If you’ve been around for any number of years, you know that each year I call in an animal and a word that will help me navigate the new Gregorian year. While I’ve been teaching my process in a course called New Witch, Who Dis for a couple of years, I’m still always profoundly shocked to see what Animal and Word arrive for me! This year may, in fact, have shocked me the most.
Squirrel…Seriously?!
Last year it was Turtle and Turtle had shown up during the year that I worked with Spider. Turtle was easy to become aware of! This year it took me almost until late October to really figure out Squirrel. And Squirrel was going to continue to show up until I noticed.
It managed to grab my attention on a trip to New Orleans when someone in our retreat group actually purchased a small stuffed animal squirrel.
It was a joke…at least in the beginning! Sometimes I am not always super focused and I seem to be all over the place even on good days. However, sitting at that table with all of these amazing women, I recognized Squirrel had actually been grabbing my attention, or at least trying since April of last year!
Where I live there is an albino squirrel living in a yard I drove by frequently. After the first time I saw her, I always looked for her!
Curious Encounters
I also began to reflect on the challenging time I had keeping squirrels off of my security cameras at home. I also remembered that they would all screech and cry out in my neighborhood when they were warning others of danger. They were loud!
When I reviewed security footage, I would notice various four-legged creatures creeping about. Sometimes a cat, a fox, a dog…but I didn’t notice them.
I noticed the sounds the squirrels would make.
Talk about Tension
My word of the year is not tension, although it would be fitting if it were!
The word that came through is ‘ease’. I long for it. I long for more of it. I long for things that are more simple than difficult. The complications of a fast paced life swirl around me often, and I just want to catch my breath.
In looking to navigate forward in 2024 utilizing guidance from my animal and my word, the tension seemed to be entirely too great in my mind!
How am I to have a squirrel running around getting things done, moving fast, this way and that way, and still somehow utilize ease? These two seem to be at odds with each other or completely incongruent. I began to feel a deep tension and so the journey begins!
What about you? What themes have presented themselves? Are you experiencing tension or cohesion? I’d love to hear from you!
A Candle & A Key,
Kaycee
You can now connect with Kaycee and Revelations of a Witch on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
You can also find additional offerings, lessons, and access to the private community over at Dark Goddess Collective!
Feature Image Credit: Pixabay