Once again, guidance has arrived for me, seemingly out of thin air. As it happens on a daily basis, there is no doubt in my mind that it isn’t a coincidence that odd things catch my attention as I’m going about my days. If you’re interested in intuition and receiving Divine Guidance, I have a story for you. 

A few weeks ago, I was out for a walk in Nature, visiting the creek. I noticed a man gazing at the flowing water and (in my head) heard “What’s he looking at?” in a tone distinct from my usual voice.

This got my attention! He didn’t appear to be overly friendly, so instead of saying, “Hey mister, whatchya looking at?”, I lingered until he moved along and then I took his place at the fence.

Holy #@$%! (That was definitely my own voice.) There’s a heron standing in the creek! In the six years I’ve frequented this park, I’ve only once seen a heron here.

I was transfixed. I wanted to share this exciting news, but all the people passing by were plugged into devices or conversations, so instead, I enjoyed this visitation in quiet reverence.

I noticed how he (yes, that’s the sense I got. I have no proof, but it felt right to call him a he) stood upright, very still in the middle of the creek. Watching. Waiting. Fishing, obviously, but in a very dignified way.

Not like the ducks I see every day who look like they’re bobbing for apples or the smaller birds who dart around constantly. 

No, this guy was letting the fish come to him. 

“I’m gonna just stand here until my fish comes by,” seemed to be the message he was transmitting.

I eventually moved on, keeping one eye of the path, the other on the creek.

Soon I saw a big lump of … is that a duck? Very unusual. Especially as I only moments ago thought about the amusing upside-down ducks I often see here, with their heads underwater and butts in the air. 

This duck was all tucked into itself, sleeping on a log. A sitting duck. That phrase describes someone who is exposed and vulnerable. And a few feet away, on that same log, a turtle. Sunning himself, as they do. This guy had stuck out his neck as if watching over the duck. Very curios indeed.

Heron, duck, turtle. 

There’s a message here.

I just KNEW it.

I could do an online search for “spiritual meaning” of these animals, but I prefer to work with my own personal Lexicon.

What do they mean to me?

I’m not going to get into the whole interpretation. It’s directly related to the new moon intention I set recently and more personal than I care to share online. The process was simple, though. I spent some time with my journal brainstorming about “wait for the bounty to come to you”, “sitting duck”, “stick out your neck for a friend” and in a few minutes had a reasonably clear insight about action to take in conjunction with the seeds I planted on the new moon. 

While I’m not publishing the complete message, I did want to share this as a sort of formula: being open to intuition, catching the clues, and working them out for myself.

Most importantly, I was available to receive the message unlike everyone around me who was focused on their exercise, music or screen. I was present, tuned into the environment and available to receive the message.

On my return trip, the heron lifted off and I was treated to the view of his huge wingspan, which caused me to gasp and my jaw to drop. Yet, nobody else noticed. 🤔 

I later opened the Merlin app that I use to identify birdsong. I laughed to find the bird of the day is… wait for it… a heron. Coincidence or confirmation?

It’s been some time since I wrote about connecting with intuition. It’s become such a part of my daily life that I don’t much think about it. But it’s come up often in sessions with clients lately, so it was on my mind this morning.

You may be thinking, hey Pamela, you’re always talking about following the breadcrumbs, isn’t that the same as intuition? That’s fair. I often wonder this myself.

Here’s what I have to offer from my current level of understanding. The “breadcrumbs” are from an external source, call it Life, Love, God, the Universe, Spirit, guiding me. I differentiate this from my “intuition” which is the internal nudge I feel to take notice of the breadcrumbs. 

Intuition is how I receive Divine Guidance. Lots of people say they want access, but they haven’t practiced being still and quiet long enough for the messages to get through. Like in the good ole days when you actually had to answer the phone while it was ringing to speak to the caller. You had to be at home, ready and able to pick up the phone. You couldn’t be on another call or in the shower or have your hands full, metaphorically or literally.

Nowadays what I see are people constantly consuming (scrolling, watching reels, plugged into podcasts or plain old digital nonsense), which does not leave any space for messages to drop in. If you can’t walk your dog around the block without staring at a screen, well, come on, how do you expect magical information to reach you?

In between smart phone addiction and living in a cave in the Himalayas, there’s a vast middle ground where we can cultivate capacity to receive. I recorded a lesson and practice on the “why and how to receive” theme and it’s available in The Toolshed. This is my latest offering where I post a practical tool for subscribers each month on a hot-topic. 

You can learn to be receptive if you make time and are capable of paying attention. There are tons of ways to do this, so you needn’t visit The Toolshed if it doesn’t resonate. But you’ll likely have to do something. Burning bushes are exceedingly rare and I’ve yet to meet someone who enjoyed an intuitive connection who didn’t have a major intervention in the form of accident or illness who wasn’t devoted to some form of practice.

Sure, like Mozart, some people are naturally gifted, but most of us have to put in the time to develop our skills. 

My intuition has been an invaluable resource for me. I usually feel like I’m on my path, moving in the appropriate direction and that everything will work out somehow. When I’m not, I feel like I’m being thrown about without a raft in the stormy seas. 

Reiki has been the bridge that helped me get out of the perpetual thought loops and land in my body, capable of intercepting messages.

Getting into a rhythm with treatments or learning to give yourself Reiki consistently (Yes! You can easily learn how to use Reiki. Anyone can do this and I can teach you!) could be the portal you’ve been looking for to access your intuition and its priceless wisdom.