3 - Elk - Stamina

3

Elk

Stamina

Elk . . .
 Your antlers reach for the sun. Show me that strength
 and stamina are one.

Elk wandered through the forest looking for a partner. 

The mating season was in full swing, and the bucks that usually traveled with the other males had dispersed to find mates for the season. 

As Elk bellowed his mating call through the forest, his bugling alerted Mountain Lion that a feast could be in the making.

Mountain Lion circled Elk, getting closer to his prey moment by moment. 

Elk sensed the impending danger when the forest grew suddenly silent. 

He broke for the high country when he

spotted his pursuer, but Mountain Lion was far behind. 

As Elk made a running leap for the timberline, Mountain Lion gained on him, but Elk continued to run onward, displaying tremendous stamina.

 Finally Mountain Lion gave up, having spent his energy in spurts as he tried to jump over boulders to reach Elk. 

Elk paced himself, making headway as he climbed skyward toward the high country. 

Elk had no other defence except his ability to go the distance, setting a pace that allowed him to utilize his stamina and energy to the fullest.

Elk medicine teaches that pacing yourself will increase your stamina. 

Elk medicine people may not be the first ones to arrive at a goal, but they always arrive without getting burned out. 

If you have taken on too much recently, it might be a good idea to look at how you plan to finish what you have started without ending up in the hospital.

Elk have a curious kind of warrior energy because, except at mating time, they honor the

company of their own gender. 

They can call on the medicine of brotherhood or sisterhood. 

In discovering the strength which is gained from loving the gender that is your own, you will feel

the comradeship that arises from similarity of experience. 

This is a special medicine that allows the friendship of others of your same sex to overcome potential competition or jealousy.

If you have picked Elk medicine, you may be telling yourself to seek the company of your

own gender for awhile. 

You may need a support group to realign yourself with the stamina of the warrior/warrior-ess energy that you are a part of. 

This communication with others of your own

sex allows you to air your feelings in safety and to get feedback from others who have had the

same experience. 

You may need a new sense of community - communication in unity.

Elk could also be telling you to look at how you are holding up physically to the stresses

in your life, and to pace yourself so that you maintain an equilibrium of energy over the distance you plan to cover. 

Vitamins or high-energy foods may be one solution, along with some personal quiet time for replenishment.

Overview:

Elk stresses friendship and co-operation - the sense of unity that comes from belonging to

a group or community. 

It emphasizes the need to establish relationships. If you are engaged in some kind of competitive activity, whether in your working life or in a personal relationship, you may feel threatened and under pressure. 

You need some equilibrium. Elk shows the value of

friendships and of sharing your interests and experiences with others.

Elk stresses the importance of finding time for refreshment and reflection, and of renewing one's strength. Elk has to do with stamina and the need to go to those of the same gender for support. Bonding and renewal.

Persistence brings rewards. Support your health and stamina. 

Honour your ability to endure.

Contrary:

If Elk has appeared in the reverse position, you may be stretching the rubber band to the breaking point. 

Be careful of undue stress levels, or you might just create an illness to force you to take a break.

On another level, you may not be honouring your desires for companionship with the opposite sex, and you may have forgotten the excitement of mating season. 

If this is the case,you may find that your best option is to invite friends of the opposite sex for dinner or an afternoon outing. 

This is not to say that you would be sexually interested in these friends; it is merely suggesting that the exchange of opposite energies could be rewarding.

If you are in a relationship, it may be that the honeymoon is waning and that you need to

stir up some excitement. 

Persistently creating a "change of pace" is the kind of stamina needed for any relationship to last.

In all cases, Elk is telling you to look at how you choose to create your present pathway, and how you intend to perpetuate it to reach your goal.

Your best weapon is the same as Elk's: to stop when you need to, to persist when you need to, and to allow room for change and exchange of energies.

Source: 

Sams, Jamie and Carson, David. 
Medicine Cards

Santa Fe: Bear and Company, 1988