The Magic of Wings and Feet ~

In our lives, magic appears every day.  Sometimes we conjure it up intentionally and sometimes, I believe, the Universe conjures it up to surprise us, shake us up or wake us up.

Last year, I was in the Grand Canyon for the first time.  Before we arrived and my mind was wandering

around in the car ride, I wondered if I would find a feather.  What animals lived near the canyon?  I wasn’t sure, but imagined a beautiful feather twisting out of thin air right in front of me.  I looked at my husband and said, “I hope I find a feather today.”  He recognized the smile on my face… it’s the same one that erupted during our honeymoon when I told him I would move the clouds over our hot tub so that we could see the stars.

Enter the Ravens ~

Ravens are enormous when you are used to seeing Crows.  Each one shines so black that you start seeing colors, so that some look emerald green and sometimes you will see one that you swear is violet.

They soared over the Grand Canyon and over our heads.  I remembered that Raven holds some of the magic of the inner child & the Great Mysteries.   Every one of them got my head to turn and unleashed my curiosity.  What message would a Raven have?  They were long used to deliver human messages between humans.  But what was the message they carried on their own?

I sent energy out from my whole being into the sky ~ Raven, I am listening.  Ooh, and the little girl in me wanted a feather.

During our lunch at a picnic area there were two Ravens hamming it up trying to get food.  Walking between tables, strutting around and showing off short flights and soft landings; waiting for the slow humans to give up some grub.  The family near us ended up giving a little chicken to one of the Ravens.  Unlike a Seagull (bless their souls) the Raven didn’t throw the food down its throat and start begging for more!  It walked over to its mate and put it in their mouth and then they pulled it apart and shared it.  Everyone eating lunch softened and let out a collective, “AWWWWW”.

It was after this that my sweet husband took off and walked away from the picnic area.  He told me later, he was hoping to find a feather on the ground for me.  Awww 🙂

We headed back out to the canyon’s edge.  This turnout had a little information station, a simple structure with a roof.  I began to read about water levels in the canyon over time and a big, black Raven landed on the roof.   I walked out from under the roof and stood below it.  A huge smile broke out over my face.

“Raven,” my mind gushed.

“Will you give me a feather?” my mind asked.

The Raven looked at me.  We stared at each other for quite awhile.  It became all-important to me that this animal understood me, so that I could understand it better and know its message.

I opened up my heart chakra and said out loud, “Raven, will you give me one of your feathers?”

The tourist next to me had been snapping away at the Raven with his camera.  He pulled it away from his face and tried not to laugh at me.

But I just stood there, my spirit becoming larger.  Maybe not larger, but more apparent and open than I am used to having it in public.  I didn’t care…I wanted to communicate with this Raven and not worry about a tourists’ view of my sanity.

The Raven and I, we waited each other out.  And I just stayed….open.  My husband came to my side to watch.

Suddenly the Raven lifted its left wing and began running its beak between its feathers.  Sharply.  Quickly.  Swiftly.  I never considered that a bird would need to comb its wings.  But of course, playing in the wind, wow, of course.

In a swift moment the Raven pulled one of its feathers to a 45-degree angle away from its wingspan.

I sucked in my breath.  Was the Raven going to give me a feather?  I was just hoping one would fall from the sky.  Was I actually going to watch the act of giving?

The Raven looked at me and then went back to the feather.  Plucked it right out, placed it on the roof and stepped on top of it.  My heart jumped.  The tourist put his camera down and his jaw dropped.  As my husband remembers it now, “I remember it being deliberate and feeling shocked.”

I felt all the cells inside of me fire, divide and live on.  Magic seemed to be running over my skin, behind my eyes and popping out of my spine.  My need to be understood flew away like a tattered sail.  Quietly, thoughts slowed to the pace of land and any messages the Raven had for me came in as an imprint.  No English.  No monologues.  Undefined.

The magic of this moment stretched out, as the Raven took a short vertical flight and the feather lifted off the roof and twirled to the ground in front of me.

I picked it up and said aloud, “Thank You.”  The feather was still warm.

Magic unfolds when we speak our truth, when we ask openly into the Mysteries of Life.

This story is not about getting what I asked for and seeing this feather as a thing that proves power or prowess.

We don’t know how everything’s going to unfold or end up.  We don’t know who will play along with us.  We definitely don’t know how long it will take to complete.

And this is living with magic in your life:  asking your real questions and letting go of self-judgment.  It is giving to others and walking into their magic stream.  Not counting on time or momentum.  Even letting go of meaning, especially when it allows you to feel more.

It is being comfortable that there is more to this worldthan meets the eye.  You knew it when you were 8.   Wake up, little Dreamer, there are thousands of us waiting to make magic with you.