It’s Sunday, and I had a lot of household chores to do. I thought it might be a boring day, but boy, was I wrong…

Crow Rogue and the Seagull: I had some leftovers to put out for the crows. Lately that has involved running interference for them against a seagull who perches on the roof across the street, patiently waiting for me to put something out. Now, I grew up on the Jersey shore, and happen to like seagulls. When we went fishing I made a point of feeding them what was left from cleaning what we caught. However, in an urban setting they are trash cans on wings. It seems that there is nothing they won’t eat, and nothing is too big to swallow.

This morning I had a particularly tasty treat of leftover ham salad, something I know the crows love. I placed the container in a spot that was easily accessible, and far enough away from the house that they could see my cat Manitou coming. I think I had taken three steps back to the house before the seagull beat the crows to the ham salad. Normally when that happens the crows keep a respectful distance since seagulls are quite a bit larger, and quite scrappy. I don’t know if this time crow Rogue had had enough, or whether he was inspired by the gourmet treat. He snuck up behind the seagull and tweaked his tail feathers—hard. And he did it again, three more times. The seagull pretty much ignored him, so I moved toward the seagull clearly projecting that I wanted him to move off and take turns. He almost complied. So I had to rush him off, and when I did Rogue dove into the ham salad. He was so determined that he was going to get his share that he kept on shoveling it in while Manitou stalked toward him, hopeful that this time he would hit the jackpot—ham salad and crow—finally getting to within three feet. I wanted to laugh, because Manitou had committed to the stalk, but he was used to Rogue taking off. He was a bit nonplussed by the lack of reaction and really wasn’t sure if he wanted to find out what kind of fight he was in for if he jumped Rogue…never a dull moment.

Shipping Papers: I had a large shipping box to break down (from ordering a snow shovel, of all things), and it contained one of Night Sky’s favorite toys—reams of nice, crinkly shipping paper. Before stuff like that gets put in recycling it may spend several weeks being put through the Night Sky system of paper tossing and shredding. He had a grand time playing hide-and-seek and pounce-and-tear.

Hummingbird Courtship: I was taking out the trash, and I heard a really loud whistling sound. Looking up I saw a female hummingbird sitting on a branch in the laurel hedge, keeping an eye on my resident male who was doing a bit of showing off. However, she was not impressed, and zoomed off with the male in hot pursuit.

Nacho Comes Calling: I had not seen him for a bit, but this afternoon I became aware that Nacho (he now has a collar with his name on it, so I no longer call him Stranger Cat) was back in his usual spot on my front porch. He loves to hunker down in the shelter of my front door and watch the birds.

My first awareness that he was there was the sound of growling. Manitou was outside, to the left of the glass door, and was clearly not happy. Perhaps because he is still recovering from the muscle wasting that the hyperthyroidism causes—or maybe because Nacho ignores Manitou, refusing to give up the enjoyment of cat TV—for whatever reason, Manitou did not escalate the issue. However, his buddy Night Sky thought a few rounds with Nacho would be just the thing to spice up his day, and was madly pawing at the glass door like he could dig his way out.

I saw Manitou slowly slinking away, hoping to not be noticed by Nacho. I took pity on Manitou, and called to him from the back door (there is no loss of face in the cat world if your person calls you home, lol). Throughout all of this, Nacho serenely continued watching the birds…

Cat Compliments: Before serving dinner to my cats, I decided to take my usual walk through the neighborhood. At one house I passed, the large female cat-in-residence saw me, meowed, rose to her tiptoes in a stretch, and kind of stretch/walked her way 10 feet to me for some pets. She loves being where the action is, and enjoys a good gossip. Her people hadn’t come home yet when I walked by yesterday, and she was so lonesome that she insisted on following me down the block, and around the corner. I was seriously concerned that she might follow me home, but thankfully she stayed at the edge of her territory. Today she just wanted a meet and greet.

Continuing on, I came to the street where female black cat Luna lives. Her people swear that Luna loves me so much they would not be surprised if she followed me home one day. I have known her to come out in the pouring rain to say hello and throw herself at my feet in a luxurious stretch and roll with belly showing—just so I would stop and pet her. Today it was sunny, and she was stretched out having a nap on the window ledge, tucked up against the siding which was sun-warmed, too. I tried to be quiet as I passed by so that I would not disturb her nap, but she was having none of it. She left her nice, sunny spot, leapt to the railing, jumped the fence, bounced down the steps, and hurled herself at my feet—major activity after being so relaxed. I made much of her for so much effort. I told her that she made my day, that I was honored that she had gone to so much effort to say hello. There is no greater compliment a cat could give.

So, today I got my chores done, but I also had a lot of interaction with my wild and domestic neighbors. Upon reflection, I am so grateful for the presence of Reiki energy and shamanic allies in my life. Both have increased my awareness of All My Relations, and their trust in me. Magical moments.

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A WILD WAY TO HEAL
Rose De Dan, Wild Reiki and Shamanic Healing LLC, is an animal communicator, Reiki Master Teacher, shamanic energy healer, and author. Her classes, sessions and ceremonial work are inspired by wild and domestic animals who have issued a call to action for personal and global healing.

Her 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.