Messenger

Flicker – ND #142

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Flicker, left profile – Photo: L. Weikel

Flicker

I found a feather the other day as I was walking past High Rocks State Park. I made the discovery shortly after the rain finally abated after falling all day. Gray clouds persisted overhead and the feather, sadly, was caked with mud. I noticed it anyway because fragments of bright yellow still managed to peek out from its sad, soggy condition. What was that? A flicker? A glimmer of light amidst all the dirt and damp?

I picked the feather up, of course, if only out of respect. It was in sad shape, but I figured it only needed a quick run under the faucet. Yanking a couple strands from my scalp, I offered them in exchange and appreciation for the bird’s loss.

It was risky, but I stowed the feather gently in the front pouch of my hooded sweatshirt. The feather was superficially a mess, but it felt like a messenger and I wanted to honor it.

Yet Another Encounter

Fast forward a handful of days to this afternoon. Again, I’m out walking, about a zig-zag mile away from where I found the feather. Also again, the sky is overcast, the atmosphere thick with mist and about 20 degrees cooler than the day before. This time my attention is snagged by a furtive rustling amongst the dry, dead oak leaves littering the berm of the road. There! A bird, with coloring that allowed it to blend in yet stand out. Quite a trick. (And luckily, I was on a solo trek, because I’m sure Pacha and Brutus would’ve pounced on it.)

Oh, what a beauty! It hopped amidst the twigs and detritus seemingly unafraid. It scratched and poked, attempted feigned indifference, then glanced at me to discern my intentions. While I was able to walk right up to it, if I had to guess, I’d say it was just young and inexperienced. It didn’t appear to be wounded or compromised in any way, which was a relief, and the main reason I approached it.

I spoke to it gently and took a couple photos. And I made sure to tell this winged creature how much I appreciated its intriguing coloring and design, especially the magnificent heart at the back of its head. Of all the birds for me to discover ‘in the feather’ one-on-one, here was the very same kind – a flicker – that had left me a feather only a few days earlier.

Flicker, its heart at the back of its head – Photo: L. Weikel

Walking It Off

As it happened, I was walking off the effects of a profound discovery I’d just made within myself. If I made a choice I knew I was being asked to contemplate, my soul would collapse within itself. My heart would break. Sounds hyperbolic, I know; but that’s how it felt at the time. In short, I was feeling an absolute gut-level certainty that I couldn’t – mustn’t – go back. I thought I could, but my body and soul said otherwise.

I’d actually walked about six miles by the time I came across the bird – a Flicker, of course, in case you haven’t guessed. By that time, I’d not only processed my visceral reaction to the choice presented to me, but also pivoted within myself to embrace an alternative that felt like a ray of warm sunshine. A flicker of hope? The choice couldn’t be more obvious; the message more clear.

Looking It Up

Naturally, as soon as I arrived home, I consulted my trusty Animal Speak*, by Ted Andrews. I was delighted to discover almost two full pages of information. Following are just a few tidbits that called out to me:

“Keynote: New Rhythm of Growth and Healing Love.

(…) Flickers are woodpeckers in the process of changing from life in the trees to life on the ground. Because of the tapping and drumming that all woodpeckers do in their search for food, they have connections to new rhythms coming into your life.

(…)

The flicker is a golden-winged woodpecker. It often has a red patch on the back of its head and a black crescent on its breast, all of which are very symbolic. When it flies up from the grass, it takes off in a strong, bounding flight, flashing the gold of its wings. When a flicker comes into your life, it will reflect new bounding leaps of spiritual growth.

The red on the back of its head reflects a stimulation of the chakra centers of the head – the throat, brow, and crown centers. These centers will be stimulated into new activity. The reflects that latent talents and intuition are going to be activated to a greater degree.

(…)

If flicker has come into your life, it indicates a time of rapid growth and trust. Flicker will awaken a new rhythm and the ability and opportunity to manifest all-healing love.”

Trust

And there it is. While I might personally feel like the feather I found a few days ago, muddy and a bit battered, the bright ray of hope represented by the yellow shaft of a flicker demands a certain amount of trust. Trust in myself. Trust in my unique path. And trust that when I ask for it, my allies conspire with Nature and All Life to bring me the guidance and insight I seek.

ND #142

Flicker, right profile – Photo: L. Weikel (Thank you, little one!)

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Late Nights – Day 987

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Swooping Cloud Owl – Photo: L. Weikel

Late Nights

I’ve had a couple of really late nights recently. I was up into the wee hours of the morning last night writing my post and yet I didn’t make up for lost time (if that’s even possible) by sleeping in.

While I did manage to squeeze in a walk – and a longer one at that – it nevertheless felt like my timing was off all day. For instance, most of the day there was a rather reliable blanket of overcast lurking above. It managed to shield us from the direct rays of the sun for most of the day, but yowza! When the sun did break through, the air instantaneously turned even swampier than a moment earlier. The air became so thick it was almost like breathing jello through a straw.

I waited and waited, keeping an eye on the weather and hoping something would shift enough to make a ‘walk-around’ an activity that would make either Spartacus or me keel over. Finally, as the afternoon became late, we decided to set out. We even decided, perhaps impulsively, to do a walk-about instead.

Naturally, I kid you not, as soon as Spartacus and I started down our flagstone path, a handful of fat splats of rain fell from the sky. Internally I shrugged. I’d waited long enough. A glance at the variations of darkness mottling the sky above me suggested that these were mere drops squeezed from the clouds above because there simply was no more room at the inn.

Chanced It – Worth It

We decided to set out on our walk in spite of those aggressively hefty raindrops nipping at our heels. It was a wise decision, as not a single drop fell upon us again for the entire four miles.

In fact, as we crested Fox Kit hill (I just named it for this lovely one from exactly three months ago) the skies had cleared and magnificent thunderheads were dressing up in the distance. One, however, looked distinctly like an owl swooping in on us.

I’m partial to owls, as many of you know. They, like hawks, are messengers of a sort.

Judging from the size of this Cloud Owl, I’d say if there’s any correlation between messenger and message, I’d better pay attention.

So I’m going to address the immediate message before me: I’m heading to bed. If there’s more to this message, I trust revelations will continue (if I’m lucky).

Here’s to all of us as we head into this final week of July 2021. I wonder what will be revealed this week.

Another Perspective of Swooping Cloud Owl – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-124)

Setting of Tone – Day 859

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Hawk – 19 March 2021 – Photo: L. Weikel

Setting of Tone

Today turned out to be a much more delightful day, weather-wise, than what I was expecting. While it was still chillier than last week, I was grateful that yesterday’s dreary pall of rain didn’t carry over into today. As we took a walk late this afternoon the lingering breath of winter felt exhilarating. And encountering this messenger, surely one of our horny hawks from last week’s extravaganza of mid-sky mating rituals and raucous attention-getting, felt like a seasonal setting of tone.

What tone might this hawk be setting?

First and foremost, Hawk (as an archetype, hence the capitalization) is a messenger. And this one perched not on a pole or at the apex of a tree, as is their usual preferred observatory, but rather smack in the middle of a telephone wire, perfectly balanced above the center of a roadway. And s/he watched us approach for a good quarter of a mile before taking flight again.

It strikes me that for a bird as hefty as a hawk, balancing on a wire takes more skill and focus than might be demanded of a sparrow or bluebird. This fact gave more credence to the deliberate intention of the act itself. This hawk was not trying to hide itself from us or observe us from afar. In fact, I swear it maintained eye contact with me the entire time I walked toward it with the hope of getting as clear a photo as possible.

I’m not suggesting that it showed up just for us, but surely a higher and more stable point would have been preferable as a hunting perch. And part of its message could therefore be that we need to bring an extra dose of skill and focus to achieve our goals this spring.

Communication, Creativity, New Life

Sitting on a telephone wire above the middle of a road. Being obvious and direct in its work as a messenger, possibly using new means of communication. Patiently awaiting the arrival of the new growth/life that so much effort was put into creating last week during the very public and unmistakable mid-air mating dances and rituals.

The energy I felt from this hawk was that it almost wanted to whack me upside the head with its wing. Perching there on a wire overhead it just felt like it was deliberately making itself obvious to us. It was pretty much demanding that we pay attention to it and heed its message – which at least partially was conveyed last week when she and her suitors made such a ruckus as they created new life.

Confirmation

Just as I started writing this post, I decided to choose a card from the Naked Heart Tarot deck, asking for a message on setting of tone for the spring season. I chose the Three of Wands.

To me, this card says yes, create a sacred space in which to focus your creative energy. Allow the rising sun that signifies the burgeoning energy of springtime to fill and illuminate your life. Give yourself a protected space in which to give this new life, this nascent creativity, room and space to grow.

Three of Wands – Naked Heart Tarot deck

(T-252)

Overload – Day 793

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Falcon (Kestrel) – Photo: L. Weikel

Overload

Honestly, I’m struggling to come up with something to write about that has nothing to do with either the votes I see taking place on the floor of the House of Representatives tonight, or the insurrection that took place just six short days ago. It’s hard; let me tell you. I’m on overload.

From the looks of things, it appears that the House is first voting to urge Vice President Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment in order to effectively remove DT from office. Pence has pre-emptively sent Congress a letter advising that he has no intentions of doing so. Thus it is expected that tomorrow the House will vote to impeach Donald Trump for his part in inciting the insurrection we witnessed take place last Wednesday, January 6, 2021.

Reasons

There are myriad reasons why Congress is moving forward with this action so quickly. Not least of these reasons is that we probably came within five minutes or so of the mob of thousands of Trump supporters not only storming the Capitol at the urging and instigation of Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and others, but also taking hostages and possibly killing those in the line of succession to Donald Trump.

We’ve seen videos, heard chants, and read posts that establish these intentions. And we’ve witnessed DT telling these people, “We love you.” The outrage is not in an expression of unconditional love (which would have had to be coupled with a swift and harsh rebuke to stop the violence) but rather from the tacit implication, “We love your behavior.”

The behavior of the mob was, in a word, deplorable. Not to mention illegal. And utterly immoral and diametrically opposed to the fundamentals of democracy.

As DT is wont to do, he deliberately says something that means one thing but in actuality intends the opposite. It’s a trick of rhetoric that he constantly employs yet is probably unconscious of and unaware that he does it. He talks out of both sides of his mouth.

A Different Messenger Today

Given the manner in which events are unfolding, including the credible reports of (admittedly incredible) additional attacks on both the inauguration ceremony and state capitols around the country over the coming days, our country is on high alert. We are being placed in the stance and mindset of imminent threat.

All of this reminds me of the quite unexpected visitor that swooped and looped over my back yard and above my head this afternoon: a gorgeous falcon. Specifically, I believe it was a kestrel; also known as a sparrow hawk.

While I might be inclined to try to apply the attributes of Falcon to myself or my life, I actually feel this might be more of a confirmation of the best manner in which to deal with DT’s actions.

For instance, Ted Andrews, in his book Animal Speak*, states:

“The kestrel will usually plunge down upon its prey from a perch, or hover above it about twenty feet up before the plunge. This is unique among birds of prey, but also among most birds. (…) For those with a kestrel as a totem, this is very significant. It allows the movement to be performed with great speed and precision. It gives the kestrel a gracefulness. It implies the ability to stop and use the flight to its fullest advantage.

The kestrel teaches control of speed and movement. It teaches patience. The kestrel is often a symbol for recognizing opportunities and acting upon them at only the correct moment. It teaches speed and accuracy of action. (…) The kestrel and any falcon can teach us to know when to act but to fully commit to our actions for the greatest success.”

Accountability

All of this reminds me once again of how essential it is that those who participated in the attempted coup on our government be held accountable – swiftly and without equivocation. It is a sad testament to our current predicament that because accountability has been delayed, denied, or deflected up to this point, the infractions against our country and our people have only become more egregious.

We need to act quickly; we need to act decisively; and we need to hold all those who would rip apart our democratic republic through treachery and violence accountable.

Falcon reminds us.

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(T-318)

Back in the Saddle – Day 463

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February Flowers – Photo: L. Weikel

Back in the Saddle

It’s been six days since I managed to get any serious walking in. Between the weather and work and other obligations, I’ve simply not logged the mileage. And I have to admit: I yearn to get back in the saddle and return to Mother Nature.

Last week was a bust. And the most frustrating thing about it, to me, is that last week I probably could’ve most used the exposure to nature and the physical connection to the earth.

I just checked the tracker on my phone and see that from last Monday to Saturday, I averaged less than half a mile per day. My top day I managed to walk 0.51 miles and my worst I only walked 0.29 miles. Not good.

A Re-New(ed) Leaf

I’ve at least managed to start this week out on a much better foot. I averaged 4.3 yesterday and 4.1 today.

I have to admit, I was both excited and delighted by the mild weather today. Simply having sunshine brightening my windows made a difference in my mood. And that’s double-edged warmth and sunshine, since they’re coaxing dramatic spring growth to not only sprout but now blossom here and there.

Cloud Raptor – Photo: L. Weikel

Bits of Magic

But the best part about getting back out on my walking circuit is the opportunity to stumble across random messengers in the sky and discover assorted bits of magic on blankets of moss simply awaiting my gaze.

For instance, I was given a timely reminder to rise up and shift my perspective on recent events in my life when I looked up and saw what appeared, to me at least, to be an obvious cloud raptor hovering above me. “Get up, Lisa! Rise above the shock and sadness,” I could hear it admonishing me. “See what’s playing out, where it originated, and where it’s headed.”

No small task, but absolutely do-able; at least the first two suggestions anyway. Hard to tell where anything’s headed in the world right now.

What’s the Lesson?

Funny you should ask. Only several hundred yards from where I first discovered the cloud raptor, I started taking photos of little yellow flowers blossoming in a cluster on hillock of moss surrounding a maple tree.

There it was, plain as day (to my nature-starved eyes, anyway). A piece of bark in the shape of a wolf’s head. Hmm. According to the Medicine Cards®*, Wolf might represent the teacher, the pathfinder, or the forerunner of new ideas that need to be shared with the clan.

Maybe. Maybe not.

At the very least, I feel I’m being told to ‘look for teachings’ no matter what is happening – and trust my intuition. Nothing is random; and I can only imagine (and trust) my eyes needed to be opened.

One thing is for certain: it feels great to be back in the saddle, seeing the signs, listening to Mother Nature, and feeling her love and support.

Bark Wolf – Photo: L. Weikel

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(T-648)

Because Right Matters – Day 438

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Another Hawk – today – Photo: L. Weikel

Because Right Matters

Watching Rep. Adam Schiff and the other House Managers present their case before the Senate over the past few days has been, at least for this legal and political nerd, riveting.

Their preparation’s been impeccable; their presentation masterful. I could only wish to be even half as persuasive and compelling an orator as Mr. Schiff.

I’m feeling that sense of yearning to be more than I am particularly this evening. As a citizen of the United States, listening to Schiff’s final entreaty to the Senate earlier tonight, I felt a tidal wave of patriotism welling up in my heart. YES. These are the ideals on which our country was founded. These are the fundamental values that I was raised on – and that I believed I would be upholding when I began my legal studies 40 years ago.

I doubt there are many people who listened to that closing argument this evening who could deny feeling a stirring within their hearts for a time when we felt it was our right to demand a higher standard of behavior from ourselves and our leaders.

How many of us yearn, right this very moment, for behavior from our leaders that renews our faith in the fundamental truth that what we do – how we behave when no one is watching – matters? That there are people who aspire to represent us in our government who actually do have a sense of serving a greater good than their own selfish, personal motives?

I’m Idealistic

Yes, I know. I’m idealistic. It’s true: in spite of everything I see unfolding before our eyes, I do not want to lose faith in our form of government. I do not want to lose faith in our elected representatives to do whatever they must to prevent our country from becoming a shell of its former self.

I want to believe that Mr. Schiff’s appeal to the idealist in all of us will compel those who’ve chosen a life of public service to put the fundamental values our country represents to our selves and to the world ahead of all other concerns.

Because right matters. If it doesn’t, we are lost.

If only we lived in Mr. Smith’s Washington*.

Maybe – just maybe – we do. Call your Senators.

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(T-673)

Hawk’s Message (cont) – Day 436

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Sitting Hawk – Photo: L.Weikel

Hawk’s Message (Part 2)

Yesterday I chose Hawk reversed with Dog underneath, and as I wrote in my post, my usual ease in interpretation just wasn’t cutting it. And I grant you: there are definitely days that I remain in the dark on why I chose the Medicine Card I did for that day. But after decades of practice, I’m fairly decent at discerning the messages conveyed by the wide variety of creatures represented in the Medicine Cards®*.

Which makes my difficult yesterday all the more amusing – since Hawk is traditionally the ‘message carrier.’

And as I stated toward the end of last night’s post, with Dog underneath my Hawk reversed yesterday, I felt I could not escape the fact that somehow, in some way, loyalty – either in delivering a message for others or in being loyal to myself enough to receive a message I need to hear – was underlying this message from Hawk.

As the Day Unfolds

As I’ve mentioned before, sometimes we’re quite sure what our ‘pick’ on the day means – we know exactly the issue it relates to and how we should best address it. Other times we have an inkling, but have found it best to keep an open mind. And then there are the days when we have no clue. Those are the days when we reflect on our pick throughout the day, to see what is revealed as the day unfolds.

Yesterday was such a day.

Before I’d even picked yesterday morning, I’d remarked to Karl that my post on Silence seemed to erupt from deep within. The words came to me sort of like slow moving magma – they may not have erupted from me in an explosive torrent of hastily scribbled words, but they did feel as though they were originating from a very pensive place deep within – and their flow was not easily stanched.

The post had a different feel to it, and I wondered how – or if – it landed with anyone.

Unexpected Appreciation

Imagine my surprise, then, when a neighbor (who I didn’t even realize reads my posts) approached me from across her yard to specifically thank me for writing my Silence Abounds post. She said it was “just what she needed to read this morning.”

I was delighted. But I have to admit: if Karl hadn’t pointed it out, I probably wouldn’t have recognized my neighbor as the messenger she was, and in particular, one bearing a message to be loyal to the posts (and not second guess their value).

Yet Another Messenger

Finally, later last night, I received an email from a person I worked beside nearly twenty years ago. (Is it possible it’s really been that long?! I kept trying to make it only ten years ago, but alas…). Receiving this email was a wonderful surprise, for as relationships are wont to come and go when people’s paths no longer cross, we rarely correspond anymore.

But the best part about receiving this email was my friend’s relaying of two brief stories that interconnect in their shared power to provide inspiration and hope to others – and his specific and pointed message to me that these stories matter. Our stories matter.

The light went on.

In spite of all the exhortations I make to others about the value of our thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and especially the value of writing them down, I’m not always loyal to the value of my own writing, my own stories.

It just might behoove me to bring loyalty to both the messages and the act (and privilege) of being a messenger.

I’m listening.

You listening? I’m lookin’ at you. – Photo: L. Weikel

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(T-675)

Calling Card – Day 195

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Calling Card – Photo: L. Weikel

Calling Card

When I went out on our porch this morning to give it a quick sweep, I looked over the edge and found a calling card. Not, perhaps, the type you might be thinking I’d find, though.

It was not the digestive ‘leavings’ of a creature, thank goodness. Nor was it the entrails of an unfortunate victim of the various four legged and winged predators we have skulking around in our fields, forests, and skies.

Nope. It was a feather. A hawk feather, to be precise. And I could not be more delighted.

As I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned before, when Hawk shows up in my life I always sit up and pay attention. Or I at least feel touched by a sense of specialness – sort of like I’m being given a gift from the Nature Spirits.

When I saw that feather laying on the ground this morning, nestled in the grass beside the huge stump of our now deceased English Walnut, a huge smile flashed across my face and my heart quickened. I propped my broom against one of the lattice-worked stools and nearly skipped down the steps, making my way around the back corner of the house to retrieve it.

What a prize!

Pursuing Tasty Snacks? Or…

Of course, on a purely mundane level, discovering a hawk feather quite close to one of my bird feeders does not bode well for my fine-feathered, mostly finch, friends who frequent those very feeders. That’s especially true when I realize that, at that very moment, there are no songbirds anywhere near the feeders. It’s as if they’ve all frozen in motion somewhere, playing avian statues.

And yet, aside from the single hawk feather, there’s no sign of a struggle; not anything close to an indication that a raptor may have snagged a snack and met a feisty refusenik who may even have succeeded in dislodging a feather of its predator.

So why remain on the level of the superficial, the physical, the obvious?

Bringing a Message

I’d much rather contemplate the possibility that Hawk is coming to me specifically to rekindle the flames of my passion for writing. That it may be whispering, “It’s time now, Lisa. Time to stop, take yourself to the creek, and go within. Time to remember why you write. And time to remember our quest many moons ago when we worked together to birth Owl Medicine.”

Yeah, maybe that’s what I want the Hawk feather to mean.

And truth be told it could mean that. It could also simply be calling me and bringing me the message to, “Pay attention.”

A lot has happened in the past few days – suddenly – to people who matter a great deal to me. People I love. And I want them to know how deeply I care, and how much I want them to recover and to get better quickly and easily.

So perhaps Hawk left its calling card to remind me, too, of the message that things (LIFE) can change drastically in the blink of an eye. We all know it; yet sometimes we need the reminder.

Maybe I will gain a little more understanding as the days unfold. Or maybe I just need to let myself be – the messenger.

(T-916)

Revisiting Trust – Day 141

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Deer Showing Trust – Photo: L. Weikel

Revisiting Trust

Trust. Again.

One of my favorite topics.

A day doesn’t go by when I’m not asked to exercise it in some capacity or another. It used to be that I would only have to consciously choose to ‘trust’ some days. Not every day. But now that I’ve embarked upon my 1111 Devotion odyssey, I’m faced with the responsibility of choosing to trust every single day or else risk breaching my commitment, my act of devotion, to Karl.

I’m not talking about mundane acts of trust, either, like the ones we all engage in every day simply by choosing to live in society, such as trusting that people are going to obey traffic laws or trusting the food I buy at the grocery store isn’t going to kill me.

No, I’m talking about choices that can be significantly important not only to myself, but to others.

Different Types and Different Levels of Trust

For instance, when I have a session with a client, I never know what’s going to be asked of me. I never know what, exactly, I am going to be asked by that client’s soul to do for that person. So every time I have a session with someone, which is not every day of every week, obviously, I am asked to trust that I will know what to do for my client’s highest and best outcome. And beyond that, I need to trust that the timing is correct.

Some days that means I need to journey to retrieve a lost soul part – an aspect of my client that has taken refuge in a safe place because it no longer felt safe here in this ‘Middle World,’ which in Quechua is known as the ‘Kaypacha.’ Sometimes it means journeying to find an ally, perhaps a power animal or a guide that takes the form of some other life form (not an animal), including perhaps a Being that appears in the form of a person. In all of these situations, I’m asked to trust. Trust what I’m told; trust what I’m shown; trust that even if it makes no sense to me, I am to relay it.

Every time I meet with a client I am asked to trust my role as messenger. And that is a role I consider essential and sacred. And sometimes requires the utmost delicacy.

I’m also asked to trust that what I ‘get’ is actually what my client truly needs. For instance, sometimes I’m told/shown or otherwise nudged into awareness that my client may have picked up a ‘hitchhiker.’ (I refer to these instances this way because otherwise, due to cultural prejudices, I might freak people out.) Nevertheless, if I’m shown that a hitchhiker might be present, I have to trust what I’m shown enough to bring the subject up, even if the idea of it might unsettle them at first.

That’s a Lot of Trust

It’s funny. When I did a search of my blog posts to see which ones contained references to ‘trust,’ 29 different entries came up. Wow! I knew I’d discussed trust before, but I honestly didn’t realize just how important this concept is to me – and as I perused them, how varied an array of instances exists in which trust plays a huge part in the way I live my life.

So, I will cut to the chase. Believe it or not, the silly post I wrote yesterday also has to do with trust. Yes, the missive from I.M. Carrot, Emissary of the Kingdom of Vegetable, was a direct result of me exercising trust: specifically, the trust I am now bound to exercise every single night: trusting that I will have something to write about.

I Never Know Where the Next Idea Will Sprout

When I found myself pulling the industrial-sized bag of organic carrots out of our refrigerator Sunday afternoon, I can assure you, I only had peeling a couple and dipping them in Buffalo-style spiced hummus on my mind. I was not thinking about what I would write that evening.

But there I was. Face to face with a carrot worthy of its own back story. Worthy of being christened with its own name, for heaven’s sake!

And I guarantee – as I stated at the end of my post last night – that carrot looks exactly as it did when I pulled it from the bag. I did not augment the appearance of its eyes with a little ‘Sharpie Shadow.’ I did not alter it in any way whatsoever. No. And while I did take a photo of it, I did not think it would end up starring in its own show.

But there you have it. I promise you, every single night is an Act of Trust that a seed of an idea will drop into my mind and sprout a thread for me to weave into something – even a silly fantasy about vegetables– that will entertain you for a few minutes each day.

It’s only because of my devotion to the memory of my eldest son that I’m trusting this process. Every. Single. Night. I love you, Karl.

Karl being Karl

(T-970)

Vegetables Demand Seat at the Table – Day 140

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Honorable ‘I.M. Carrot’ – Emissary, Kingdom of Vegetable** – Photo: L.Weikel

Fly-Fishing Assessment

Let me start this post off by acknowledging that some of you had surprisingly strong opinions regarding fisherpeople and their environmental hygiene. As I may have said somewhere in some comment, the Tohickon is a tremendously popular place for fly fishing. And while I have encountered the occasional fishing line tangled in a branch or in a bush along the banks, my overarching experience has been positive.

This was at least sort of confirmed today when we took our walks and found slightly less garbage than we find on a usual day. I’m going to take that as a good sign. Given the huge increase in both traffic and parked cars at High Rocks State Park yesterday, I would not have been surprised if there’d been a proportional increase in trash. I was pleasantly surprised. Perhaps there was more awareness being exercised this year than in years gone by? Whatever caused it, I applaud it!

Now to get to the crux of this post, as evidenced by its title:

Vegetables Demand Seat at the Table

Vegetables are finding their voices. They’re demanding recognition.

Indeed, the Kingdom of Vegetable sent an Emissary to provide proof that they are peaceful beings who want only to be recognized as sentient co-tenants on this planet.

This Emissary is an impressive specimen who came in a 10 lb. bag of carrots. She apparently witnessed a few of her compatriots being peeled and eaten raw and wanted to let us know her brothers and sisters from The Gardens are accepting of their lot, but do want us to know a few important facts:

  1. They are happy to lay down their lives to feed us, but they need our awareness brought to their sacrifice.
  2. It is not OK to assume they don’t have feelings.
  3. It is not OK to dismissively deride humans who have had traumatic injuries or illnesses that leave them incapable of conscious response as ‘vegetables.’ This dishonors all Beings.
  4. We, as humans, need to know that we are not, in fact, ‘all that.’ Indeed, the only reason the Kingdom of Vegetable is permitting us access to their emissary is because she clearly has ascended to the ‘next level’ (witness her clear and shockingly obvious 3rd eye activation, which actually looks like it needs medical attention).
  5. The Emissary is a Team Player and is working directly with us to raise the overall vibrational frequency of the planet.
  6. Finally, the Kingdom of Vegetable is tired of all the attention going to ‘the four legged, many legged, winged ones, furred ones, and finned ones.’ They want that same attention paid to them, and they are willing to earn it.

Rules of Engagement to Be Discussed

I’m going to be sitting in council with Her Honor to see if we can come to a mutually agreeable method of communication and understanding. The citizens of the Kingdom of Vegetable seek to be awarded messenger status.

I have to admit, I was startled when I pulled her out of the bag, reached for my peeler, and met her face to face. Obviously, she was startled too.

This is what happens when you write 140 blog posts in a row. You start talking to carrots. Erm, I’m sorry: I meant Emissaries of the Kingdom of Vegetable.

 

I.M. Carrot, Emissary: Kingdom of Vegetable**;  Official Photographer: L.Weikel

(T-971)  **This will certify that these are unadulterated and completely accurate photographs of the Emissary’s appearance ‘straight out of the bag,’ as it were.