Who’s Coming to Dinner?

I was peacefully weeding my garden when I noticed a shift in the energy. Looking up I spied a raccoon attempting to nonchalantly stroll down the sidewalk. I ducked into the house for my camera and when I returned the ‘coon ducked into the shrubbery.

As we contemplated each other from a respectful distance my animal communication background kicked in and I realized that he intended to steal a chicken from my neighbors.

I was faced with a dilemma. Did I rat him out? After all, he needed to feed himself. On the other hand I liked the chickens. It was the classic dilemma faced by anyone who loves wildlife.

I decided to let nature take its course. After all, the chickens were the responsibility of my neighbors, not mine. It was one reason why I had decided not to have chickens of my own. I would have felt it necessary to construct a Fort Knox-like fortification to kee p the local coyotes out (and apparently the raccoons). MY chickens would end up being cosseted members of my family, and for now I wanted to put dog adoption first.

The raccoon was still undecided as to which side of the equation I was voting on, and just as I was thinking about returning to the weeding my neighbor headed toward his car (and the raccoon).

By now the raccoon had stepped out onto the sidewalk to better assess the situation. My neighbor was oblivious, and did not see the raccoon even when I pointed to him.

When my neighbor finally did see the very visible raccoon he casually mentioned that something had attacked one of their chickens yesterday. Apparently the poor hen looked scalped, she was missing all the feathers off the back of her head. They found her under the house where she had taken refuge.

I failed to see how he could be so casual about it—I would have been rushing the chicken to the vet and plying it with Reiki and shamanic energy healing for shock and injury.

I did get clear about where I stood in the whole drama. I was on the side of the raccoon AND the chickens. If they were my chickens I would do my very best to protect them by understanding the abilities of coyotes and raccoons and creating an environment that was as safe as possible. If one did manage to snag an unwary chicken I would honor and respect the ability of the predator and build a bridge of light for the chicken.

Now the raccoon knew where I stood, and seized his chance to exit the scene (sans chicken dinner) by running across the street, passing through the relative safety of my back yard.

I’m sure I’ll see him again. I suspect the chickens will, too.

>>>>>>>>>>

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Think Outside the Cage
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About Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing:

In private practice since 1996, Rose De Dan, Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing, is a mesa carrier in the Peruvian shamanic tradition, animal communicator, Reiki Master Teacher, author and artist. As an animal shaman she views her mission as one of building bridges between people and animals through healing sessions, classes, ceremonies and events such as A Walk on the Wild Side: Answering the Call of the Wild.

Rose’s book Tails of a Healer: Animals, Reiki and Shamanism features heartwarming stories about animals and their role in her evolution as an energy worker and shamanic healer.

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