Note From Kendra

Dear Friends,

The question I get asked most frequently is: “How do I get in touch with angels?” And my answer is always the same: “Simply talk to them.”
 
We have such a hard time imagining this is possible because we lose our ability to let ourselves do just that – imagine and believe in the unseen.
 
Remember as a child what it was like to answer the question, with your eyes wide open, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” You were not there yet; you were not old enough yet; you couldn’t see it with your eyes; you let your childlike wonder merge with possibility, and nothing could get in your way of becoming president or whatever it was you dreamed to be. Then you grew up and complicated your ability to imagine and believe in the unseen. 
 
But oddly enough, imagination and belief are all you need to communicate with your angels.  With these, you are equipped to experience the Grace that comes from common, easy dialogue with your angels. The more you allow yourself to let go and remove the barrier belief of “I don’t hear or sense anything,” the more you’ll realize that the subtleness of a peaceful heart, the ability to laugh with ease, or your shoulders suddenly releasing tension are purely sweet kisses and hugs from your angels.
 
Why make it complicated?  Simply IMAGINE and BELIEVE that it is so.
 

Peace and with love,

Archetype

Trickster 
(Puck, Provacatuer)

Almost as far back as our earliest written records, the Trickster appears as a key figure in the human drama.  According to the great historian of religion Mircea Eliade, a Trickster is a human or animal character that plays dubious jokes or tricks, makes fun or is made fun of, and may be camouflaged as one of the demigods of a religious tradition. The serpent who tempts Eve in the Bible was based on similar characters in Sumerian and Babylonian mythology from the third millennium B.C., in which a serpent tricks humanity out of the gift of immortality and assumes it for itself. (Observing snakes shedding their skin led some to believe that the reptile was capable of renewing its life indefinitely.) In many cultures, though, especially among Native Americans, the Trickster can also be the Creator’s helper or messenger.
 
Like the Prostitute and Servant archetypes, the Trickster seems at first to have only negative connotations, but it can be a great ally in presenting you with alternatives to the straight and narrow path, to people and institutions who seek to hem you in through peer pressure and conformism. The best modern illustrations of this dual role show up in the film work of Jack Nicholson and Groucho Marx. Although the characters they portray are often unsavory or duplicitous on some level, their antics can also be liberating by transcending convention, stuffiness, and predictable behaviors.
 
Films: Barbara Stanwyck in The Lady Eve; Wilfred Bramble (Grandfather) in A Hard Day’s Night; Peter Cook in Bedazzled (Shadow); Michael Caine, Steve Martin, and Glenne Headley in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.
 
Drama: The Matchmaker by Thornton Wilder.
 
Fiction: The Witches of Eastwick by John Updike.
 
Religion/Myth: Kaulu (Polynesian Trickster god); Blue-Jay (among Pacific Northwest Indians, a Trickster who tries to outwit the other animals); Spider Woman (Trickster among the Dakota Indian tribes); Seth (ancient Egyptian god of chaos and adversity); Esu (West African god of passage and Trickster who guards the home of the gods).
 
Fairy Tales: Little Red Riding Hood, the Fox and the Grapes, the Gingerbread Man. 
 

Myss, Caroline.  Sacred Contracts: Awakening Your Divine Potential.  New York: Three Rivers Press, 2002, 2003. 418-419. Print.

Symbology

Hawk/Messenger
Contributed by Anne Barton.

Long before I understood the wisdom of animals in the way I do now, I saw a movie that instantly captured my heart.  It is called Ladyhawke. It stars Michelle Pfeifer, Rutger Hauer, and Matthew Broderick.  It is about a curse cast by an evil Bishop who is in love with Michelle Pfeifer, but she is in love with the Captain of the Guard (Hauer). So the Bishop decides if he can’t have her, no one can.  The curse destines them to be together, but never truly together. By day, she is a hawk and he a man; by night, she is a woman and he is a wolf.  They travel together, protecting their secret and experiencing the agonizing moment at dawn and dusk when they change form and catch a quick glimpse of each other as humans. Mathew Broderick happens upon these two in the story and becomes the guide to breaking the curse.  They call him Mouse.  I need to buy this movie right now and watch it again! I’m sure I’ll find all sorts of underlying symbology now!
 
As I was just beginning to write about Hawk, I suddenly remembered this movie I haven’t thought of for decades and realized how amazing it is that this story, about three powerful animals (and people), so struck me all those years ago. So I share this story only to point out again my belief that everything we experience, anything that connects us to our heart, has significance. Long before I found the wisdom of animals, I was already feeling drawn to their symbology in this and other movies. When we are open, these kinds of messages are everywhere. And this leads to Hawk, the most profound Messenger of all… 

•  Be aware of signals in your life.

•  Observe from a higher view; observe the obvious.

•  Accept others as they are.

•  Are emotions hindering your neutral position?

•  You're only as powerful as your capacity to perceive,
    receive, and use abilities.

•  Seek the truth.

When you hear the piercing cry of Hawk, as she soars overhead, it may be a sign that it’s time to take a broader view.  Unlike Mouse, who sees the details through a magnifying glass, Hawk reminds us that seeing with higher vision is sometimes what is necessary. Hawk medicine teaches us to be observant, to look at our surroundings. 
 
From Medicine Cards: “The Ancients recognized this magnificent bird of prey as a messenger bringing tidings to their Earth Walk from the world of the grandfathers and grandmothers who lived before them. If Hawk were to magically cry, it was a sign to beware or be aware. This could mark the coming of a warring tribe, the birth of a child, or the celebrations of counting coup.”   
 
The type of attention that is required when Hawk appears may vary:

• Is the power you need to capture a talent you have and are not using?

• Are solutions hard to find because you have lost the broader view?

• Or is the Great Spirit displaying a gift that you need only to receive?

• Have the colors of the morning inspired you to create?

• Or has the gloominess of a present situation left you earthbound, unable to hear the voice within? 

Observe the obvious in everything that you do. Life is sending you signals. The power of Hawk can imbue you with the power to overcome a currently stressful or difficult situation. The test is your ability to observe the nuances of power lurking nearby.
 
Hawk’s cry signals the need for the beholder to heighten awareness and receive a message. However, if you are holding on to emotional baggage, you may not be open to receive visions or messages. So take care to let go of past fears, beliefs, relationships, and material things that no longer serve you.

Pay attention!  You are only as powerful as your capacity to perceive, receive, and use your abilities.

 
To learn more about Animal Guide readings, as well as other readings I provide, visit http://tiny.cc/AnneBartonReadings.

Works Cited & Resources
Sams, Jamie, and David Carson.  Medicine Cards.  New York: St. Martin’s
     Press, 1988, 1999.  Print.