23 - Opossum - Diversion & 26 - Squirrel - Gathering - Contrary - Animal Medicine Doubles

23

Opossum

Diversion

Opossum......

Roll over !

Are you really dead? 

Or just playing Possum?

Was it something I said?

Opossum's greatest form of protection is to play dead.

In doing this Opossum confuses many a predator into believing that the game is over.

Oftentimes the confused rival walks away or looks the other direction for a moment, and Opossum  runs to safety.

Opossum medicine uses a great deal of strategy.  

If all else fails, Opossum plays dead.

It has the ability to fight with its claws and teeth, but it rarely uses this form of protection.

Instead the supreme strategy of diversion is constantly employed when things get a little too hard to handle.

Opossum has developed an act that would receive an Academy Award in the animal kingdom.

The musk of the death scent is secreted at will adding to the master play that sends enemies on many trails of confusion.

If Opossum has turned up in your cards, you are being asked to use strategy in some present situation.

Rely upon instincts for the best way out of a tight corner.

If you have to pretend to be apathetic or unafraid, do it !

Oftentimes if you refuse to struggle or show that hurtful words bother you, your taunter will see no further fun in the game.  

Warriors have used Opossum  medicine for centuries, playing dead when the enemy nears and outnumbers them.

Then, in a flash , when the enemy is least expecting it, the war cry is heard.

The fright of this serves to further confuse the unsuspecting opposition.

Victory is sweet when the strategy is one of mental as well as physical prowess.

Opossum may be relaying to you that you are to expect the unexpected and be clever in achieving your victory.

This could be a victory over a bothersome salesman or a nosy neighbour.

In essence, Opossum is beckoning you to use your brain, your sense of drama , and surprise - to  leap over some barrier to your progress.

Contrary:

In the reversed position, Opossum may be warning you against getting caught in the high drama of your life's present scenario.

"Close your eyes and dramatize," may keep you from seeing the truth of a situation.

You may buy into melodrama in yourself or others.

You might as well play dead if you are justifying what you are doing with a tragic victim routine.

If this concept does not apply to your situation , take a look at the possibility that you may have recently been giving excuses for why you don't want to do something instead of telling the truth.

In fearing to hurt someone's feelings you may have trapped  yourself in a justification pattern:

"I'm too sick, 

I'm too poor , 

I'm watching my weight, 

I'm too 

short,  

tall ,

mad 

sad 

busy, 

tired, 

etc.

"In having to defend yourself with excuses, you may have lost the point.

"You don't' have to defend your right to be!"

The exercise is in learning to politely say that something would not be appropriate for you at this time.

That's all!

You owe  no one an excuses.

Learn to imitate Opossum and play dead in the sense that the best strategy is no defense.

In assuming the viewpoint of no defense, you have chosen the right to be who and what you are with no games involved.

The proper use of diversion is to know when you do not need to use diversion at all.

You owe no one an excuse for how you feel or what  you choose to experience.

Squirrel did a backflip while I was shuffling today ;showing itself and doubling today's Animal Medicine. 

26

Squirrel - Contrary

Gathering

Squirrel . . .

You have gathered

Nuts by the score,

Exactly predicting

If you'll need more.

Teach me to take 

No more than I need.

Trusting Great Mystery

Contrary:

The contrary medicine of Squirrel is the hoarder: 

a fearful person who expects the worst and is stuck in waiting. 

Waiting for something to happen is the trap. 

No action equals stagnation, but a little of Squirrel's erratic energy might get things moving.  

If Squirrel is hanging upside down on your branch, you may have begun seeing the world through opposites, hoarding your thoughts of abundance so that fear of scarcity takes hold.

You ask yourself: 

1.  Have I denied my ability to produce enough space for abundance to enter my life?

2.  Have I denied my connection to the Earth Mother, from whom all things flow? 

3.  In moving too fast, have I taken on the erratic nature of Squirrel without having any focus? 

4.  Am I leaking my energy on worry instead of

gathering power through being prepared?

Remember, one of the Squirrel family gathered the energy of Eagle and connected to the Great Spirit... now this Squirrel can fly.

Right Side Up:

Squirrel teaches you to plan ahead for the winter when the trees are bare and the nuts have long since disappeared. 

Squirrel medicine can come in many forms, as this furry creature is very diverse in nature.   

The erratic behaviour of Squirrel has bested many a forlorn hunter, and it thus stands to reason that there are benefits to being able to circle a branch at lightning speed. 

This erratic behaviour of Squirrel can so get nerve-wracking if you are dealing with persons who have Squirrel medicine.  

Trying to calm them down enough to accomplish something may drive you nuts!

The gathering power of Squirrel medicine is a great gift. It teaches you how to gather and store your energy for times of need.   

It teaches you to reserve something for future use, whether it be a judgment, an opinion, a savings account, candles, or extra food. 

To put it in a nutshell, Squirrel is the Boy Scout of the animal kingdom - always prepared.

In today's world of changing times and fortunes, it is the wise person who prepares for the future. 

Our prophecies have all spoken of the end of the millennium and the changes to come. 

Squirrel is a friendly medicine to have, in light of possible future rainy days. 

Its message is to be prepared, but not to go nuts with it.  

Love yourself enough to gather the goods that will meet your needs in times of scarcity, even if that time never comes.

If Squirrel has scurried into your cards today, it may be that you are being told t honour your future by readying yourself for change. The message could be to lighten your load if you have gathered too many "things" that do not serve you. 

These "things" can include thoughts, worries, pressures, stresses, or gadgets that have been broken for years.

In understanding the balance involved in gathering, you need to look at the idea of circulating the stock of what you have gathered.

Call the nearest thrift store and give the

gadgets to someone who can benefit from them. If something no longer "grows corn" for  you, then it is time to let it go.

Squirrel has another lesson which can aid you if you observe what is obvious, and which can prepare you for anything. It has to do with the safe place in which to put your gathering. 

This safe place is an untroubled heart and mind, and that which is gathered to put in this place is wisdom and caring. The energies gathered will set your mind and heart free, so that you will know that all will be taken care of in its own time. 

Apply this to your fears about the future and they will vanish.

Source: 

Sams, Jamie and Carson,
David. Medicine Cards 
(Santa Fe: Bear and Company, 1988).