Flying Squirrels & Letting Go

Ted Andrews who wrote "Animal Speak" and many other great reads is one of my heroes. I learned so much from that book and a few others he wrote that I automatically pay attention to the animals that I encounter in my daily life as a sign from spirit.

Last night we had an unexpected visitor that our cat "Sivee" (meaning grey in Ukrainian) brought to us just as we sat down to dinner. We had the back door open because the temperature has finally dropped in Florida. It was an injured flying squirrel. Seeing no visible injuries or blood on it, my husband took it outside, hoping that it would regain some strength and return to the trees. Later my daughter Maya and I checked on it only to find that it had died. So innocent and humble it was. Immediately, we were angry at our cat. Calling him out on it, he only stared back at us and disappeared for the rest of the night. I'm hoping that Sivee found it injured instead of making the kill himself. I guess I'll give him the benefit of doubt this time, since it's the first creature he has brought home to us.

So what does this mean? Here are some squirrel attributes.

Squirrels are often observed scrounging about for food and digging holes in the earth and storing nuts and other food sources for later times. Their keen sense of smell will enable them to find their stored caches even if they do forget where they buried their nuts.  Flying squirrels, do not really fly. Their skin stretches and enables it to glide from tree to ground or tree to tree. It is nocturnal. It strongly dislikes being disturbed during the day. Owls are usually the flying squirrel's chief predators.

I ask myself; 1. Are you too active? 2. Not active enough? 3. Are you not planning at all for the future, distant or near? 4. Are you becoming too erratic--running to and fro and not accomplishing anything? 5. Do you need to learn how to save and ration on any level--including time, money, energy, etc.? 6. Are you afraid you will never have enough? 7. Are you getting too hung up on collecting and accumulating? 8. Are you gathering and not giving?

I qualify for "yes" to over half of these questions. Squirrels can teach us balance within the circle of gathering and giving out. If we are doing too much of one or the other, squirrel may appear to help us. Squirrels are the masters at preparing but they also are reminders that in our quest for our goals, we should always make time to socialize and play. Work and play go hand-in-hand, or the work will create problems and become more difficult and less fruitful.

So like a squirrel, for the last few months I have been dividing my time and energy on several different projects or jobs, hoping that one or two of them would bring more abundance into our lives. While all have brought money, my time, energy and temper are stretched thin. So the message is clear to focus on the areas where the nuts are bigger or more plentiful. In a nut shell it's time to pare down those projects that attack my time and energy and yield little reward.

Things to consider when working with the squirrel totem:

You are preparing for the future by storing up time, resources, and energy; resting during unproductive times. You are moving to a higher level of consciousness to avoid harassment. Sometimes its appearance means changes or the approach of adversaries. Warning, wisdom, change, trust, discovery, truth, balance, harmony. Use as a spiritual watch-dog to warn you of danger on any level.

What animals have you encountered lately?

Curious Cats

This is a commission I just completed and that I think really turned out well!

Here is the process;

1. I receive photos from the client and we agree to a size and price.

2. I create one or two pencil sketches for approval.

3. I begin the painting which can take a couple of weeks or a couple of months, depending on how crazy my life is.

4. I ship or deliver it to the client and they add it to their decor and awesome art collection!

For interior design help in the Washington D.C. area check out; www.thurstonscottinteriors.com

[slideshow]

Black Cats, Halloween & Healing

One of my wonderful art collectors lost her beloved black cat this week, Mr. Meeshka. He lived a long and happy life (15 I believe) and from what I know about him he was a pretty cool and laid back cat.

Superstitions. A Witches familiar.....

In Europe a black cat crossing your path is bad luck. In Japan it is good luck. In Scotland a strange black cat appearing on your porch is an omen as well but a good one. It means that prosperity is on the way. If you hear a cat sneeze in Italy then you are in for a streak of good luck.Cats are not allowed in the room if family is having a private talk in the Netherlands. The fear is that the cat will spread gossip all over town, and the family secrets will be out. Don’t be too hard on the cat in Ireland, however killing a cat there brings 17 years of bad luck.

I think there's something great about black cats! I've never met one that I didn't like. They look at you with a knowing of the depth of your soul. They are playful and mellow, alert and smart. Unfortunately, they are targets for strange pranks around Halloween.

The first cat I owned in my adult life was black and chose me and my husband as its owners. It used to follow us into our apartment at night and because it was black, we didn't notice it until about 15 minutes after we were in the apartment. The first meal we fed her was collard greens (the only thing we had in the fridge) and she ate every bite. We knew then that she was a stray. After about a week of following us around we decided to keep her and named her Mystic. She really lived up to her name! The first mysterious thing we found while giving her a flea bath was a tattoo on her stomach. It wasn't a number, or a name, it was a symbol. It was the female symbol with

a 6 pointed star in the circle part of the symbol. We were quite shocked by this and I went to the library to look for answers. I really didn't find anything except a reference that the symbol may be used as part of witchcraft ceremonies. A few year later, a psychic friend of mine put Mystic on her lap and intuitively saw that she had been part of a Halloween ceremony, perhaps a satanic ritual and had gotten the tattoo that way.  Mystic somehow had gotten away before the ritual was complete.

Mystic was pretty smart and would play hide n' seek with us. She would also, always eat and eat just about anything you sat in front of her.

When my mother was home with hospice, dying of breast cancer, Mystic would not leave her side, except to eat or go to the bathroom. It was only on the day of her death that Mystic left the room and then did not return until she has passed. She lived to the good age of 13, fat and happy. At that age she began to have seizures. Alarmed we took her to the vet who said she had an advanced stage of cancer and should be put down right away. It was a shock to us and my poor husband helped Mystic in the end, as I could not bear to see her go.

Scientists now believe that a cats purr may be healing or a self-healing mechanism. Cats purr during both inhalation and exhalation with a consistent pattern and frequency between 25 and 150 Hertz. investigations have shown that sound frequencies in this range can improve bone density and promote healing.

Is it a coincidence that Mystic had cancer, as did my mother? Does it just say that our environment is screwed up? Was her presence helpful to my mother and her illness? I was to me at least. Will there be rituals and ceremonies performed on black cats this Halloween? Will it be bad luck or good luck the next time  a black cat crosses your path?

My Cat Sivee (meaning Grey in Ukraninan)

Our cat was 50 shades of grey before it was cool! We found him at a friends house while doing an art show in Cleveland, Ohio. We was part of my friend's stray cat litter. He is 4 years old now and loves sleeping in the day and escaping outside to roam the night.