September 1 2025

 

The poster says:  “How do we change the world? One random act of kindness.” - Morgan Freeman as God in “Evan Almighty”.

As we move into September 2025, our country, Canada, faces many challenges as prices continue to rise for groceries and clothing - things that we consider basic for survival.  What I have been noticing are the random acts of kindness that folks in our area seem to be doing that ease the sense of strain and pressure around them. 

Acts of kindness including things like:

-mowing the neighbour’s lawn

-handing someone a dollar for a shopping cart

-dropping off food for someone who is ill

-walking a neighbour’s dog when the person has sprained an ankle

….and the list goes on.

My goal as fall settles in is to be aware and do something positive for someone each day.  

What is your goal for September?

Blessings,

Judy

Canada Goose Talks About Teams

 

Just this week, I watched a flock of geese congregate in the water.  It looked like they were having a meeting about when to leave to go south, and a discussion about whether they needed to start practice flights.  The geese reminded me of an encounter with geese about ten years ago.  So, I went and looked up what I had written back then.  Here is what I wrote….

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As I walked along the Bow River, a very large Canada goose came out of the water and stood on the edge of the snow shelf and chatted with me.  He and his flock did not go south.  He had lots to say.

• We stay because the weather is changing.  What we know is the best place to stay, rather than going south.  People here are kind and feed us.  This life is good.
• We work as a team to make sure that the flock has food.  We observe that humans are often kinder to us, the feathered people, than to each other.  We appreciate the kindness.
• Our team work also is about keeping everyone healthy.  We fly, we walk, and we swim.  We say that you need to get more active or you will be having many problems in your joints.
• Our food is always natural, even alive, some might say when we eat raw little moving things in the water.   We observe that people need to eat more raw food.  The processed food is not healthy for you.
• We see that you are now looking at bigger homes.  See how we live?  We live close to the earth and to the water.  Not only does it sustain us, it keeps us in balance.  We are not as affected by the energy changes as the humans.  Try to walk the earth more closely.  Do not live in high rises and big houses off the ground.  Live in touch with the earth.

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Blessings,

Judy

Wisdom Of Frog

“The frog does not drink up the pond in which he lives.” – Sioux Proverb

I heard this saying the other day, and it made me laugh!  Then, it made me feel sad.  I could see that the irony is that man has done exactly what the frog will not do.

Creator has given us – human beings – an amazing abundance of food, environments, mountains, valleys, lakes, rivers, seas, and oceans.  The beauty that we have around us, naturally, exceeds what one can create artificially, in my opinion.

I remember one of my teachers saying that God created animals to monitor and to teach humans.  The story went on that some of the animals quit working with man because they found him too difficult.  

I wonder whether the scarcity, the lack of abundance in many places, is Mother Nature saying that she is tired of all the “do-overs” that mankind seems to need?

What pond will you avoid drinking from?

Blessings,

Judy

Black Sea Salt

A picture of Black Sea Salt.  What is it?

The ingredients say 100% natural salt (lava salt from Hawaii) and activated charcoal powder. What is Activated Charcoal Powder? Simply burnt wood that has had all its oxygen removed. It is a non-toxic universal antidote that can be taken internally or applied topically. In powdered form, activated charcoal is one of nature’s most efficient adsorbents­a powerful aid in eliminating toxins, gas and many poisons from the human system. Provides relief for gas, diarrhea, swollen skin and more. So, not only is it a pretty salt with a nice crystalline crunch, it has, besides the sea salt, an ingredient that is healthy for your insides and outsides! –from /www.purezing.com 

In one of our group meditations, we were linked up with Mother Earth, and she advised us on what natural product we needed, from her, to help us achieve good health. Each of us received different information. 

In my meditation, I was guided to get Black Sea Salt.  I had no idea what it was, or why I would want to use it.  It took me several weeks to find any in a local store.  When I finally found it, I purchased it and began using it.  I have been using it now for a month.  

The black sea salt has trace minerals, plus charcoal, in it, that my body needs.  Since using it, my body does not crave salt in the same way that it did previously.  I find that I eat less food when I use the black sea salt.

Remember, that this is not medical advice.  This sharing is to provide information that you may not otherwise receive. Please check with a doctor before eating anything that is unknown or making changes to your diet.  And, do take what I say with a grain of salt!  However, physically, my nails are stronger and my hair is growing faster. 

Mother Earth knew what she was talking about! 

Blessings,

Judy

Black Bear - Give Us Our Space!

Today, a Black Bear mother popped in to say that she had a few words to say about humans and their view of Black Bear.  She said that humans see the black bear as angry, confrontational and destructive.  She feels sad about this.

Her view is that humans interfere too much in the lives of Black Bear, especially when she is with her cubs.  She will do anything to protect her cubs from over zealous humans.  And, these humans call her angry and destructive.

Black Bear says, “Give us our space.  Honour our role in creation and in the maintenance of the wild.  Treat us with respect and we will not become angry that you are in our space.  Give us time to raise our young, and then we will disappear to the higher country.  We must be at lower levels to show our little ones how to hunt and feed the food that is not higher.  It is what it is.”

Blessings,

Judy

Bobcat Wisdom

With a gray to brown coat, whiskered face, and black-tufted ears, the bobcat resembles the other species of the mid-sized Lynx genus. It is smaller than the Canada lynx, with which it shares parts of its range, but is about twice as large as the domestic cat. It has distinctive black bars on its forelegs and a black-tipped, stubby tail, from which it derives its name. – from Wikipedia

In my meditation this morning, the animal that knocked to come in was “Bobcat”.  She offered that she had some thoughts to share, and that her kind will be showing up as guides for more and more people.  She said that Bobcat has even been accepted as a “pet” in some homes, although, in her mind, the Bobcat moved in as a guardian.  
She says: 

• Look to us as guides about being adaptable to environment.  We inhabit wooded areas, as well as semi-desert, urban edge, forest edges, and swampland environments.  You think that you can survive in only one place.  Begin to experiment with being in different areas.
• Find a healthy food that agrees with you, and eat mostly that food.  Your body will become healthier, leaner, and better able to support you.  You will be immune to diseases that plague others that eat a multitude of different, unhealthy foods.
• Understand the time of day that provides you with the most energy.  Bobcat moves when our prey is active - from just before sunset to midnight, and again for about three hours around dawn.  If your work does not fit your sleep pattern, perhaps you should change your work, or, simply ask for a different schedule.
• Our coat is multi-coloured so that we camouflage easily in all terrain.  How do you camouflage yourself?

Blessings,

Judy

Pheasant’s Wisdom

Picture of ring-necked pheasant from http://talkaboutwildlife.ca

 It was winter, and I was walking with my dog along the Bow River.  We could hear Pheasant crowing, but could not see him.  Then, as we walked down a gravel path, he jumped up on an old log and crowed at us.  My dog was frantic to chase him.  Generally, Pheasant is not that happy to show himself.  This was a treat for me.  I wondered why he would jump out that way.  I pondered his behaviour.  

Pheasant had called attention to himself by both being loud and by jumping up on the log.  He was acknowledging his truth, and telling me to acknowledge my truth.  By example, Pheasant was showing that one needs to get up and speak what they know, regardless of who is around and regardless of what they may think.  This action is one of leadership, of having credentials that speak of “walking your talk”.

Pheasants have a difficult time during the winter gathering food and sheltering from the cold.  Their diet during summer consists of insects and green plants.  In winter, their diet includes waste grain, weed seeds and fruit of such locally-growing shrubs as rose and buckbrush. By standing up so tall, Pheasant was saying that one needs to take the good with the bad, and to learn and to grow from the lessons.  When things are not going well (and we had a cold winter and lots of snow this year in Calgary), it is okay to lay low, and to be cautious.  One must act with discernment as they walk through life.  

Pheasant’s final message is about environment.  Even though we could hear him, we could not see him.  This is the message of “learn how to blend with your environment and use that environment to your advantage”.  Then, when we did see him, he was up off the ground.  He says that one must be grounded to walk in the world, however, at times, one must go up higher to see the bigger picture. 

Blessings,

Judy

Pigeon Speaks

Picture of  pigeon in flight from Wikipedia.

This morning, as my niece and I were sitting at the table doing our individual homework, a soft cooing sound began.  It seemed to come from the roof above where we were working.  It got louder and louder, the point that my niece had to go and see what was going on.

It was then that I realized that I had been asking the question, where our new home was to be.  Pigeon was speaking, and answering the question.  She says,

Humans, like pigeons, do have a homing instinct that will take them across the miles to the absolutely best place for the person to be.  If you are still looking for where home is, then you are not home.  There is the home on this Earth, and the home that our soul dwells within, and they are different in what nourishment they provide to our bodies and our spirit.  Pigeon has moved all over the world to come to different places to find an adequate food supply.  Humans, too, must find places where they can get a full supply of the food that they require, and they must find a place with water enough for them to drink.  

Food, for all of us, comes from the ground.  It is time to look to the ground for your food.  We do not understand how those of you that live higher than the trees in your big houses can find adequate food.  It is not natural to live there, where food does not exist.  This is a time to become natural.  You must tell everyone that this is so. And, everyone must find their family, find ways to feed together, and to become as one flock.  In this way will there be support.

 Many blessings,

Judy

Elk Visits People

These pictures came from a friend who thought these pictures were from Canmore, Alberta.  It is not every day that one gets an elk in their front yard!  As I looked at the pictures, I realized that these elk were supporting a theme amongst the animals that I commented upon in other blogs. That theme is that the animals are no longer keeping their distance from man – they are coming into the man space, and making themselves comfortable.  Many believe that Elk are majestic. I call them spirit animals.

Our Ancestors believed that when the animals started acting atypical that great changes were upon them.  Generally, the changes were physical ones such as earthquakes, deviant weather, or both.  The animals would move out of the wilderness to be near to people and to have a sense of calmness.  As protectors of mankind, they also want to be near people to give them a warning if something big is going to happen.

Elk says, “Humankind puts order to their world – the trimmed lawns, the sculpted trees, and the abundance of flowers.  This is a contrast to the wildness of the forest that we live in.  We wonder why the grass is cut when so many of us need to eat much grass to keep our life force flowing.  We are grateful, too, that we no longer need to offer ourselves for food, as we did many lifetimes ago.  The Shaman would call to us to let us know that The People were hungry.  We responded.  Now, it is time for you to feed us.  This is the circle of life!

Blessings,

Judy

Fox Haven

The Fox was looking around the area as I finished my meditation.  He stood still, and then spoke.  His comments are appropriate for all of us.

• When the weather changes, or when danger seems to come out of no where, it is good to have a haven to retreat to.  Foxes create a “fox haven” that other foxes can access if they are in danger.  We telegraph the site to those foxes in the area.
• A haven should have a good supply of food.  We foxes look for havens in valleys that are not easily accessible by man.  Here, the small animals, our food, are abundant and understand the cycle of life.  They are in service to those higher in the food chain.
• Water is going to be in short supply.  We foxes can tell because the streams that were forever are drying up.  We say that the haven must have a spring fed water source that cannot be stopped by someone (beaver) damming the stream up water.
• Bring forth only one or two young when you are in the haven.  If you bring in a litter, then the abundance will dry up.  It is written thusly.

Blessings,

Judy

Blue Jay On Balance

In the balance between all living things, Blue Jay has wisdom to share with mankind.  Blue Jay will lie low to see where food is and then see what she might like.  She then will go and pick up a pine cone, fly it to the stash of food, and leave it as she picks up the sunflower seeds that she is really after.  In her mind, a seed for a seed.  The quantity, size, or effort involved, do not weigh into the equation of “this for that”.

Blue Jay says that if humans were more thoughtful about ensuring that something was left for something that was taken, then the karma for humans would be quite reduced.  Since man does not understand balance, and seems to find joy in taking something for nothing, the consequences come in a larger size and last longer.  These might be forest fires where trees have been taken by a company where no exchange was made.  Or, it might be flooding where fishing without replenishment takes place.

The idea that we need to balance with Nature, when we walk out in Nature, or take from Nature, was a common theme in the lives of our Ancestors.  The last four centuries of people in the western world moved away from this.  It is time to bring the balance back.

Blessings, 

Judy

Crab Motion

 

Sometimes, in my meditation, I have the most unusual interactions with animals.  This post is about Crab and comes from a meditation journal from several years ago.

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Crabs typically walk sideways (a behaviour which gives us the word crabwise). This is because of the articulation of the legs which makes a sidelong gait more efficient. – Wikipedia

Crab also moves forward and backward.  Crab says that motion, regardless of the direction, is still motion.  Motion carries you as you work through your purpose.  Purpose is simply taking action, doing what you know you need to do without the prompting or without following other’s expectations.  

When you are in motion, you are searching.  Although you may believe that you know the destination, along the way, the destination may change.  Thus, you are ever watching for the signs that move you along.  

Crab is always looking for food and for safety.  She tells you that along the journey that you are taking, life will be better if you remember to care for yourself, as part of safety, and that eating the foods that suit your body will also ensure your safety and health.  Specialists and doctors all have different ideas of what the best foods are.  You can tell what foods best serve you by simply holding them to your heart and hearing/feeling/knowing or seeing that the food suits you, or not.

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Blessings,

Judy

Okapi Is A Spirit Animal

 

This blog comes from my journal from years ago.  

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“These are the last surviving relatives of giraffe. These elusive animals look more like a zebra than a giraffe. They are found in the Democratic Republic of Congo. These herbivores have red-brown coat of fur. They have white stripes on their legs. These animals are diurnal and forage through the forest searching for food. These animals are highly alert and will run away when they hear a human approaching. They are so secretive that they were not not known to the world till the 1900s. ~ Wikipedia

I was wondering what I would be writing about when the funniest thought popped into my head.

“Come and join me in the garden.”

I closed my eyes, and moved into the greenery and trees.

Okapi continued to graze, and occasionally, she would look at me.  She told me that life will catch you if you let it.  

“The trick is to move away from those who wish to contain or to confine you.  Life is much better when you are free.  Freedom means different things to different beings.  Freedom is living how you wish to be and harming none.  We Okapi harm none but the grass and trees. In return, we fertilize them so they may grow strong.  

What is it that you nourish and protect?  What is it that restricts you?  Is it self imposed?  Can you be free?”

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Blessings,

Judy

Peregrine Falcon - Spirit Animal

 

Last night, just after supper, we had quite the surprise!  A large peregrine falcon flew down into the yard, and sat on the fence.  After about five minutes, he took off, and flew through the trees.

I had a very busy day, and I realized that Falcon was coming in with a message for me.  The message, however, is applicable for anyone who is making changes, and who sometimes feels like they are alone in the forest.

• Move when you need to find new territory or when the weather becomes unbearable and food is scarce.   Humans seem to think that they are rooted to one spot.  Falcon moves all over the world.
• Live along mountain ranges, with a valley below, and lots of fresh water.  You will always have food.
• When you see that you have the jump on your prey, take advantage of the element of surprise and do what you need to do.
• Do not haphazardly destroy the food supply or even your enemies.  At some point, you may need the enemy to give assistance.
• The element of air is very healing.  It carries light, and, although invisible, it can cushion you in times of falling.  Learn to work with the air.

May Falcon guide you when you need it to be there.

Blessings,

Judy

Blue Jay Says To Feel The Weather

 

Blue Jay popped into our yard today, and foraged around for some seeds, and picked at some food that the dog left. He then popped up on a log, and started to chat.

He said that the signs are all pointing to an early winter, and that the food would be scarce for the birds and animals this winter. 

I asked him how he knew.

He says that the birds and the animals can feel the weather and how it is shifting.  He said to watch some of the birds like the Artic Tern and the Robins.  They are heading south already, and that is early for them.

The squirrels, he says, are madly stashing food.  He says that the Blue Jays try to keep an eye on where they put the food because they can raid it if they get too hungry. 

Blue Jay went on to say that the weather would fluctuate drastically, and that there would be extreme cold and snow, and then warm weather would hit.  This will cause melting and freezing that will make getting food on the ground very difficult because there will be a coat of ice.

Blue Jay asked me what we were going to do to prepare for the winter.  I said that we would harvest our garden, and get some farmer market veggies to store, and that we would get our snow blower checked over.  We also got our first load of wood, and hoped to get another load before the end of September.

Blue Jay said that we were doing well, and flew away.

Many blessings,

Judy

Connecting with Meerkat

 Meerkat picture from www.irishviews.com

Is the third time the charm?  I am about to find out as I try again to connect with Meerkat to receive her message.

Meerkat pops up beside me and snuggles in.  She seems to be more comfortable with me than vice versa.  I find her quite comforting.  She sighs, and then begins to speak.

“We are so much like you humans and yet you know very little about us.  I find that rather disturbing.  We have many of your traits – politics, breeding practices, pup and elder care, and survival tactics.  We originally came up from the depths of the Earth.  We are some of the life forms that went underground when there were difficulties in the air and ground, difficulties that have re-emerged.  We have learned to burrow underground and to build safe nests deep enough to avoid having to be poisoned by the air. 

As the food above us died, we moved downward in search of food that we could eat.  We found that others had also moved downward.  We became hunter and prey.  We learned the value of cooperation.  We learned to be respectful of our resources and therefore to adjust our numbers to the food that could support us.  

We watch you now and wonder why you fight against the obvious laws of nature.  We wonder why you are destroying that which gives you life.  There is nothing that you can produce with all of your machines that is as wonderful as what She Who Feeds Us All can provide.  

We have black masks because our eyes are still sensitive to the light.  We find the blackness dulls the glare of the Sun. It seems however, that humans find our mask fearful.  We are part of the issue of fear or darkness that humans have to deal with.  We are therefore, part of your path – just as you are part of our path.  The easiest strategy to cope with fear is to meet it head on, much as we do.  We wish you well.

Blessings,

Judy

Leopard Guides Me

Leopard is back this morning, sitting in my meditation room. I feel comfortable with her, and I wonder if she is replacing another of my Spirit Animals.  “No,” she quips, “I am just joining your zoo!”

 

                                        Picture from Wikipedia

While I thought this was an odd thing for her to say, I guess it did make sense.  I seem to always have a lot of spirit animals around me.  In fact, when I drew a card from the Animal Tarot deck the other day, the card that came up was “The World” which literally means all the animals in the world. I love them all!

Leopard then stepped forward and said that she would be working with me. She reminded me that often, in my “Word Of The Day” meditation, I receive the word “Clarity”. She told me that one of the gifts of Leopard is the ability to see clearly – they have keen eyesight, and can clearly for a mile. She said that being up in a tree also allows them to see great distances clearly, and to map out what approach they might take to kill an animal that looks like the next dinner.

Leopard told me to think about how easily we had connected.  She says that I have good intuitive abilities and that I need to use them even more then I think I already do.  She says this time of change is going to bring great challenges that will require instinct and intuitiveness to get through.  Leopard showed me walking in a woods/forest and foraging for food.  

One of the things about Leopard is that even though they like their solitude, they do also like the tactile.  Touch is important for Leopard and she said that it is important for me, and that when ever I could, I should touch people.  Touch is a way of connecting and of protecting. 

I thanked Leopard for her teachings, and she padded off.

Blessings,

Judy

Buffalo Talks of Circles

Buffalo speaks….

I come to you at this time because it is clear that the time for circles is here.  There are beginnings and endings, and in between.  The Buffalo has walked this Earth a long time.  Buffalo gave freely of itself to keep the two legged beings alive.  It is Buffalo who kept the two-leggeds in food and clothing, and kept them alive for many, many cycles of life. 

Now the time is that the Buffalo are fading.  We are kept in tight spaces.  We do not roam as we did.  We have no access to sacred circles.  All over the plains and the woods that we roam are sacred circles that allow us to energize and be in touch with what the two-leggeds are about.  We no longer feel the circles like we did.  It seems the Buffalo has come to the end of its circle as a provider and now needs to be supported.  Such is the way of circles.

Many blessings,

Judy

Trout Splashes Around

Picture from Wikipedia

I am fortunate because I live close to a provincial park and close to the Bow River.  The Bow is world wide known as a great place to catch trout.   The other day, I was out walking with a friend and we watched for trout in the shallows.  We did not see any.  Later, when I was doing my meditation, the following came up.

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Rainbow trout swims into your life if you are feeling over run by emotions.  Right now, with all of the Earth energy moving around and realigning, we are feeling emotional and often slightly depressed.  

Trout tells us that life is good, and it is about swimming against the current to stay alive and keep the species going.  Trout goes on to say:

• Do something that allows you to come up into the sunlight every day.  Trout catches flies.
• Jumping loosens all of the tension in your body.  This is why you often see Trout jump at the end of the day.  When tension leaves your body, sleep happens more easily.
• When you are looking for food, find a place that you can find your food (prey), easily!  Trout will sink to the mud in water that is calmer, and wait for the current to carry food to Trout.  You do not need to hunt and make food gathering hard work that burns your energy.  Look at what you can do to make this process easier.
• Highs and lows are normal in life.  Everyone is looking for balance – the balance is to allow both, and not stay in one place or the other.  Two highs balance out two lows.  The warmth balances the coolness.  We all need both.

Many blessings,

Judy

“Heads Up”, Says Giraffe

I know that an animal wants to talk to me and give me a message when a picture pops up of it, over and over.  This has been happening with Giraffe.  I will open a magazine, and there will be a picture of a Giraffe.  Or, I will open an email slideshow, and the first or second picture will be a giraffe.

I finally slowed down and asked Giraffe what it wanted to tell me.  She asked me to close my eyes, and imagine that I was in Africa.  She then asked me to open my eyes and see the scrubby bushes and grasses that give lions and cheetahs something to hide behind.  

Then she said,

“Life is a lot like the scrubby bushes that cover the savannahs in my world.  We often get so used to seeing the bumps and the valleys, that we soon ignore them.  In the beginning, we do watch them so that we don’t trip or stumble.  We make sure that we are not taken by surprise by predators.  

Then suddenly, we seem to forget about these parts of the environment.  We look beyond them, and forget that at some point, we must deal with them.  They are like the details in life that we must take care of – car payments, mortgages, food, shelter – details that are taken for granted, and therefore not treated with the attention, and perhaps respect that they require.  Soon they catch up with us.

Giraffes know that at all times, especially with the young about, that we must keep our heads up.  We must look beyond the immediate, to the distance to see what is coming.  You, too, need to do that!”

I have been paying attention to what is around me and ahead of me.

Blessings,

Judy