- The Veil between this World and the Next, Nature as a form of Heaven - or is it a Sign from Your Loved Ones?
How many of you have experienced this profound connection between your loved ones passing and the natural environment? The significance we find in what we see at our time of loss, or around the time of death goes way beyond a coping mechanism, and is in fact honored as a reality in many cultures. Death surrounds life like darkness surrounds day, (so said Carl Jung) and all of nature is reflected in mans emotions- a device used by many a storyteller from Shakespeare to Van Gogh, and all the Photographers and Movie-Makers in between.
We find ourselves thinking of a loved one and a butterfly appears and lands on our shoulder; Your Mothers favorite bird lands in a tree and flies by her graveside; a beetle that is sacred as a messenger glistens its iridescence in the afternoon light as you play your loved ones favorite song. These are all signs that we are drawn to and associate with, whilst honoring the memory of our loved one.
I’ve heard people tell me that when they scattered their brothers ashes a pod of dolphins showed up, another time someone told me about a baby humpback whale that splashed mourners on a boat as they scattered their loved ones ashes at sea.
What can we learn from the animal medicines, how much value is it to us that we see this as a connection between our loved one and ourselves?
The signs we seek, the signs we see, are an affirmation that we are part of this diurnal round, this cycle of life and death and rebirth. We are shown that we are part of something so much bigger than ourselves, and that although we are at a loss and full of sorrow right now, it could appear that our loved ones journey has just begun and that faith in our connection to them is somehow proven by the rainbow that breaks upon the horizon, or the white egret that lands upon the shoreline and stands on one leg and looks straight at us.
Knowing that somehow we are all interwoven in this way and that it isn’t just happenstance, is an opportunity to trust that all of us, be we animal, spirit , mineral or physical are all indeed connected through our souls journey.
Recently I made a video talking about the importance of A Sacred Place to commemorate our loved ones, and that our Tree of Life Memorials provide (through creative story capture) a living memorial and a closer connection to those we love. I talked about how nature was heaven itself, and I told a story about losing the love of my early life and that the only constant, shocking though it seemed – was the comfort and consistency of the natural world. As I did this, out of nowhere a young lone Stag appeared, he looked at me, and wandered next to me as I walked to the edge of the hillside and looked out across the vast expanse of the pacific ocean.
According to the Druid Tradition the Stag is the creature from the Beginning of Time, and is seen as an Otherwordly Messenger, he accompanies and is often merged with the Lord of the Wild Hunt – the one that carries the spirits of the dead to the otherworld. He is also seen as a messenger from that realm and appears when the veil between this world and the next is drawn aside so that we can commune with the Ancestors. He brings with him the power and knowledge of this other realm.
Share your stories and comments about what you have experienced during the times of transition or passing from this world to the next, and who or what showed up to witness or to remind you of the beauty and the reality that nature and the environment goes far beyond this mortal coil.
