Turtle Totem

written: April 14th

This month's MoonTime is upon me.  Each MoonTime, a Totem animal makes a noteworthy appearance and brings with it a message within its totem traits for me to reflect on during this time.

The animal that made the most noteworthy impression this time around was the lovely, ancient Alligator Snapping Turtle from the Abilene Zoon.  I have never seen one so interested and engaged with people like that one was with my Mom and I.  He seemed so very curious about us.

The turtle is associated with the lunar cycle and female energies.  It's associated with longevity and can teach new perceptions about time and our relationship with it.  The snapping turtle specifically teaches you to grab and how to use the mouth and all things associated with -- voice, sound, digestion -- in new ways.  Turtle reminds you to use your own head and knowledge to right yourself when your world gets topsy turvy.

First off, the lunar cycle and female energies.  I really skimped out on this past Esbat (Full Moon) ceremony.  The thought and the plan was there.....there was just no actual action taken -- no honest ceremony.  I really glossed over it.  The same goes for the typical MoonTime ceremony I do.  I didn't do a damn thing to mark nor honor this MoonTime.  I allowed all the craziness from the mundane world to dominate my life and pull my attention away.  Turtle is reminding me to focus more on the things that matter most to me.

Next up is the longevity and time perception.  I know I always believe I have more time, or all the time in the world.  I am a hard-core procrastinator.  I need to manage my time better if I truly want to accomplish anything of merit.

And the whole "seize your opportunities" ties into the time management issues.  I need to stop just expecting these opportunities to chase me down and tackle me.  They simply present themselves and it's up to me to do something with that opportunity.

And the last message is a reminder to use my own head, my own knowledge to right myself when life goes crazy.  I need to have better -- and more consistent -- faith in myself.  I have a very nasty trait of constantly selling myself short.  And I really need to stop doing that.  But the only way to learn what I truly am capable of is to get out there and do it.

It's like when I started using the elliptical again after more than a year had passed since the last time I used it.  I thought I would have to start small -- just five minutes on it -- because I wouldn't be able to do more.  And I was shocked as shit that first time when I did 15 minutes.  And I stopped because of my weak leg muscles -- not because I was winded.  That showed me that my cardio wasn't horrible -- now I just need to work on getting the muscles up to that level.  I am a lot stronger than I realize.  And a whole lot stronger that I give myself credit for.

An interesting side note: Turtle was the totem I used to call on when I was running (way back in the day).  The whole "slow and steady wins the race" was my Mantra.  At the time, I wasn't focused on speed or time.  I just wanted to make sure I was getting out there and moving.

Note: totem info taken from Animal Speak by Ted Andrews