Owl Wisdom

The other night while walking the dogs, our dog Sheba barked just a little and that made me look back towards the house... Well, to my amazement right on top of our roof there was a White Barn Owl.

Oh what amazing creatures those Owls are. As soon as I looked back, it was ready to take off so he/she spread the wings and took off flying by graciously.

I've always loved owls and specially these white barn ones that live in our little island, they are so cool looking and I am glad this is not the first time I've seen them.


Now, if I look up the symbolizing of Owls, I have to say that there are lots of controversy whether they are good omens or not. So, of all the articles I read, here are some parts of the best one:

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The White Barn Owl: 
Keynotes: The Mystery of Magick, Omens, Silent Wisdom and Visionaries of the Night 
Cycle of Power: Nocturnal, Year-Round

No bird has as much myth and mystery surrounding it than the owl. Most perceptions of it are very confused.

It is not unusual to get contrary opinions of the owl. It has an ancient aura of mystery about it. Part of this is because it is a nocturnal bird and usually never seen in the day time. And this has always seemed mysterious to humans.

The Owl is a symbol of the feminine, the moon, and night. It has been called a “cat with wings”. It has been worshiped as an idol and hated as the reincarnation of the devil. Owls have great healing powers, both in North America and on other continents. Because of the association with the Moon, it has ties to fertility and seduction, for the Moon is the arouser of Men and owls. The owl is the bird of magick and darkness, of prophecy and wisdom.

To the ancient Greeks, the owl was associated with the Goddess Athena, and it was a symbol of higher wisdom and direct communication with aspects of one’s Higher Self. Owl medicine is symnbollicaly associated with clairvoyance and astral projection and both black and white magick.The Owl can teach all the secrets of the night. 

There are over 100 species of owls and they have always had an intimate link to humans. Wherever humans live, so do rodents, the primary food of owls.The barn owl, because of its heart-shaped facial disc, reflects the ability to link heart and mind.  This is part of what this animal teaches. It also has darker eyes. It has a golden buff feathering on top and white feathering beneath. The common barn own has also been named Ghost Owl due to its links with the spiritual world. . 

The Barn owl is a Master hunter because of its hearing ability.  In fact, a large portion of the Owl’s brain is devoted to sorting out the auditory signals it picks up (It is very aware of its surroundings and when the owls presents itself to you, IT WANTS TO BE SEEN. It wants you to notice it. Otherwise he would stick to the shadows, which they mostly do). 

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Other articles where people ask what does it mean to see a White Barn Owl, they said:

"It was said that when anyone saw a owl it was the messenger of the Goddess Athena--and Athena was watching over you and sending you her Wisdom.. It was also considered a good sign to have a Owl enter your life or watch over you. So if I was you I would feel very special indeed--an Owl has entered your life and just Like Athena you must be very special and have much wisdom to pass on to others."

My personal interpretation of the encounter with the owl; is just the same as when I encounter any other animal that I love and that I enjoy watching in nature. It is such a privilege to share our planet with such amazing beings.

And if I were to give it a symbolism I would go for the fact that the Owl just as us share a place in this world and if they are in fact wise, with their presence they reminded me that we need to preserve our world and maybe that is the wisdom and teachings I need to pass on to others.

What do you think it symbolizes? Have you ever encounter an owl in the wild? What other amazing encounters you've had?

Have a wonderful weekend with some unique encounters!!! Happy Friday : D

Bye, bye June...

hello July!!!

This year is flying by like the speed of light. I still remember when I was looking forward to our Mexico Trip, around this same time last year, and now here we are in July again!

So, this year, instead of looking forward to a trip in July, I am looking forward to go a trip in August instead.

My new godson Julian

My vacations got approved this past week and I should be packing my bags and leaving the second week of August.

Going back to Costa Rica to visit my family and attend the very important event, the Baptism of my new godson Julian!

Yay! I am so excited!

The trip is going to be a short one (just one week) and unfortunately I will be going by myself, mostly because the tickets are so expen$$ive that, we think it's just the best way to go.

On the bright side, I do have 3 weeks vacation so what I am doing instead is bringing my Mom to stay with us for two whole weeks and that is making me SO HAPPY!!!!! I can't wait to have her around for that long.

So, now let's all put our energy together so July goes by smoothly and fast, and soon we will be in August and it'll be time for my trip...

Meanwhile, today is the last day of June, so let's make the best of it and close another month of 2011 in the best possible way!!!

Have a great last day of June!!!!

still learning

There's a time in our life when we realize that every little thing that we learn makes a difference in our life.

When we are little and we learn, we take most of it for granted, in some cases people learn the bad habits better than the good ones.

Do you remember when you learn to be polite? To say hello, please and thank you, when needed? Most people never even learned this and when adults they continue the chain of event by passing on the same thing to their kids.

All I am saying it that, at this point of my life, learning new things is important and it doesn't only make me a better person but helps me deal better with others.

So far I've learn:

1. That when I say I am going to do something for somebody I will do it, and if it's not possible for me, then I have to say it, face the consequences but always taking responsibility of my acts. This applies for big important stuff as well as little details like; returning a call or an email, helping a friend in need.

2. People that drive really slow in traffic are not going to speed up all of sudden just because they are getting on my nerves, so instead of getting all "road rage" on myself, I rather just take a deep breath and deal with it patiently.

3. When people say "Can I ask you a stupid question?", the question they usually formulate is not stupid at all. Now, the people that really ask stupid questions don't give you any warning whatsoever and they just throw it out there for you to deal with it in the best possible way.

4. When I have customers with kids at the gallery, I know I have to keep an eye on their kids because most parents nowadays don't pay enough attention to what their kids do, they act as if they don't even know the. If people have kids, they need to care and pay very close attention to them while they are little.

5. Most people don't know that once you get married, you have not only the role of wife, but several others: friend, teacher, nurse, mother (if you have kids, and sometimes if you need to act like one to your own husband) and even cheerleader. Each roles comes with a big responsibility and commitment.

6. Don't say it if you don't mean it. And if you mean it, say it in the best possible way.

Well... I am going to stick with just those for today... but I promise to keep sharing what I learn.

So, what have you learned lately and feel like teaching me about?

Have a wonderful Wednesday!!!

are u talking to me?

Have you ever had a conversation with somebody and once it's finished, you realized that the person completely mistaken you for somebody else?!?

In my case, it happened. Once at work we volunteer to help out with an local event, after the event was finished with picked up the inventory that was left, took it back to the store and then in the following days proceed to count it.

Well, after all was done, this girl comes upstairs and asks for Sue (the manager)... well that's obviously not my name, but being that one of my nicknames is Sol (short for Mariasol), in all honestly (and being that the girl was from some very remote area of Scotland and with a pretty strong Scot accent), I heard her said Sol.

So, we talked, she thanked me for the work and all we did for them (which in a way, I was part of it) and gave me a little thank you note on an envelope, so as she walked out I starting walking towards my desk, I look down to the envelope and I read it says: Sue.

What an idiot, it wasn't me who she was looking for, but Sue (which she's obviously never met before).

All of the sudden I felt the heat rising up on my body and the embarrassment taking over me.

I felt s o b a d....

But of course, before I made matters worst, immediately told my boss, she laughed and said, well, you better call her, explain and tell her "you are not me, even though deep inside you wish you were", LOL!!!

So I did call her and explained, she totally understood and a few days later came back to the store to actually thank Sue in person.

Yes, it wasn't the proudest moment of my life, but I survived it... Has something like this ever happened to you? Hope not... but if so, tell me about it!

Have an awesome day!!!!

Past few days

The end of a nice weekend, can only mean the beginning of a good week.

The past few days, I had time to:

1. Spend it with friends. On Friday me and a group of girlfriends had a "Girls Bowling Night" and we had a fabulous time.

2. Finally after months of trying to start up the process to become a volunteer for a good cause, I believe I am finally in the right track.

On Saturday I received my very first training on Child Sexual Abuse which is a very important requirement to become a volunteer mentor for a little girl with the program Big Brothers & Big Sisters of the Cayman Islands.

I find this to be a great opportunity for me to help, teach, inspire and hopefully bring joy to the life a little girl and by this fulfilling my own with the chance to make a difference in another person life!

3. The weather was nice. We had some sun and we had some rain. When it rained at times it poured and it kind of made me feel that the Hurricane Season is really upon us, hoping for no storms in the coming months.

4. Yesterday Sunday, I went back to Church again after a few months. It was great to be around people that are really committed to their faith and although I am a firm believer that building a faith and a relationship with God doesn't necessary mean you have to go to church every Sunday, I do know that God gives me so much, so an hour of mass a week is not even giving him back half of that he blesses me with every day.

On another note, today marks the 1st Anniversary of my Grandmother's (Leticia) death. I think of her often and wonder how she is and where she is.

I can't really say I miss her because after she had her stroke she was in a bed for a pretty long time. So, I do miss the Grandmother that saw me grown, teach me about God and Life, but not the one that past away a year ago.

I still miss her and I know for a fact she looks after me, because she always did while alive, so there's no doubt in my mind that being closer to God, she is doing an even better job. God Bless you Tita wherever you are, I love You!

Have a wonderful Monday and rest of the week...