Hummingbird Shaman

After returning from a busy conference this past weekend, and a day of travel, my focus today began as a day of resting. Awakening came well after the sunrise, and the day was surprisingly sunny. My first course of action was opening the shades and be a part of the light.

From there, where do I go? Where do I start today? This question is one that arises every day, but on this occasion it was a conscious one. Within a blink a bird pulled me away from my self-centered attention, and I turned to see what had so gracefully shifted my thoughts.

It was a thrasher, with his light speckled feathers, red patch on his crown and black chest. He landed on the primary branch of the small cherry tree that had been a resting place for the hummingbirds. His head turned to and fro, surveying his surroundings. I don’t often see the thrashers unless there is suet for them, and even then they flee if there is any movement around them.

The thrasher is in the woodpecker family, with a long beak used to gain access to insects deep within the rotting wood of a snag tree. The tapping is reminiscent of drumming, rhythmic and resonant. The motions move beyond what is on the surface, a place we should all venture towards.

I marveled at the coincidence between my thought, “Where do I begin”, and the appearance of the thrasher. Within a heartbeat or two one of my hummingbirds made his own appearance, and while he stayed clear of the thrasher, a bird that far outweighed him, he still took dominance, landing above the thrasher in a position that centered him within the tree.

Where do I begin? What better place than within. Do we actually listen to the beating of our own heart? Even if we treat this reference as symbolic we can still find intuitive or spiritual meaning.

I turn my head again to focus on the motion seen out the corner of my eye. The hummingbird returns to his feeder, followed by chickadees and sparrows in search of food. I’ve returned home to something I resonate with, and my day’s focus clearly includes reconnecting to my own purpose and direction. Where do I start today? With the beating of my own heart.

Estee Taschereau, Hummingbird Shaman, offers individual sessions by phone to clarify and clear your focus and find the beating of your own heart. For more articles on spirituality and metaphysical focus visit IntuitiveMeaning.com

On Christmas day I journeyed to a friends home to stay and care for their animals during their absence.  These friends have always been gracious and welcoming, and I accepted the request readily.  This weekend would be a wonderful opportunity to focus, reflect, and write.

The trek here was gruesome, with several miles of heavy snow and ice on the roads.  The trade-off has been an incredible view from this country hilltop home.

As I awoke early in the morning I noticed a strange little bump attached to my clothing.  I pulled it away, and realized it was a ladybug.  “Is this significant?”, I thought.  I’ll have to blog about it.

A day passed, with no blog posting. Sometime in the afternoon I noticed a little dot on a window.  This home is all windows, floor to ceiling in the large main room, and the view is what captures the attention, not a speck on the window.  Nevertheless this little dot caught my attention.  Crawling across the outside of the window – a ladybug.  “I must write that blog”, was the thought that came immediately into my head.  Still no posting.

Today is Sunday, and I will be returning home, back to city life.  I’ve been attentive of my writing this morning, writing a full week of postings for the Mayan Calendar blog, and scheduled them for their daily appearance.  The list of “to do’s” and especially the “should do’s” loom over me, what should I do before I begin my drive home?  For some reason I looked across the room to the Christmas tree, and noticed more little dots.  No way!  Three more ladybugs, this time inside the house.  Okay, I get the hint.  Write the post now, else the message gets louder.  I wonder what it would be like to get into my car and be surrounded by a hundred ladybugs?

There is much written about the appearance of ladybugs.  Finding a ladybug on your person is said to mean “your wishes will come true”.  Ladybugs are also associated with Mother Mary and a reminder that we are spirit.

One of my favorite messages associated with ladybugs is to let go.  “Fear and Love cannot co-exist”.  This is a wonderful time for letting go on a deeper level.  The shift toward December 31st is around the corner, and the Mayan Calendar just began a new 260 day cycle. This has been a wonderful weekend for practicing the art of letting go, and I found myself filled with joy throughout each day.

As I close my eyes and refocus my attention to my clairvoyant abilities, the message presented to me by the presence of this beloved totem spirit comes quickly and clearly.  “No matter where you go, whether alone or in the presence of others, we will always be with you”.  The divine guidance does make its appearance in the most unusual ways.

The grace of a ladybug in my life gave me so much more, it gave hope and inspiration as tools with which to create my tomorrow.  I gladly accept the canvas and the paints provided, and find the roses I have painted in my awareness are accompanied by the ladybugs.  I’ve never thought of those old worn out thoughts and beliefs as aphids, but it is amazingly easy and amusing to relinquish those little bits and pieces of the past to the insatiable appetite of the ladybug!

Today is a wonderful day to let go of those things that restrain you.  This doesn’t mean on this date, at this precise time, well, yes it does.  It also means anytime, being in the present, being in the now.  There are many tools and techniques that can help us in this process.  Open the doorway to insights, and you never know what “little dots” may appear.

Estee Taschereau offers private intuitive sessions for information and energy release, as well as classes designed to empower and restore.

I usually write about my hummingbird encounters at HummingbirdShaman.com.  With the seasons changing and my travels I have not had nearly enough of my hummingbird friends.  During the drier summer months there were fewer appearances of the hummingbirds, and it took some time for me to realize that there was something in their place.

Yesterday I took another walk at the park, and as usual I called out for my little winged friend.  There was no sign of the hummingbirds, either visual or vocally, but something shot across my path – a dragonfly.  This was not a coincidence, but had become a regular part of my walk, always in the areas previously occupied by the hummingbirds.

This dragonfly appeared from nowhere, crossing my pathway in a pattern that was apparent and obvious, and disappeared in the taller trees to the west.  Hmmm, this is the same pathway I had observed the hummingbirds taking in past months.

Dragonflies and hummingbirds are both amazing spiritual totems.  We all can use reminders from time to time of our abilities, and we can thank our totem animal friends for those friendly reminders.

The Great Spirit Hummingbird flew quickly down the road, with great care taken to assure my attention. He rounded a small tree, and as he emerged from the other side a hawk appeared. The hawk could not have come from this tiny tree, it was far too small and unable to support the weight of a hawk. I would have seen this hawk as well as I passed within feet of this tree a minute before. My mind tried to reason through this experience, but I quickly caught hold of my rampant thoughts and accepted the vision.

What message was shared with me that day, and why did it take me all evening to finally hear it? The totem spirit Hummingbird manifested from the energy of joy. The totem spirit hawk is a messenger, a teller of truths, and brought clarity and conclusion within my vision.

“It is that easy.” Ah, of course I could not hear it earlier, I was trying too hard! Catch-22, isn’t it, trying so hard to hear something so simple? This was a story of shape-shifting, but to bring it into a new light, it’s just about change. Change within our heart, mind or soul and the concept of shape shifting are so much alike: one moment it is one thing, the next moment it is different. As I walked up the hill I spoke to Great Spirit, and I knew this interaction was a powerful one. The communication given to me was amazing as is, but hey, why not bring it to form and really make a point? Thank you Great Spirit!

My conclusion on this interaction with hummingbird, hawk, and Great Spirit:

1. This gift came to me when I was most receptive to receiving. I was enjoying my physical environment, yet had my connection to my source. For that moment I stepped out of trying.

2. I was open and in-the-moment. Sometimes I jump ahead of myself, and form a conclusion or opinion of what I should be receiving. That’s a very limiting way of receiving, and gives no grace to the giver, but how often do we use this tactic? Far too often. Some call this state of openness as “come as a little child”.

This was a thrilling experience, one I hope to experience again. I don’t think I could ever lose the state of excitement and awe in seeing this transformation. I do, at times, cloud over the beauty of my own transformations. This event took place in April 2008, and yet today, May 13, as I complete my rendition of the story, I remind myself of that feeling, of complete surrender to the guidance of the Great Spirit in whatever form it may take.

The photo shown above is a view of Mt. Rainier in Western Washington State. The tree that the hummingbird circled around is next to the shelter at the bottom of the picture. This tree has delicate branches, not able to support the weight of a hawk.

Estee Taschereau is a Spiritual Counselor, providing individual sessions in Life Optimization and Energy Release through Awareness. Phone Sessions can be scheduled through the marketplace at:

www.shamanstore.hummingbirdshaman.com

Greetings to all, and welcome to Hummingbird Shaman. I have created this site under inspiration generated by a small group I have encountered. They are not small in number, but in size. Move too quickly and they will not be seen. Slow down and listen and they will speak.

Allow me to share some background on these ongoing encounters. There is a park where I often walk my dogs, or they walk me. It’s a mutual health maintenance venture. I rediscovered this park in 2007, and since have increased my visits from monthly, to weekly, and now almost daily, sometimes twice in the same day.

This park has a history, as most urban and suburban areas do. This had been a military site, a missile base, and many of the now grassy areas had once been large concrete slabs. Next door to this site is a landfill. When I first visited the park I chose to park next to the walkway that borders the landfill. You cannot tell this visually, but every time I walked by the land would cry out in agony. I spoke to the spirits, and the earth, and did what I could to bring comfort to this aching patch of our planet. As I often do I underestimated the power of my greeting, my recognition of nature, and the changes that can be inspired by the actions of one gentle soul.

Through this blog I honor one of our spirit guides, the hummingbird. My next post will describe my encounters. Take it as you may, what more can you do? For some this will be an adventure of the imagination. For others this will be recognition of spirit, of the re-awakening of our true nature. The earth has spoken, and awakened in me the Hummingbird Shaman that I am. I have accepted my role, taking part in the healing of our planet, and accept those who aid me in this journey, by form of human, animal, fowl, or spirit.

Estee Taschereau is founder of RadiantJourney.com. She is also a Success Coach and Intuitive Consultant with over 25 years experience in private sessions and teaching of both professional and personal Life Optimization and Self Awareness Skills. Her enthusiasm and compassion team well with her clarity and ability bring resolution to unresolved issues. Sessions focus on uncovering life diversions and bringing you back to your place of personal empowerment.