Cozy Kittens & Animal Symbolism

This morning–just a moment ago–I was visited by another of my spirit animals. It was a cozy kitten. Not too surprising, considering the eight inches of snow that fell overnight. Nestle in, settle down, and rest. Keep warm. I know what she wants.

They’re never this detailed in real life, but it was something like this. ^

It isn’t the first and hopefully it won’t be the last of my forest visions, even though we plan to sell The Treehouse this year and move. Over the years here through the seasons of bare trees and myriad branches, I have been visited by bears, roosters, whole words spelled out in English, squirrels…I’m searching my brain to try and remember what else…and today, a kitten.

When I first starting “seeing things” in the woods, I would do a double-take. Wait. Was that? No…

Then later in the same day, the same reaction.

The first time one came to visit, I took a few days before mentioning it to Tim. “There’s a bear out there,” I told him.

“Oh, yeah?”

“I mean, obviously not a real bear, but every time I look out there, I keep seeing this bear…that isn’t there…”

Tim believes strongly in the symbolism of wild animals, so we looked up the meaning of the bear. In my case, it was a young bear. Not a baby cub, but not an adult.

Here is where the trouble starts. Where do you look up something so personal?

Appropriation or Not?

In American culture, spirit animals are seen as Native American / First Nations / Indigenous property. There is a well-meaning rapid response from some people to assume any yt person who sees an animal spirit must be appropriating Indigenous culture.

Even if they’re not.

I have kept this thought on the back burner for the past few years, because something this personal that doesn’t affect many others isn’t worth diving into, lest one sound too defensive, and thereby, insincere in one’s beliefs. As fortune would have it, however, I have made some rich cultural discoveries among my own heritage. I wasn’t looking for this information, but there it was.

The Cunning Folk

See, I am a Cunningham.

If you know anything of the Cunning Folk, then you may know what that means. If you have read anything by Scott Cunningham, then you might have a hunch regarding the cultural connection. It’s not popular knowledge, sadly, but my Celtic / Gaelic / Scots / Pagan ancestors from all over the British Isles used animal symbolism in their way of life. They were aware of animals, just like human beings on this continent. They saw qualities in animals similar to every other culture on this earth.

Consider: all over the world, a bear is a symbol of strength. A tortoise is a symbol of patience. A serpent is a symbol of evil. If you’d like to read a quick article about other international animal symbols, here’s a little from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).

In any culture that is aware of and values animals, there are going to be connections between these animals and the human psyche. That is how humans were designed. We learn from our environment.

We don’t just assign symbols to animals. We assign them to trees, flowers, homes, cars…Think of those horrible cyber trucks! What do they symbolize to you? What does a douche symbolize? A handgun?

Symbols are an unconscious language all their own. This is the language of tarot, of painters, of poets. It is the soul’s communication with the eye.

When I see my spirit animals, I do not think, “I have learned this from the Native Americans who once tended these woods.” I just see them–and the more I see, the better I understand them. I don’t try to see anything–they always surprise me.

The ironic thing about being a yt American is that we do live on formerly indigenous territory. As Tim pointed out to me once, Native Americans could have seen animals here in these woods, as well. Maybe not a kitten, but maybe a bobcat or a Puma. Firsthand accounts of people who lived right here in these woods might not exist. But, if you’re curious, these are the tribes historically associated with the spot where I live:

The internet says that these cultures believe in spirit animals, but that doesn’t mean that’s why I am seeing them. We can have separate, but overlapping experiences. That is okay!

I do believe that the commonality of human experience is a good thing. It helps us relate to one another. And for marginalized cultures, it helps them be SEEN. I respect other cultures and find them fascinating. If you find this intriguing, then you can look up these cultures and learn as much as you can about their beliefs, if they allow that (some tribes prefer to not be your spiritual entertainment, and that’s totally understandable!) But, appreciation of things we have in common? Yes. You can do that. You can honor things and not appropriate them as your own. There’s a balance there that sane folk have no trouble keeping–mostly because they are not trying to find meaning in their lives through copying and pasting traditions. They are just living.

To that end, fairies, pixies, and sprites are traditionally thought of as a white cultural fantasy beings. Celtic legends and pagan tales tell of Fairy Trees and the little people. Did you know that American Indian tribes also have tales of “little people” and beings similar to fairies and brownies?

Is that appropriation? No way. I believe it’s being a human being with eyes and a heart.

Just because you haven’t heard of spirit animals or animal spirits or forest ghosts or tiny little fairy people in other cultures doesn’t mean they haven’t existed. It just means YOU haven’t heard of them.

I can’t unsee my snow kitten, and I don’t want to. I want to love it, and I want to cherish this gift of being my intuitive self. I hope you have intuitive gifts of your own to cherish–and if you do, don’t feel like you’re not allowed. You can’t call dibs on “animals.” Nobody owns the wild.

The New Weird

I wrote a little about spirit animals in The New Weird. Chapter Thirteen is titled Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Treemancy and Spirit Animals.

At the end of of every chapter of The New Weird, I gave the reader Journaling Prompts. Yep, it’s an interactive kind of book! There’s even a paperback version if you want to use it that way.

Here are the prompts from the end of Chapter Thirteen: Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Treemancy and Spirit Animals:

1.) Have you ever seen shapes in things where no design was intended? What was your first reaction? Surprise? Welcome? Doubt? Were you taught to write off such fantasies as sinful or wrong? What if seeing shapes in the clouds was just an innocent by-product of being a human being in a big, beautiful world? Think of a time when you saw something, even though it wasn’t “really” there. Do you cherish that interaction? Did you learn from it?

2.) I live in the woods right now, but I believe that if I were a sea witch or plains witch, I’d see symbols and take meaning in my surroundings, as well. Look around you. Are you in a thriving, living environment? If not, take a walk in the woods or on the beach. What do you see? What do you feel? Is there some place you’d like to vacation, where you feel more connected to the natural world? Perhaps you are *that* sort of girl.

3.) Do you even want to see the future? What if, instead of seeing a future you can’t control, you could better understand your present? Would you feel more at ease to just understand your own self better?

Feel free to answer in the comments, or on your own blog, or in your journal! If you’d like, please drop the link so I can enjoy reading your own reflections!