Because I know you can’t get enough hiking stories, here is a fun little tale about a hike I took a week or so ago. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the temperature was just right (to me, anyway). I love those temperatures in the last days of August and early September, as fall is creeping up and summer is still clinging for life.
After I had hiked about a mile along the same trail I saw the porcupines on, stopping to take photos of wildflowers along the way, I heard a rustling sound at the base of a tree. As usual, I stopped to see what made the noise, and saw a quick flash of reddish brown disappear behind the tree. I peeked around to the other side just as a tiny red squirrel came around the tree trunk. He squeaked in surprise at the same time I did, which made me burst out laughing.
He darted back around the tree, and I surprised him again by peering around the other side. He scooted about halfway up the tree and around the other side just as I looked over there again, in a pretty entertaining game of squirrelly peek-a-boo. He paused to glare at me for a moment, and then finally tired of the game, retiring to a branch out of reach and scolding me in characteristically foul red squirrel language. I obeyed his wishes and left him to get back to important red squirrel business.
I frequently see red squirrels in the forest when hiking. Spiritually, they can represent gathering. Similar to how squirrels gather and store nuts, it can be a sign that you need conserve your energy for the future or coming change. It can also mean gathering wisdom and caring to create an untroubled heart and mind, which will help you understand that all will be taken care of in its own time.
Do you need to conserve your energy for upcoming change? Or do you maybe just need to trust that you are prepared to handle whatever the universe throws at you, and that things will all work themselves out. Or maybe you just need to practice being a little bit cheeky like Red Squirrel and let annoying intruders know whose territory they’re in!
Spiritual Tea 