Gypsy folklore tells Robin brings Good Luck!

Seeing Robins means it is finally Spring! 

Warm breeze with the scent of flowers in the air. Traditionally, seeing a robin means good luck. Gypsy folklore tells us that it brings good luck to see the first robin of spring. Not only is the robin a promise of new beginnings with the new cycle of spring in our midst, it carries symbolic meanings of cheer, joviality and light-heartedness. The robin's song tells the tale of "Live, love, laugh and be happy" and that is precisely what the symbolic meaning of the red robin tells us.

If one robin foretells good fortune, what does two bring? This morning I took my coffee out onto the front porch to revel in the early mist, watching the purple haze gradually change to burnt umber and fade as the day began. As I took in the Vermont mountains from my parents house at the base of  Killington I saw one lovely robin in a tree. Another robin darted from the telephone wire to the sidewalk and began walking down the sidewalk toward us. I was pretty sure he was after the robin in the tree, but before I could ask him, she flew from the tree to another half way down the street. The dance of love was on. Soon they both disappeared from my line of sight behind the neighbor's bushes.

Bird song has returned to the skies, little buds on trees are ready to burst open, and the spring flowers are poised for blooming! Robins are sure to bring luck as they are to be a harbinger that warm weather and all that implies are surely on the way...

"Native American Plains' tribes attributed the return of the sun (inception of spring) with the red robin too. Indeed, many Native American beliefs attributed solar symbolic meaning to the red robin because its rosy red chest is symbolic of the dawning sun. Also, its bright yellow beak is symbolic of sun rays lighting the earth with hope. Omaha tribes believed the sun rose and set on the wings of the robin.

The robin's bright yellow beak is also symbolic of sun rays to the Native American. Native Americans attributed their beak color with being mindful of the spoken word. The robin was a sign to only present the highest truth when speaking.

Further, Iroquois and Shoshone tribe lore indicated the white ring around the red robin's eye was symbolic of prophetic vision, clarity, and great wisdom. The robin would be called upon during ceremonies when clear understanding was needed, and quality judgments needed to be made

The robin brings a fresh new perspective to situations that are otherwise foggy and unclear. Try calling on robin energy for clarity when your judgment is clouded or when you need light shed on an issue.

The red robin reminds us it's time to shake the sleepiness out of our head (both figuratively and literally), get alert, get moving, and start enjoying life! Enjoy the bright road ahead because it's only going to get brighter..."

For more info, visit Animal Totem- Robin.

Phlegm

Cleansing is a Natural Process of Both the Earth and the Body

There is a season in Vermont we call Mud. The end of winter when dirty snowbanks still line the roads and new flowers are eagerly poking up from the ground, sometimes only to be killed by a late frost or a hungry beaver. Things are still dead and brown. In many cases, because of the wildly fluctuating weather conditions, sickness overtakes even the heartiest of yogis.

Somewhere between the sunny flashes of warmth and the last minute snowstorms, the virus I had been fighting off from Montreal to Florida and back again overtook me. Possibly the stressful conditions brought on by the movement of new directions coupled with unexpected events and newly acquired family proximity lowered my natural immunity. Whatever the reason, I was feverish and in a state of delerium for days.

Resistance to change found me like a small naked child stranded on a desert island, staring into the approaching tsunami of challenging new events seemed overwhelming. Homeostasis is the body's attempt at balance, a natural equilibrium.Suddenly faced with gaining and then losing everything important in life within only a few months of each climactic event, my body, which had become accostomed to the last long plateau was thrown into an abyss. I faced it head on.

The season of spring evolves and breathes new life into the crevices where the winter has filled and nourished fertile soil. The fermented residue must somehow join the compost pile, the toxins must be pushed out. My body is trying to eject the poisons from my system as well. The white knights of my blood cells chasing the vile invaders out. They are hiding in the moat, waiting for the dragon to burn them out, breathing fiery coughing phlegm. Forceful pranayama.

Final days of mud are drawing to a close. Feeling the vital blessing of mother nature restore us, even on the Northern shores of the East Coast, to abundant health again. I know this phlegmatic seasonal lull is drawing short. The verdant bloom of spring is already budding.