Brother Turtle

revisiting, reflecting, relocating

A little reflection from 2010. I was facing great change and uncertainty, as I am once again. Though much less traumatic this time, thankfully! I was happy to come across these words and the encouragement they carry as I was browsing my archives this morning. At the end of this month I will once again carry my inner home with me, to a place I have never seen or been, but with the most wonderful neighbors awaiting this time, and 15 years of healing behind me, with more to come.

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I have a history of certain creatures crossing my path, sometimes literally, and often in unexpected ways and places. Since this has been happening for so many years now, I have come to embrace and regularly see evidence of the validity of both the Native American and Celtic/Druidic belief in the possibility that such creatures can be messengers. Some of the creatures who have become my special friends along the way are deer, otter, rabbit, and cow. I have had encounters with these creatures both in the waking world and in my dreams.

In the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi (or maybe Dr. Doolittle) I also speak with animals, birds, and insects as a matter of course. My kids have gotten used to it. Once I had a conversation with a spider on our front porch. She created the most beautiful, intricate web from pillar to pillar across the front of the house, leaving a perfect, human-sized open archway in her work so we could pass through. No kidding. Because we have brown recluse spiders here in Tennessee, it’s necessary to have the area sprayed occasionally. It happened that “Spider Man”, as we call the pest control guy, was due to come the next day. Organic or not, pest control is pest control, so I told the spider that I thought her work was magnificent, and I thanked her for that clever archway. Then I warned her about “Spider Man”. She promptly packed up and moved on.

Today I welcome a new friend into the fold…the turtle. On my morning walk, in the middle of a concrete laden subdivision, a beautiful turtle literally crossed my path. He stopped when he saw me and I greeted him. We had a lovely conversation, I thanked him, and continued on.

I am heeding his message…

“Take it slowly…seek Wisdom…be careful…be patient…know when to wait and when to forge ahead…don’t be afraid to relocate; you carry your true home with you at all times anyway…slow down so you don’t miss the little wonders…savor every moment…getting older has its perks…oh, and beware invitations to something called “soup.”

Thanks be to God for Brother Turtle, who came at just the right time, with just the right message.

Deep Peace and Every Blessing,

~Cheryl Anne, May 2010