"A deer on the path at night!" 

     copyright Sept 2007 S. Roger Joyeux, used with permission.

More and more, people are sharing with me the very strange encounters they seem to be having with animals - both domestic and wild animals.  They are puzzled about the incident, and because the actions seem so strange, they roll the story over and over in their mind.  Still, the person doses not get any satisfaction from trying to interpret the incident and feels slightly frustrated that "this big event" happened and they don't know why.

We human beings have lost our close connection with nature in general, and therefore, have lost our understanding of the language of animals and birds, and even the plants and trees and rocks that we may encounter.  The language is both verbal and action or body behaviour specific. 

In the picture above, the deer stepped out onto the path, in the fall, at about 9:30pm at night.  Roger and I were both rather startled because she showed very little concern and just ambled in front of us, allowing Roger to snap a great picture of her.  Since deer are usually quite timid and flighty, and because she looked at us quite pointedly from time to time, we knew she was trying to tell us something.  Even though she looked ordinary, it was clear that she was not an ordinary deer!  Deer have an acute sense of hearing and will hear noises half a mile away.  This deer did not need to be on our path.

So, what was she trying to share with us?  Deer have an ability to see very clearly in dusk and darkness, the times that they are the most vulnerable.  Shaman believe that this gives the deer the ability to see the deeper meaning of life around them, and understand the symbology of the events around them.  Well, that means that the message that she is showing us is about several things.  We see her message as being:

1.  Look more closely at the items that cross your path, for they have a deeper meaning than the surface message would appear.  (Talk about symbology! In fact, the second level that shaman work with in a situation, after dealing with the physical, is the "symbol".  Perhaps she was trying to communicate that to me since I was getting more and more activity in my Shamanic practise.)

2.  When one walks an unknown path, there is truly nothing to fear. As deer hears and sees, she counsels us to tap more deeply in to our clairaudient and clairvoyant abilities to discern what is real and what is illusion.  The illusion coupled with our fear makes all events much more dramatic and drains our energy.

3.  Deer are universally regarded as beings of peace.  How clearly deer was demonstrating to us that one can walk through life peacefully, regardless of what is on the path ahead of you! She also demonstrated that one may interact with others that are unknown, and have an uplifting experience.

We came away from this encounter marvelling at the beauty of the experience.  I had a feeling of awe and contentment that was Roger's feeling as well. We both realized that Great Spirit had stepped into speak with us using one of the most gentle creatures that walks Mother Earth. We had received a blessing.

We wish you many wonderful animal encounters that will uplift your spirit and make your heart sing.

Namaste,

Judy and Roger

(See our July newsletter at July Tidings of Interest)