and to take my mindfulness practice with me. Instead of my usual focused breathwork on my sofa, I would hike alone and try to be with my thoughts and take in the beauty around me. 

In solitude, surrounded by immense nature, it can be easier to notice the animals. The guides. The messages. 

Now that I live in Austin, a city full of endless stimulation and possible distraction, it would seem this connection to nature would not be as easy. But I’ve found, it can be as simple as noticing the bees, or if there are no bees, then the trees – and if no trees, the sky! 

Even if it means walking a busier trail or a neighborhood street, I can make a conscious choice to be with my thoughts and focus on what is around. 

By choosing to simply notice or listen, there is an opportunity to find wisdom. 

After all, it was here in Austin (during my yoga training) that I was told of Pachamama. 

I realize now that subconsciously I was listening to this teaching but I had yet to discover how it resonated in my body. Santa Fe was where I was able to discover this instinctual connection to our Earth. 

If you allow it, wisdom will follow you wherever you go. 

The other day, my sister and I were walking a popular trail in Austin, chatting away, but also pausing to take in the beauty around us – little moments to admire the glistening lake or occasional wildflowers. And just like that, there She is. 

I spot an incredible redtail hawk perched on a tree branch. Nevermind, the hustle and bustle of people jogging and walking by. The hawk sits in plain sight, strong and powerful. At least to me, in this moment, Her message feels very simple. It is an unspoken moment of gratitude for each other. A beautiful animal, in Her home, just a few feet away from many people, also in their home. 

As if to say, “Thank you for noticing.” 

The other night, a friend of mine woke up from a dream about a snake. He told me the story in awe because a few days prior, he had encountered this same snake while mowing his lawn. The little green garden snake had been stuck in the netting of his newly planted grass. My friend had cut the netting and set the snake free, watching as the snake slowly slithered off. 

In the dream, the snake had come back to my friend to say thank you. The snake had brought a gift, too.  

When I hear this story, I feel gratitude. 

My friend chose to save another being on this Earth and the animal spirit came back to him. In gratitude. 

To say, “Thank you.”

My friend’s act of kindness and respect didn’t go unnoticed. 

Our society talks a lot about kindness and respect to other humans. We are taught it growing up — be kind to your neighbor, treat others how you would like to be treated... 

But what about kindness and respect for our Earth? For the animals that we share this Earth with? 

I am guilty of forgetting... I live in this fast paced “rat race” too. Distracted and caught up in the hustle. But, every so often I am reminded of these ancient teachings, of animal messengers and Pachamama. 

It is usually when I stop and take a moment to look around. To admire the hummingbirds coming to my porch, to drink from the feeder that I put out for them. Or when the worker bees show up on my patio while I sit at my desk...mirroring my same actions, I smile and wonder — are they trying to tell me something? 

In these small moments of noticing the nature around, I am reminded to look at myself. How important, really, is this busy work I am doing? 

When my friend told me of his dream about the snake, I was deeply inspired. When my sister and I spotted the hawk on our walk, I was in awe. Both moments felt like a jolt out of the business of life to remember. 

Remember.

Remember the immense power and beauty that surrounds us. At every moment. 

Connecting with nature helps me find the wisdom I seek. I want to know who I am, to learn more about why I am here, why I act the way I do.

So, I choose to watch the world around me. To be aware of what is going on around me. Not just mindlessly go through my day (or my entire life) without awareness. 

Noticing, listening, being. Is it that simple? 

I am still figuring it out. But it seems this teaching has been there all along, just waiting for me to notice.