2023: The Year of the Black Swan
Come out, come out wherever you are. . .
It is one of the most humbling parts of my calling: receiving visions. I never know when, how, or at what point the animal spirit for the year will be revealed to me. However, I always know when I have received it. This year’s spirit animal feels particularly special. I wondered why I felt more of a tug on my heart. This year’s spirit animal brings with it a deep emotional connection, one that, I believe—is an omen to the emotional breakthrough and freedom that is up ahead.
Dear Unrecognized Swan,
There is knowledge, information about yourself that you now know and believe—information that, perhaps you are now wondering, why you hadn’t known this all along. Perhaps, you grew up thinking you were the Ugly Duckling, the weak, and inferior one—and now, today, you see something else, something quite special…different. If last year’s spirit anmial, the Beaver, was about the underdogs and misfits returning, this year—the Black Swan is a beckon that you are here to stay. Not only are you here to stay, but you are being asked to move, flow, and take up space in all that you are, with love and power. The Black Swan brings with it a message that this year is about the grace you have found along the way, its about embracing every part of you—including what you have seen and how you see the world. As you are being encoruaged to move to the beat of what has made you you, all of your life expriences and the strengths born from overcoming your past—know that you are permantley moving your story from a position of victim to victor, and as a result of who you are and the season you are entering, expect great…astounding things being born out of this year. Let me say it this way: prepare to be amazed, to be blown away.
Guidance for this Year
Mindfully Detaching & Disassociating
You are strong enough, you are wise enough, healed enough to accept who you are, your past, and if not all of it, at least in part, the events of your life that have caused you great pain, shame, and anxiety. And, no matter where you are in the process of acceptance and acknowledgement, know that you will grow more fully there. It’s important, now, to grow in your awarenss of the system(s) that have been at work, the systems that perpetuated the cycles and patterns you now find yourself, compassiantely, undoing. It’s important to recognize, too, the systems that others have been a part of and, how unknowingly, they were perpetuating the message and values of that system, values and messages that, if taken the time to really examine, may have proven not to be completely their own.
Without blame, but through the wisdom and love that you have gained along the way, imagine yourself detaching from those systems. Imagine yourself detaching from the people, the environments that have held you down, that have made you feel as if you had no power…no agency in the matter, when, in fact, you always had. Imagine the self, the part of you that has carried the weight of these experiences, the shame, the hurt, the blame—imagine the darkness of this part of you, your past—imagine that darkness growing lighter and becoming more clear, becoming more pure and white. Sit and hold this energy in the area of your solar plexus and heart chakra.
It is time, now, that you gently detach from the history and chronicity of your experience(s)—holding on to that kind of weight has and will only hold you down. Allow yourself to be renewed, to revisit your past with new eyes and strength.
Creating the LINK TO YOUR HIGHER SELF
Imagine, as vividly as possible, the you that has been impacted by the systems, by the things that you have felt so closely identified to that it has left you feeling shameful, dark, and heavy—as you see this part of your past, begin to imagine the perspective, the wisdom you have taken away. How, despite its consequences, did this help you grow into becoming a more loving and powerful being? You might care to imagine this part of you as being a small child, a child with your hand outstretched and reaching for help and guidance, not passively or from a place of fear, but from willingness—from inner will. Imagine this part of you doing this from a place of readiness and as you do so, looking up with your arm outstretched—you then grasp the hand of your higher self, the part of you that is your soul, the part of you that has always been with you, guiding you even in the darkest of nights. Imagine your smaller, childlike self, being strengthened from the connection to your higher self, imagine you being freed from the heaviness of your past, imagine that dark cloud turning into a beautiful golden light. Hear your higher self verbally and from its heart center, giving you permission to move on…to let go.
You are catching up and learning to live in your post-traumatic growth. There is strength and power that your past has bestowed upon you and its time to live firmly from that place. Wear your crown.
Courageously Seeking Alchemy
My sense is, you've been on this path, this journey…this quest and pilgrimage for quite some time. I know the amount of endurance, courage of heart and Faith it has asked and bestowed within you. And what I sense that you are ready to embrace now is the magnitude and beauty of what still remains up ahead. You are ready to surrender to the expansive process that is taking place both consciously and subconscilusly within you. You are ready to give into the mystery of it, that despite the many times your mind will lead you to attempt to analyze and figure out what is happening along the way, you are more willing than ever to walk away from these empty attempts…you are now more obedient, trustworthy that you are being guided, that even when you can’t see it, things are being worked out within and for you. Yes, you are transforming. Yes, harmony is being brought to your mind, body, and soul. You are seeking and achieving alchemy. Wholeness is the result. This point is an acceptance, a recognition that you will need to carry with you this year and return back to, repeatedly.
A SHIFT IN HEART CONSCIOUSNESS
See the Black Swan, see you, gracefully and gently moving in your own power across the lake. Feel the calm, the peace that arises from knowing yoruself, accepting your past, and being kind to all parts of you, to you as a whole. Notice what it feels like to have kindness even, for the people and situations that have caused you great pain and turmoil. Notice the Black Swan moving in harmony, going where it needs to go, where it wants to go. The Black Swan moves from a place of gratitude, connectedness to a deep place of inner truth, guidance, love and power.
As you move through this year, know that you are being strengthened and freed to live and move on. Notice the thoughts, people, environments, and actions that rob you of this flow and truth—and when you do, gently acknowledge and accept this, returning to what you know to be true…what feels good and right for you.
You have gained access to clear and true knowledge of yourself. You are NOT the Ugly Duckling, you are not the weak person that they thought you were—you are not crazy, you are YOU. Take yourself, now, to where you want and need to go. Remember and connect with this energy each and every day. Your greatest challenge this year, will be allowing yourself to gain access to what you now see, believe, and desire for you. You have shifted, after all, to a pure place of heart consciousness. Live from this place, now, Black Swan. Love and see from this place, Black Swan. You are ready. You are more than ready.