Hummingbirds are known as fierce fighters, protecting their food sources from other hummingbirds. I often see a hummingbird approach a feeder only to be chased off by another. The key beneath maintaining their territory is awareness, knowing their boundaries and keeping an eye on their domain.

Awareness is the key to maintaining just about anything we do in life. At an early age we learn the boundaries of the yard, and stay out of the street. Later we learn the boundaries in playing games, using the right equipment and playing by the rules. It is through awareness that we come out the winner, at least most of the time.

We are no different than the hummingbird in our need to be aware of our territories and boundaries, and there are many levels for us to address: we maintain our relationships, adhering the saying the right thing, doing what we promise, and acting in a way that benefits both parties; we carry those exact same ideas into our work, only shifting the rules to suit the environment; and we return to our home and use our awareness to interact with our environment through color, texture, and the many things that surround us.

How well do we handle our awareness? Do we give thought before we take action, and what purpose is contained within the thought? Is it a thought filled with love, support, endurance, and building? Awareness is both an ability and a tool in our day-to-day living, one that can be practiced and refined to give us the greatest life experience.

Estee Taschereau, Author and Editor of Hummingbird Shaman, offers the book Being Here Now, a guide to greater awareness and tools for self awareness and personal ownership. Individual sessions are available to guide you into greater personal awareness, release, and more clarity in life.

The hummingbird is built like no other bird, giving it abilities and speed beyond our reasonable comprehension. It’s wings can rotate, giving this tiny bird the ability to hover, fly backward, stop instantly, and move at lightning speed. This unique wing movement give the hummingbird the ability to create a figure-eight movement, or infinity symbol.

What we see of the hummingbird’s world is limited: we live in our own human perception, giving us the ability to focus deeply on our interests and our own slice of the world. How much of the world around us do we miss in our constant state of thought and movement?

On many days I have seen the hummingbirds perched along a walkway, yet no one else sees them. They watch, and occasionally speak in their territorial chirping sound. In the springtime they display their feathers, diving, looping, showing their greatest qualities.

Wings of infinity. The ability to move at amazing speed, yet remain in a state of stillness as they hover in one position. There lies the secret to infinity: having both sides – balanced, separate yet connected. The infinity sign is flowing, continually outward and inward simultaneously.

Can we achieve this sense of infinity? most certainly. Remember that hummingbirds do not exist in confinement, and we can carry this value into our thoughts, memories, and actions. Hummingbirds live for the moment, being here now, and in this perception we still retain our connectivity to our tomorrow.

There are ways we can create a safer, more secure environment for ourselves, building our world from the inside. These tools can be found in the book, “Being Here Now – Find your center, Stand your ground”, now available in ebook and paperback format. Learn simple techniques for self awareness and personal ownership.

Estee Taschereau is the Editor and Author of Hummingbird Shaman, offering individual sessions for discovery of the true spark that animates you.

Hawks, eagles, vultures, and falcons are in the raptor family. What exactly defines raptor? These birds are carnivorous, meaning they eat other animals. Vultures typically select dead animals, like road kill, while others go for life prey.

It was not so long ago that I stood outside my home and saw an eagle circling. The eagle moved quickly across the sky, never repeating any portion of its path like the hawks I see more often.

Raptors are honored in the native cultures and the world of shamanism. The attributes of these magestic birds are encouraged as virtues to emulate. The most common perspective is the strength of these birds.

What stands out most with the raptors of the world, the eagles, red tail hawks, falcons, and vultures is their awareness. All attention is given to the moment – now is the key to achieving any goal. Their focus is honored in expressions such as “an eagle eye”. We’ve all heard the expression, “a birds eye view”. It has been found that our human brain only registers a small portion of what our eyes see. How much of our observations are vision based, and how much is achieved by conscious focus?

There are 290 Falconiformes, or raptors, worldwide. This includes the noctural or night hunters, such as owls. In the U.S. there are regulations that restrict the ownership of raptor feathers or other body parts. These regulations are in place to protect the population of threatened species.

My friend followed up that evening with an email to let me know that the prediction was close, with the sighting of a hawk, a falcon, and two eagles. No vultures this trip, they are currently residing in the southern states for their winter. What a great way to add a little excitement to any drive!

What does it mean to

Intuitive Meaning Editor and Author Estee Taschereau offers clear, compassionate assistance to individuals who seek to understand their own path and abilities. Phone sessions are available in the US, as well as sessions via Skype.

While we must still face the world we have created, with so much of our reward placed outward or in the future, we cannot lose by returning at least some of our focus to now.  Be in the moment, and relish the nectar of now.

Awareness is truly a gift.  We can appreciate the physical world we live in.  We can experience our reactions and assessments of the moment.  Most certainly we can realize our spirital presence, and feel the amazing flow as our creative nature glides so beautifully into manifestation.  If we are lucky, and attentive, we might just have a combination of all three levels of awareness.  No matter which we allow there is no doubt that awareness makes the moment complete.

He spoke to me of commitment and focus.  Yes, worthy topics.  He also stated that there was something I needed, a healing.  I agreed, the last week had been a whirlwind, and I felt depleted and spun by all the activity.  “Alright, I’ll sit on the bench for a while”, and I walked to the bench 10 feet away from me.  As soon as I sat he shot up from his branch, rising up in a curve, stopping several feet above me.  He spread his tail feathers out to show his power.  “I am here with you, I am watching over you”, he said.  Then he returned to his perch, and remained for another minute.  

I stayed at the bench a few more minutes and then began my walk up the hill.  I have seen another bird, I believe female, flying along the hill.  This bird is the transmutation bird I spoke of earlier.  Today I spotted her, perched on a branch along the road.  “Hello!”, I whispered to her.  She did not wish to be seen by the others walking up the hill, and gave only her presence as a greeting.  I diverted my attention for a moment, and when I returned she was gone. 

This was a good day, and I returned home to see my friends chasing each other in the feeder area of my garden.  I have at least four hummingbirds residing nearby and dining at my gourmet feeders.   We welcomed the warmth on this early spring day, and for a moment time did not matter.