
If turtle has shown up in your life, it is time to get connected to your most primal essence. Go within your shell and come out when your ideas are ready to be expressed. It is time to recognize that there is abundance out there for you. It doesn’t have to be gotten quickly or immediately. Take your time and let the natural flow work for you. Too much, too soon, can upset the balance. Turtle reminds us that all we need for all that we do is available to us, if we approach it in the right manner and time.
Turtles remind us that the way to heaven is through the earth. In Mother Earth is all that we need. She will care for us, protect us, and nurture us, as long as we do the same for her. For that to happen, we must slow down and heighten our sensibilities. We must see the connection to all things. Just as the turtle cannot separate itself from its shell, neither can we separate ourselves from what we do to the Earth.
~ Ted Andrews, Animal Speak

I was out chanting and singing in the woods the other day when I heard a rustling in the leaves. I’d called up a turtle. A terrapin, I believe. We have a lot of terrapins around here, usually swimming in the creek. This one seemed to be crossing the woods to get from one side of the marsh to the other. The turtle appears to be a good totem for this time in our collective lives, as we slow down and spend some time in our shells (homes). The turtle is also associated with the way of peace, be that inner or outer peace.

The turtle is also said to be able to help us ground. My Instagram feed is full of yogis and Buddhists all advising us to stay grounded. Today I was out in the woods, staring at the ground, moving aside the mix of pine needles and last year’s leaves to see the dark earth underneath. The ground, the earth, is clearly there. And yet, it feels like the ground has somehow been pulled out from underneath us. Life has thrown it up in the air, like the balls of a juggler, and we’re all just waiting to see where everything lands.
So, how do you ground when you feel as though there is no ground? What if we aren’t supposed to be grounding? What if we’re supposed to be up in the air? I find some comfort in that thought. It allows me to stop trying to find some kind of firm ground and just go with the flow of whatever life has decided to offer. That said, it doesn’t hurt to touch base with Mother Earth. Turtle is a good reminder of that.

It is day 12 of the 40-day self-care challenge. How are you today?
I am getting along fairly well. Taking walks, doing my yoga and meditation practices, healing, and trying not to overdo. There is no reason to overdo.
Here’s an audio meditation you might like: The Monkey is the Messenger Bonus Meditation. It’s about 15 minutes.

Thank you for visiting with me today. I watched the sunset from the edge of the marsh yesterday. While I was there, an otter swam by. Let’s meet there for today’s sunset, scheduled for 7:27 PM. We’ll have to approach quietly and stay quiet if we wish to see the otter or whatever else might show up. It’s chilly and blustery. You’ll need a warm coat, perhaps a hat and gloves. You might want to wear boots or wellies, too. We’ve had a lot of rain over the past week or so and it’s a little mushy out there. Plus, we’ve been having some coastal flooding which adds to the mush and the watery terrain.
Be safe, be well. ♥♥♥

A few of the 10,000 reasons to be happy: 1,316) Cauliflower kuku for breakfast. Yummy. 1,317) The wind singing through the trees. Or are the trees singing through the wind? 1,318) Surrendering to the day. 1,319) Thick, warm socks. 1,320) All of the little lawn flowers creating a carpet of color.
I like the description of the tortoise from Ted Andrews – I wondered yesterday when you first posted the photograph if there was a message in there for you – probably because that’s the thing I would think about if I saw one! Years ago, as a young woman, I had a series of ‘talking head’ dreams from a revered wise man who told me ‘to consider the snail’ – not one of my favourite creatures back then……… it took a long time before I found the meaning of that advice and I have never forgotten it. (Slow down, all you need is contained within. Pay attention.) Still practising the art of attaining all that! 🙂 I have also just obtained a copy of the Monkey book from Audible – thank you ❤
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Thank you, Pauline. 🙂 It doesn’t surprise me that you would be looking for messages, too. The snail, like the turtle, probably has a lot to say to us lately.
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I often look up the symbolism of critters I encounter to see what wisdoms are waiting for me to discover. Your words of going with the flow brought the vision of a rip tide, something you can’t fight, but they advise to float out before going parallel in order to return. I think we’re going to be flowing for a while yet!
It’s pretty windy here, too, with showers forecast. The oak leaves are blowing everywhere!
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A rip tide is a wonderful metaphor for the time, Eliza. I agree. We’re probably going to be flowing and floating for a while. It makes me wonder what we’re going to be like at the end of this. I was watching something on television last night where people were gathered, standing and sitting close to each other, and already it seems like that is no longer a normal thing to do.
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That meditation really fit the bill. Thank you, Robin! Turtles in dreams represent longevity, loyalty, perseverance, and of course, shelter. It’s nice to see something that has its shelter with it. I didn’t realize you brought the creature out by chanting! What a good story. I hope the sunset is wondrous.
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You’re welcome, Lisa. So glad you liked it. 🙂 And thank you for the additional information about Turtles.
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Wow – I haven’t been able to comment in forever because I don’t remember my WordPress login stuff. But everyone of your posts are a treat for me.
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Thank you so much, Wildertimesahead. 🙂 WordPress, even when you remember your login stuff, has been wonky lately. Or maybe it’s just wonky for me.
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The little flowers, the otter, the turtle–all reminders of beauty and life going on. Thanks, Robin.
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You’re welcome, and thank you, Merril. 🙂
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“Just as the turtle cannot separate itself from its shell, neither can we separate ourselves from what we do to the Earth.” My food for thought today. Thank you, Robin. Turtles are my husband’s favorite animals.
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You’re welcome, Barbara. 🙂
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Yes.
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Yes is good. 🙂
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Such pretty things for a blustery Thursday! We had a perfect Thursday, blue sky and almost 60! Today is the same. I can officially stop complaining, for now anyway, about our weather! Great images you have…I want to get out and look for signs of spring myself.
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I am so glad to hear you’re finally getting some good weather, Dawn. 🙂 It helps to have a little warmth and sunshine.
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What a wonderful post/reflection on the beauty of nature’s messages, dear Robin. What a great time to listen deeply and observe what nature has for us. I was awakened in the pre-dawn just yesterday by an owl. I’ve just being to read Andrews’ book on the many owls in our world and what their presence has for us. May more of us see what is there…and always has been. I hope that many who’ve been so far from nature are enjoying a return to it. I can just feel the exhale of Mother Earth as we are all in a forced slow down….or rest. She rests as well. Be well, dear Robin. 🙏🏻💕
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Thank you so much, Carrie. ❤ I was thinking the same thing about Mother Earth being able to rest while we are in our slow-down. If this goes on for much longer, I might become a forest hermit. Or maybe a marsh hermit. I seem to spend most of my time in the space between forest and marsh. 😀
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This post so touched me. Without any awareness of what turtles represent, I’d taken such joy in seeing turtles sunning themselves on little rafts at a nearby nature center; to keep myself from going faster than I could bear at my last job, then, I posted in my cube a picture of a turtle stretch out its front and rear legs to soak up the sun.
This image came to mind when talking with my therapist earlier in the week. She asked what my intention is, till we meet again. I said: “To be that stretching-for-the-sun turtle–going only as fast as suits me, and never a bit faster.”
So this post? Magic to me. Thanks. ♥
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