I didn’t notice the moon last night, too busy being sick, too busy eating coffee ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery, too busy looking on the internet for a chair.
Reminds me. Dad said his brother called with a story the other day. His brother, N., had wanted a new pair of Dockers but not tan like the ones he already had. He wanted gray Dockers. One day recently N. heads out on a walk, crosses a busy street, and there as he’s crossing looks down and finds a brand new pair of gray Dockers, just his size.
I prayed for the pants and I got them, was what N. told Dad. We all gathered around the living room at Mom and Dad’s. Could it be? we wondered.
Last night I prayed to find the chair I want. I pictured noticing it among all the tables and baskets and stuff that fills those indoor flea markets and vintage shops I’ve been prowling. Then I prayed to give up my intense desire for things.
Aooooooooo. That’s a wolf howl. We went to the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary when Dee was in the 4th grade. A family field trip. We left early, had coffee and breakfast in an art gallery/cafe in Grants. Went to the Banderas volcano and ice cave, and Jim and Dee and Em climbed into a cave while I paced nervously above ground. We drove to Inscription Rock at El Morro, and I saw the writing of a soldier with my last name. He talked about war and God, signed in the 1600s, a reminder of conquest and reconquest.
Candy Kitchen was the last stop, down miles of dirt road on Navajo Country. We got out of the car at 3:30 or so to the sound of the wolves howling. We were the only people there, had two tour guides. When Jim met Raven, Jim walked along the fence and exchanged smells with Raven, who rubbed against him twice. Once one way, once the next.
The skinny guide with moppy hair got Raven to howl, and we all howled, a small herd. Except, are wolf groupings called “herds”?
The next day Jim went to Western Warehouse at the strip mall near our house. ‘Lo and behold, Raven was outside the front, ambassador day in Albuquerque. Raven’s handler couldn’t understand why Raven was straining against the leash, pulling to greet Jim, who was still too far away to see the wolf. When Jim finally saw Raven, the handler said, Does he know you? Jim smiled, Yes, we met yesterday.
Maybe it’s because the wolf moon is over. That’s why I didn’t write about moons. I wrote about wolves.
-related to posts, Practice – Wolf Moon – 10min and What Is Your Totem Animal?
hi yb
I really like this.
About praying (or ‘praying’) for what you want – what bothers me is always the thought: how do I know that what I want is what’s best for me?
You can toss a coin. But I noticed a funny thing recently – I think I can often guess which side the coin is going to come up. That’s kind of annoying, because it deprives me of one way of getting a verdict from the cosmos
Any other coin guessers out there?
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I guess I wouldn’t want to toss the coin asking, Am I going to find the chair that I want? It’s the self-determinism in me that makes me want to visualize that Yes, I’m going to get it. It’s the Catholic in me that makes me pray to get it. It’s also the Catholic in me that admonishes me for wasting prayer on wanting to get it.
But I do like to toss coins on matters for which I’m terribly conflicted. I haven’t had those conflicts lately, nothing for which I can’t figure out the answer without the coin toss.
I wonder what it means to be able to predict which way the coin is going to land. What does that say about you? Have you honed your power of divination? Or your power of determinism?
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ybonesy, Jim really is an Animal Whisperer, isn’t he. He has a way with them. I think I remember you writing about going to Wild Spirit to see the wolves. It seems like it was a very powerful and bonding trip for your family. I like to think there are many families out there who bond around Nature, the Wild, or what was once wild.
And Liz and I were so struck by the PBS show on the origins of dogs, how they all go back to the Wolf and her genes. Isn’t that mindboggling? Do you have any other trips like this planned? It seems like Ghost Ranch is also a summer event that really brings you in tune with Nature and your art. Also, quality time with your daughters.
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YB, first of all I hope you are feeling better!
I think the story of Jim & Raven is quite interesting. Animals do sense that bond with Animal Whisperers. My friend Liz has the same effect on animals. (all 105 lbs. of her) She just has that way about her. I have always been amazed at her abilities!
QM, I wish I had seen the PBS special you wrote about in your comments. One thing I notice with Abbey is the habit of turning around in circles prior to laying down & curling up on the floor. I have read that it is instinctive habit inherited from their ancestors. How wolves would turn around, tramping down an area in high grasses to avoid detection. D
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diddy, I’ll have to see when it’s on again. I think it was PBS and you might be able to still see it. I’ll ask Liz. BTW, that habit of tamping down before bedding down, our cats do that, too. And I think it goes way back to ancestral roots for them, too. I always find things like that so interesting. We’re a product of our environment, yes, but so much is linked to genes and the past.
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So Sorry to hear you’re under the weather yb! Hope that turns around real soon. It’s the worst season for these super bionic colds and flu. They should have to wear red tights and a cape so you know they are coming towards you!
Get Jim to get you some “Hot Tamales” or “Smarties” to cheer you up 😉
I don’t know much about Wolf Moons but chairs, yes. Sketch a picture of this chair taxing your brain. Now that I may be able to help with!
Feel Better 😉 H
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Visualize..then write it down. Do you have a special box to put the slip of paper in? Also, I light candles and say what I want…especially about situations or spiritual needs. Now I have people that call me to light candles for them..in fact, it was getting a little crazy. Of course, we know it is simply positive thinking so they were already putting the right energy out there when they asked for the candle!
My last dog was part red wolf and german sheperd. He was very shy and aloof…but he never forgot people’s energies no matter how brief the encounter or how much time went by…either good energy or bad. Sounds like Raven remembered Jim’s good energy.
I hope you are feeling much better.
Shall I light a candle for you. 🙂 hee, hee.
Thanks for sharing.
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I either have a mild flu or a horrendous cold. I had the flu shot, but I’m achey and warm all over. Ugh. My nose is drip drip dripping, and the stuff in my chest is getting started.
So just some quick touchpoints back to your comments:
QM – yes, Jim is the animal whisperer. So is Dee. Both are gifted that way. That *was* a great bonding trip for us. So close and simple, yet we probably wouldn’t have gone there had Dee not gotten the assignment. The PBS special, btw, sounds fascinating. Dogs are about the best thing there is. So loyal. Unconditional love. That’s what I think of when I think of my dogs.
thanks, diddy. My dogs do that turning thing like Abbey. What kind of dog is Abbey? I like her (?) name. I didn’t realize cats did the turn/tamp thing. Wow. I wonder why we don’t. ; – )
Heather, your memory is excellent!! I would love some Hot Tamales and Smarties. YUUUUM. I doubt they’d affect the fever, but they would improve my mood. OMG, also, I just a call from someone at a store that had MY chair. It had been out on approval to someone else. She took two days to live with it before deciding whether she wanted it. And guess what? She didn’t take it!! So, the visualizing worked.
suz, I light candles, too. I have one here by my bed. Our Lady of Guadalupe. She’s powerful.
Your red wolf dogs sounds like his wolfness was pretty strong in terms of his characteristics. The aloofness, and that energy sense. Must have been beautiful, too, that combination.
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