- Weekly Astrological Forecast for May 12 through May 18, 2025Continue reading →
May 12 through May 18, 2025
The weekend opens with a powerful Scorpio full Moon, bringing our greatest wishes to the surface. The theme of this moon is to “dream the impossible dream” so let’s allow our emotions and ideals to run wild! The Moon moves into Sagittarius on Tuesday, surrounding us with a light-hearted and playful mood for the next two days. In fact, the only two days we’ll be highly productive tend to be Thursday and Friday under a diligent Capricorn Moon, so those are the days we can plan to be busy bees! Our weekend will unfold under an Aquarius Moon, meaning whatever we have planned will likely change at a moment’s notice. We’ll need to practice flexibility, trust in blocks and delays, and be willing to alter our schedules at a moment's notice. No worries though, as it’s all designed to bring a fuller and more adventurous tone to our weekend!
- Four Ways Your Energy Animal Can Appear to YouContinue reading →
Four Ways Your Energy Animal Can Appear to You, by Melissa Alvarez
(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)
Animals. We share our world with them, we have them as pets, and they can be a source of comfort and love. Animals can also be spiritual guides for us during times of need or to help us grow on our spiritual path. I call them energy animals because I work with energy and animal frequency, but they're also known as totems, spirit animals, power animals, familiars, and animal spirit guides. All of these terms describe animals that guide, teach, and connect with you in order to deliver messages from the spiritual realm that you need to know at specific points in your life and on your path. Some appear for a short time, others are with us for a lifetime.
When an animal has a message for you, the energy surrounding the animal will feel different. It may feel as if the animal is staring you down, or you just intuitively know that there's something unusual about the bird that keeps perching in trees near you, making you notice it. The animal will not give up until it gets your attention and delivers the information. If you're not paying attention, things will start to happen that captures your awareness and makes you take notice. Your animal encounters may happen more often and with more intensity until finally you say, "What is going on?" That's when you'll be open to receiving the message that the animal is trying to deliver.
I'll give you an example. When I was writing Animal Frequency, there were so many animals showing up at my farm that every day I expected to see a new one and I usually did. It was also foaling season, and for ten days I was dealing with a mare who had retained part of her placenta after foaling out, which is life-threatening and meant I was up every two to four hours throughout the night giving her three to four antibiotic injections at a time to try to save her life in conjunction with her veterinary care. Being severely sleep deprived, I stopped paying attention to the animals showing up and didn't get much written during that time. Then one day shortly after the mare was over the incident I found myself bombarded with dragonflies. I walked out to the barn and there was one flying along beside me. While I did my work I'd find them sitting on the pitchfork handle or on the bags of shavings or they'd land on my arms. I acknowledged them and thanked them for the appearance but I was so tired I didn't think past that. Then I walked out into the yard by the barn and was swarmed with dragonflies all around me. There must have been fifty or sixty of them flying into the wind all around me. They've done this before in this spot but none had ever landed on me, and this time I had four land on me at once and they seemed to be looking right at me. Then when I went on an errand I was sitting at a stoplight and looked over and there was a tiny baby dragonfly sitting on my window starting at me. As soon as I got home I looked at my Animal Frequency manuscript to see what I'd written about the dragonfly. The line that stood out to me was, "Dragonfly means you need to add lightness to your life. Don't get bogged down in the heaviness of the world but be the light, airy being that shines in a multitude of colors." I had been bogged down in heaviness due to the issues with the mare and lack of sleep. I was still worrying about her even though the crisis had passed. Dragonfly helped me see that I needed to let it go so that I could get back to the lightness of being that I try to keep my frequency at. Once I did, everything flowed easily again.
By knowing some of the different ways that animals can try to capture your attention, you'll become more aware of their appearances. They can show up in any way that they believe will make you notice them, so this list is just a mere sampling. Here are four of the most common ways that animals can appear to you when they have a message to deliver.
- Media
With more and more people participating in social media, you're sure to see animals in videos, memes, advertising, news, and in online documentaries. When these animal appearances start repeating or standing out then that means there's a message. Seeing a cute lion cub video and then seeing two more lions online can be a sign that they're trying to get a message to you. Now, let's say you're driving to an appointment and see a lion on a billboard, and as you drive past the local zoo you notice a new advertisement for the lion exhibit, and the radio announcer is talking about a show about lions that he saw over the weekend. Once you get to your appointment you open up a magazine while you wait and there's a huge lion staring back at you. Later at home, you turn on the television and hear a lion's roar. By now you have probably realized that lion has a message for you. Take some time to sit quietly and ask lion what its message is and then trust in the first thoughts you receive. - Dreams
When your spirit guides have a hard time reaching you when you're awake, they often appear to you in your dreams. It's the same with your energy animals. In dreams you're more open to receive their messages as long as you can remember the dream. They will return to your dreams multiple times if you forget it. When you see an energy animal in your dream notice what kind of animal it is. What is it doing in your dream? Is it acting as it normally would in real life, or is it doing something that it could never do in real life—like speaking actual words? If it is speaking words, then it's delivering its message the easiest way it knows how—in your native language. Try hard to remember what it said. Also look at the environment of the dream. Is the animal out of place or in its natural habitat? This can all be part of the message. If you dream of a hippo swinging on a swing set maybe it is trying to tell you that your life is out of balance and you need to have more fun. How are you interacting or reacting to the animal? This is part of the message too. - Spoken Word
Sometimes, when you're not paying attention to the animal, the animal will enlist the help of others to get your attention. You may have noticed those lions and they've piqued your interest, but not enough for you to start looking up what they mean or to meditate to ask what the message is. So now your co-worker starts talking about going to the zoo and how wonderful the new lion exhibit is. She might tell you about how they changed the enclosure or that the lioness had cubs. Then your neighbor tells you about a dream she had that featured a lion. Or your significant other tells you about a new project at work that is featuring a lion. After several people have told you their lion stories, now you're inspired to find out exactly what message lion has for you. - In the Flesh
Many times you'll notice animals because they simply show up in person to get your attention. There have been many times when a hawk, snake, alligator, or other animal has shown up on my farm and just stared me down. I believe that the "stare down" is one of their favorite ways to get your attention. I mean, how can you possibly ignore that? Once I had a big red-tailed hawk perch right on the fence and watch me clean a paddock. I kept looking over at him and just got stared at. When I moved to another paddock, the hawk flew over to a low tree branch and stared me down again. By the time I got to the round pen, where it perched on the panel about four feet away from me, I just stopped what I was doing, stared back at him and intuitively opened my energy to its message. Once I'd received it, the hawk made a loud screech and flew away. So when you see an animal in the flesh that seems to be looking at you or that you intuitively feel like there's something special or unusual about the animal, pay attention to it. Take a few moments to commune with it so that you can discover what it needs to tell you.
Connecting with your energy animal can help you in many different ways. It can even be life changing. If you're not paying attention, energy animals can and will use all of these ways at the same time to inundate you with their presence so you pay attention and start to learn more about the animal. Getting your attention is often the hardest part. Once their message is delivered, the animal usually disappears from your life, but you'll probably always remember the message.
I encourage you to take time to open your heart, mind, and intuition to the animals that appear in your life. Connect with them through animal frequency to experience the Divine with them and within yourself.
Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2017. All rights reserved.
- Media
- Double Vision: Dreams of FlyingContinue reading →
Throughout my almost 45 years, I have had dreams in which I can fly. I know these are normal for most people, but the experiences I have don't quite match the experiences I've heard about from others. I can clearly remember being taught how to fly as a child INSIDE my home. I remember how I would
push off
from the corner and how excited and happy I was to be floating! I don't know who was teaching me. I have dreams that I'm either flying or that I'm somewhere I know isn't this realm. I'm certain I'm never alone during these times, but I don't recall names or faces of anyone. During one particularly troubling dream, I recalltraveling
with others and participating in a battle with a demon - an actual fight in mid air. I know this sounds crazy, but it felt like so much more than a dream. Do you believe astral travel is real? What do you think the purpose of it is? Is this just my way of escaping life or finding more excitement?~Tanya
Susyn:
I do believe in astral travel and have had experiences similar to what you describe. In fact, this phenomenon has been documented in every culture throughout the ages.
Though we have limited knowledge of this subject, we have all at least been exposed to the idea that time, space and our physical world are not as solid or static as was once believed. When you consider that time can seem to go quickly or slowly and our physical worlds are constantly changing, the idea of our spirits leaving our bodies to travel to other places does not seem so far-fetched.
Many people experience the initial stages of astral projection as having the ability to fly or a sensation that they are falling back into their bodies after an astral journey.
The fact that you remember doing this from a very young age suggests that you may have practiced astral travel in a past life, and thus come into this life already well-versed in the art. Though it seems you donít know the people you encounter on these travels, they may very well be spirits youíve known before.
The higher purpose of astral projection is to experience life from a soul-based perspective. You describe battling a demon in one of these adventures, which indicates that you are aware of the struggles occurring in the spiritual realm and are participating in them. Many of your travels will be subconscious; though it seems you project on a regular basis, you may only be remembering a fraction of these experiences.
Rather than this being something you do to distract yourself or attempt to live a more exciting existence, it is simply a natural expression of your soul. Because your travels have been somewhat random, it may seem like this is a way you try to escape from the reality of your physical life. As you develop your gift, however, you will be able to pick and choose where you travel, whom you interact with, and what you accomplish.
For instance, you may have a loved one far away who is struggling with an illness or some other problem. With your gifts, you could travel to where they are and look in on them. You could also program yourself before bedtime to visit a place you have never been before. Once you master control of your projections, the possibilities will be endless.
To master this art, you simply need to set some boundaries and learn how to direct your astral projections. Because this is something you have done all your life, moving it to the next level shouldn't be difficult. I encourage you to keep up with your astral journeying and learn more about how to gain control of these experiences.
*****
Mata:
I do believe in astral projection; I've experienced it myself. In fact, I read your question with some excitement, for I too have very vivid memories of attempting to fly as a young child. I remember being about four years old and insisting to my family that I could truly fly. They laughed and told me I must have been dreaming, but I knew it was more than a dream.
I would stand on something like a bench or large piece of furniture, leap into the air, and flap my arms like crazy. I could get airborne for several seconds this way but I always ended up back on the ground. I did remain suspended in the air for far longer than would have happened if I had been attempting this in the physical, however. I've read and heard about many other people who have had similar experiences.
Your question also reminded me of my little nephew, who used to tell us about how he would fly to other places at night. He told us there were certain other people there, none of whom he knew when awake. He also talked about how sometimes, he would just jump up and down, touching the ceiling for fun. He could not understand why he was unable to do this when awake.
As for why we project, it just comes naturally. The astral is a very familiar place; when we aren't incarnate here on Earth, we are all able to travel to and through other worlds. I suppose asking why we have out of body experiences is a bit like a dolphin asking why it is able to leap and fly through the air above the ocean: it is simply part of our nature and our universe.
I love to think of all the little children in the world who have not yet been taught that flying (and all sorts of other wonderful things) are impossible. I love to imagine them knowing that they can fly and having all sorts of spiritual adventures simply because they are still so fresh from the spirit world and so open to any and all experiences.
If you had quit your job and were spending all day, every day, in bed, trying to get out of your body, then I might think you were trying to avoid physical reality. That is clearly not the case. Spontaneous out of body experiences can happen for all sorts of reasons. When trauma is not involved, it may simply be that your vibration is at the upper range for the physical dimension, so it is easy for you to slip up and out into realms that are close in vibration to this one.
It has also been my experience that sometimes, our higher selves bless us with such experiences to prove to us that we are spiritual beings having a physical experience instead of physical beings who may seem to have spiritual experiences now and then.
Astrea:
Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.
Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!
While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!
I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!
As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.
I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.
You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!
Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.
A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.
You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.