More than a decade ago a very wise, spiritually inclined, older woman I know suggested that when animals show up in my life, to treat it as a sign and look up their specific meaning.
Having been raised in a somewhat agnostic, somewhat questioning, reasonably sceptical family with parents who still carried some of yhe beliefs (and the pains) of the religion they were born into, my 30 year old self found my friend's idea kind of strange.
Yet, I was curious.
She seemed far wiser, kinder and more worldly than me so I thought I'd give it a go.
I got into the habit of Googling "spiritual meaning of {insert animal}" anytime I found myself faced with an unexpected encounter with an animal. Or rather, I did this any time I remembered.
For the longest time I found it kind of interesting but didn't really get the power of it.
Yet, now that my world view has shifted so very much to the idea that we are all connected (all being people, animals, plants, rocks, the ocean, the earth, the planets, all the things) this practice feels less strange and in fact, very important to me.
I know some people will think it strange. And that's okay. I firmly believe we are all entitled to believe different things and it's 100% okay with me if people believe wildly different things than me as long as those beliefs don't actively hurt themselves or others.
Nowadays, I will look up the so-called spiritual meaning (or what someone suggests an animal might be trying to tell me) if I see an animal:
- several times on a short period of time
- that I rarely see
- very unexpectedly, and/or
- doing something that really gets my attention in a big way.
Here are some recent examples:
- My partner found a gecko (lizard) on the bed frame he was moving from the shed back into the house; they're usually hiding this time of year because it's too cold.
I woke up and looked out the kitchen window only to see a pair of ducks (birds) munching on our grass; we rarely get ducks at our place.
I walked into the bush earlier this week for a post-breakfast stroll and heard a total ruckus. It was two magpies (birds) trying to mate while being attacked by noisy minors (other, smaller but fierce birds). Once they broke apart, there were birds flying every direction with one of the magpies flying within inches of my head, not like a swoop but more like I was a tree to navigate past.
I could give you more examples, as the ways animals show up for me is amazing.
Like two weeks ago when I had watched a documentary that included (beautiful, harmless) sharks, then I had a dream with teeny tiny (super cute) sharks it, and the next morning when I opened my laptop the screensaver changed... to a shark.
I don't Google every animal I see; I'd been searching and reading posts several times a day with the sheer amount of animal encounters I (am lucky to) have.
But I do keep my awareness open to when I feel like a particular animal is trying to get my attention.
They all have different messages to share and I wouldn't want to miss any of them. Because, to me, these animals are messengers from God. So, as best I can, I watch, I listen and I try to understand.
And I truly believe my life is better for it.
This post was prompted by a question asked by my darling sister 
Belief in omens exists all around the world. While some are common across cultures such as black cats or shooting stars, others feel more personal. Have you experienced something that felt just like a sign?
If you are a woman, and wish to join in with this week's prompt or simply jump into the community to see what it's all about, you can do so by clicking here.
These photos and their photographers that I have namcan be found on unsplash.com