fulfillment
Animal Rescue As A Spiritual Calling
A friend recently asked me if have considered the possibility that all the animal rescue work I have been doing in recent years might be the symptom of a deep desire to heal some wounded part of myself? She also said I may be suffering from what her therapist refers to as a ‘savior complex.’ And this might stem from fear of rejection, insecurities and any other negative experiences from my childhood. I did not get defensive, but said I would ponder her remark. Actually, I am pondering what she said as I type this blog.
As much as my husband and I love all animals, it was never our intention to get as involved as we have now with our bounty of ‘rescued animals.’ In hindsight, we ended up taking in some very sick, injured, starving, and abandoned fur babies, because the small local rescue centre was bursting at the seams. I guess we found ourselves unable to bury our heads in the sand.
Stop Comparing Yourself To Others
I believe that my own tendency to compare myself with others began at a young age, when my mother would constantly compare me to my cousins. For example, she would talk affectionately about their lovely physical attributes, like their thick hair, high cheekbones or deep-set eyes. Their personalities were louder and more assertive than mine too.
I was an overweight kid, and the more withdrawn I became, the more I would eat. I felt that my overweight was seen by others as greed, but I now believe I was layering deep insecure feelings.
I now know too that I was not meant to be like my cousins. In hindsight, I thank my mother for the life lessons. Perhaps she helped me in learning about insecurity and experiencing an inferiority complex. Today, I have a much deeper understanding of how my clients feel, when they don’t feel good enough. Or, as is often the case, when they are concerned about their children not feeling good enough for whatever reason. This is not always due to faulty parenting. Parents often suffer terribly when they see their kids, whatever their ages, suffer from lack of self-esteem. They see their kids as having every reason to be super-confident, yet witness them withdrawn and unhappy.
Shamanic Healing For Chronic Illness
When treating chronic illnesses, such as depression or pain, we too often look only at the symptoms, and not the root cause. The fact is, most if not all of these conditions have at their foundation some form of loss: the loss of sensation, loss of control, or the fear of loss. For this reason shamanic medicine can be quite effective as a form of treatment.
Shamanism, the connection between the physical world and the spirit realms, is all about connections. As we look closer at chronic illness, we find that much of it is caused by a lack of connection: to our authentic selves, to our spirit guides, to nature, and to our intuition. This is whey shamanic healing can be of great value.
For thousands of years, before the emergence of modern medical practices, shamans were the healers and diviners of the community. Fortunately, their practice is as strong today as it was then.
A trained shaman is able to determine which type of healing we may need: soul loss or retrieval (often through past-life work), spiritual retrieval (a power animal, angel, or other spirit guide), or reconnection to the earth and spiritual realms. There are shamans with different specialties, just as we have physicians with different areas of practice. Continue reading
The Truth About Dragons
Dragons are often relegated to the realm of myth, but in my experience the energy of these beings can serve as an ally in our everyday life. Dragons in the western tradition tend to have a bad rap. For example, in some Judeo-Christian theology, the dragon is considered a symbol . When I first encountered this type of being in my own life I was taken aback. My roots stem from the Judeo-Christian tradition and much of my training and personal evolution stems from this background.
In eastern cultures, dragons are looked upon in much the same way westerners consider angels. These beings bring with them blessings, help, and unique power to facilitate change. Dragons are also represented in the Biblical tradition as well, but they have a different name.
Several years ago, I had my first encounter with a dragon-like being. When I saw it I heard the word seraph, even though at the time I had little familiarity with the term. I looked up the term and the literal meaning of the word is, ‘flaming serpent.’
In my experience, the creature looked exactly like the traditional conceptualization of a dragon, with a few minor differences. I realized after this first encounter I had interacted with a seraph – one of the classes of angels. Continue reading