Stalking Crows
Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 10:10 AM “Wherever crows are, there is magic. They are symbols of creation and spiritual strength. They remind us to look for opportunities to create and manifest the magic of life. They are messengers calling to us about the creation and magic that is alive within our world everyday and available to us.” Ted Andrews
While outwardly there has been silence at Diamonds, inwardly and physically the coffers have been full – abundant even. It’s hard to even know where to begin. For those who are first time readers, you may find this a little outside the boundaries of your own personal comfort. Longtime and loyal followers, I hope will remember the groundedness and magic that is Me, Lucy ☺.
Crows have been stalking me. No kidding. You may recall a few weeks ago, the crow who swooped down and whacked me on the shoulder – twice! – while I was strolling home from yoga enjoying my morning latte. The significance of the event was easily dismissed as a protective mother crow whose hatchlings I was evidently threatening. Fair enough and most likely true. But why me? Why then? It’s never happened before and believe me I live around LOTS of crows.
Over the past week or so, crow feathers have been dropping in my path. Again, not so unusual perhaps, but they literally have been found directly between my back door and my car – three times. Like the whacking on the shoulder, to my recollection this has never happened before.
Before continuing, I probably should add here that only days before the first crow encounter, while preparing for a presentation on the Archetypes, I took a quiz designed to rate how the major archetypes show up in my personality. My number 1 score (by a landslide)... The Magician. So… you know the vestiges of my traditional, fundamental Christian upbringing start to squirm here. Nevertheless as I read about this archetype, I felt as though I were reading my own diaries. Still… I tried to dismiss the “coincidences,” until this morning when I began to journal.
A crow followed me yesterday. I swear it did. Heading out for my morning walk/jog, she started squawking at me and I thought there might be a repeat of the shoulder whacking. I tried to ignore her, but she followed me along the telephone wire above my head.
“Magic,” she cawed.
“You can’t run from it. I know. I know,” she cried.
“I see you.”
Every 20 feet or so she moved to keep up my pace for almost a block.
“Magic. You are magic.”
So, have I totally lost it this time? No. I don’t think so. This morning during my quiet time, I felt the magic as Pavarotti washed over me. I lit candles for the earth and wept tears for the gulf tragedy. Raising my arms, I spread them toward the southeast. Energy flowed from my body and as I offered the earth my condolences, I envisioned clarity and peace. Faces flowed through my mind and moments of presence to all of creation surfaced.
“Magic. Magic,” the crow cawed. “Presence is magic.”
My life is turning into one ongoing practice of presence to self – food – earth – others. While there is much more to this story, today I shall end with the following quote and ask: Where is the magic in your life? Does it come through presence? Can you allow yourself to be open to that which makes no objective sense? Will you allow yourself to experience the magic of the sacred?
“To the Magician, the sacred is not seen as above us, judging us, but as immanent in ourselves, nature, society, the earth, the cosmos.” Carol S. Pearson
photo - two crows by katherine treffinger
This piece of art hangs in my living room and was purchased for my husband on Father's Day 2009.
Archetypes, Presence, Spirituality
Reader Comments (15)
I love love love this post!!!
Crows are some of my very favorite creatures, and I too have been blessed by their magic. You have definitely not "totally lost it" - you've been found by magic, found out as a magician. So wonderful!
A little food for thought to savor - Aleister Crowley defined magic as "change that occurs in conformity with will." Whatever else Crowley might have been, I think that's a definition worth pondering.
Crows are very cool birds.
This is so fascinating--the persistence of the message! And I am very pro-magic, and very pro opening myself up to unexplainable happenings. We should never be frightened by this--we need only relax, ask and then listen. I LOVE this!!
I desperately needed this post. I have always had a kind of love/hate relationship with crows. And our grounds are full of them, maybe their noisey cawing is trying to awaken me to the magic you speak of for it was so present in my childhood, and I believe a little hidden in my adult life. I have no difficulty with magic -- in fact I think I am going to go out into this summer heat right now and find a crow: and I dearly, dearly love these words of yours: "While outwardly there has been silence at Diamonds, inwardly and physically the coffers have been full – abundant even" Thanks for the reminder that I do not have to post to grow.
Suggest you wear helmet when outdoors.
Also, consider bread crumbs and fresh water in a bird bath as peace offering.
Polli - "found by magic" I love it! And the Crowley quote resonates for sure. I feel quite sated right now. Thank you.
Maureen - that may be an understatement. ;)
Karen - relax, ask and listen - sounds like a perfect mantra to me. Perhaps you'd like to borrow it :)
Macrina - it's always a delight to see you here and a wonderful affirmation for my crow encounters:) I, too, have a love/hate relationship with them. I think it goes back to my first recollection of them 21 years ago when my son was an infant. We were in a new house in a new city (Seattle) and a murder of crows threw 24/7 parties outside my bedroom window, usually becoming most raucous as I was drifting into sleep-deprived slumber. As I write, I realize perhaps they were trying to let me know what a magical bundle I had just given birth to?
CP - not bad suggestions! I occasionally feel like Tippi Hedren in "The Birds".
I enjoyed this post tremendously - and I'm interested in this quiz. Is there an online version?
“Magic. Magic,” the crow cawed. “Presence is magic.”
Yes, presence is magic...thank you crow, thank you for the caw.
The energy coming from your post today gives an immediate sense in my soul of awareness. Thank you.
jennifer - it's so funny that the posts i almost hesitate to put out there, often have the most resonance with others. in this case, the crows would not be silenced. persistent magicians, they are!!
don't know about online quiz, but i took mine from the book "awakening the heroes within" by carol s. pearson
let me know what you discover!! xoxo
thank you for the reference. :) And yes...why do we hesitate with ourselves and words...I do this all the time.
hey jennifer - wish you didn't live on the other side of the country. i think we could have some fabulous conversations!!! let me know if you ever make it to the pacific northwest!! hope you have a grand day.
I will LUCY! I might just have to do it on purpose to see all my great friends in the west. :)
Well, I was glad to see at least one member of this family chime in on this post....I'm a little late but I do love it and find it, in the words of a friend - "Wow, isn't that fascinating?!" My response is - yeah, totally!!
xoxoxox
Ah, lucy, you have a crow master talking to you. I have hawks. There are too many hawks these days, or so farmers say.
All I know is that the other day, after lunch, as I was working in the kitchen while the rest of the family was still at the table in the garden, I heard birds talking in the sky. And the sound was beautiful.
I came back out and pointed out the sound to the family. We looked up and seven or eight hawks were circling above in the sky, one definitely talking. Talking a language I could not understand, but I felt so privileged to hear it.
It is a far cry from your crow story, but now when I hear the hawk speak in that beautiful voice I feel a happy connection to it.
:-)))))