Flamingo Medicine

Photo: L.Weikel

It’s funny how things play out in our lives. It’s also fascinating to see how Spirit will sometimes go to extraordinary lengths to get our attention. In the span of just a few days recently, Flamingo ‘medicine’ has appeared in our lives as a clear and obvious messenger of some sort or another.

To be honest, at first I was simply taken with the ‘kitschy’ aspect of the plastic hangovers from the fifties and sixties when we first spotted them lurking in the garden of our next-door neighbor about a week ago. Karl saw them and started salivating with envy and a scootch of “I told you so.”

OK, I’ll admit it. As soon as I saw them and realized someone else had actually taken the plunge, I regretted having scoffed at Karl’s desire a couple years ago to get a pair of our own. I’ll give him credit (now) – he was ahead of the curve, even if that curve arced backward. (There will be a price to pay. I’ll write about that another day.)

Within Days

Odder still was when, just a few days later, we found ourselves practically shielding our eyes from the neon brilliance of yet another pair of flamingos. We discovered these saucy birds perched on the elevated sand mound of yet a different neighbor at least half a mile away from the first.

I have to admit these two were remarkably photogenic, strategically situated such that their gaze naturally falls upon a pond filled with peepers and frogs at the edge of a stand of woods.

While I cannot say I’ve seen a third set of flamingos (which would ‘seal the deal’ that they are appearing as messengers to us), I must admit to being captivated by the second set. Not only do they grab our attention every time we walk past them, but they’ve also managed to yank us out of a couple of rather cranky moods we found ourselves in recently.

Flamingo’s Message

Of course, I took their photo the first time I laid eyes on them. My initial purpose in doing so was, of course, to share them with you. I had the idea in my head that they might serve as fodder for some evening’s silly or whimsical post.

I’m so glad I did take their photo, because otherwise I might not have realized that they were bringing all of us a message that just might serve us in good stead.

Checking my trusty reference book, Animal-Wise* by Ted Andrews, here is something I thought we all might ponder as we enter this final week of July, in this Coronavirus Pandemic year of 2020:

“(…) When the flamingo appears as a messenger or as a totem, we are entering a time of cleansing and filtering to find that which nourishes and heals the heart. It is a time to follow the heart in all endeavors, in spite of the environment we find ourselves in. (…)

We should also ask ourselves some important questions. Are we discerning about that which is most beneficial to us or are we just accepting whatever comes our way? Are we ignoring the things we love to do? Do we need to pursue what is in our heart? Are we ignoring what we are feeling? Do we need to explore our own healing gifts and abilities? Do we need to let others know how we feel?

Now is the time for healing the heart. Follow your own heart in all your endeavors and seek out only that which will heal and nourish what is dearest to you and your own heart.”

When I got the nudge to explore the meaning of Flamingo medicine this evening and share it here, I never guessed the message would feel so perfect, or the questions so provocative.