Transformative and Inspirational Living with Lucy Harmer – December 2009

Each month author Lucy Harmer dedicates her journal entries to the theme of “transformative and inspirational living” – finding the fun, magic and laughter in everyday occurrences! She explores ideas, thoughts and quotes from her two books, Discovering Your Spirit Animal and Shamanic Astrology.

December 2009

Lions, Bears and Elephants!
How to Recognize Your Spirit Animal

© Copyright 2009 Lucy Harmer

I have just returned from being a guest speaker at the national Shamanic Conference in Switzerland and the Mind, Body, Spirit Festival in Geneva. A question that I am frequently asked is: “How can I be certain that a particular animal is really my spirit animal?” This month’s journal entry explores this question.

In my book, Discovering Your Spirit Animal, I present many different techniques to help you find your spirit animal, whether it be through dreaming, shamanic journeying, dancing your animal, going on a vision quest, observing your aura, or creative visualization. You can use whichever method feels best for you.

The people I speak to in courses, seminars and conferences have often completed an exercise to discover their spirit animal. However, they sometimes question what they have experienced and are not sure whether to trust their intuition. They want to know how they can be sure that the animal they have met is really their own personal spirit animal.

One of the ways you can be certain is to ask your spirit animal to give you a really clear sign. One of the stories I tell in my book is of a friend who discovered his spirit animal through creative visualization. During his visualization he felt as if he was on the back of a lion for a few seconds. However, he didn’t feel any particular affinity with the lion and a year later he was still wondering if this was his own personal spirit animal. Every year I organize a party at Christmas and ask everyone to bring a small gift to put into a lucky dip. This particular year, my friend mentioned his frustration at not knowing his spirit animal for sure; he questioned again whether it was in fact the lion. I told him to ask for a clear sign from his spirit animal, which he did. Just before leaving, he put his hand into the lucky dip and drew out a small packet. He was absolutely delighted upon opening it to discover a miniature lion!

Getting to know your spirit animal is a process of trusting your own intuition and reading the signs that present themselves in your life. All you need to do is to ask for a confirmation from your spirit animal and keep your eyes and ears open to the different signs that can present themselves.

A few weeks ago, one of my readers wrote to me about her experience of discovering her spirit animal (an elephant). She wrote:

“I was traveling home on the train from work and reading your book, Discovering Your Spirit Animal. I asked my spirit animal if it would reveal itself to me as I opened the book up at random… and as I turned a page, there it was! I asked that night for a confirmation through a dream and I got one – it was incredibly thrilling! I cannot remember ever having had a dream about this animal before. I would never have guessed it to be my spirit animal, but since that night it has appeared frequently in my life. Thank you for this thrill of knowing I have an animal which accompanies me on my journey! The morning after my dream, I saw a statue of my particular animal at a shop I often go to. There had never been a statue of this animal there before, so I took it as a sign and bought it. It is now in pride of place on my balcony, looking very regal – as it should.”

I received another email from a reader who wrote to me after trying out the dream exercise in my book. In her dream she heard a roar and wasn’t sure if it was a lion’s roar. She researched lion roars on the internet and listened closely to them, but could not duplicate the sound she had heard. Finally, her boyfriend suggested she try bears roars – because her mom was always saying that she was “like a bear” in the mornings! She found a roar that matched the one in her dream exactly.

When asking for a sign from your spirit animal, don’t forget that animals don’t always appear in the form you want them to appear; you may hear sounds, smell, or “feel” them, rather than see them. Keep all your senses peeled and enjoy finding the clues! I always enjoy hearing the stories of how spirit animals show themselves in different ways in people’s lives.

This month I wish you every success in your journey of discovering and developing a relationship with your spirit animal. I wish you lots of fun together over the holidays!

Love and blessings,

Lucy

Shamanic Astrology is available for purchase directly through NorthAtlanticBooks.com, as well as major book stores and online retailers.

CLICK HERE to learn more about courses, seminars and workshops offered by Lucy Harmer.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Shamanic Astrology.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Discovering Your Spirit Animal.

Author Symposium: ALL ABOUT CHI

An acupuncturist, a Reiki teacher, and two artists who work with chi and creativity and chi gung will present their healing arts on Saturday, Nov. 21 from 2-4 p.m. at Berkeley Public Central Library in downtown Berkeley. This is the second author panel in the free series Get Well! Alternative Practitioners Talk With You About Healing, sponsored by North Atlantic Books and Berkeley Public Library.

Moderator for the Nov. symposium is Lindy Hough, Co-Founder and Publisher of North Atlantic Books in Berkeley.
The panelists:
- Kaleo and Elise Ching, Chi and Chi Gung;
Authors of Chi and Creativity: Vital Energy and Your Inner Artist
- Don Beckett, Reiki healer;
Author of Reiki–The True Story: An Exploration of Usui Reiki
- Robert Johns, Acupuncturist;
Author of The Art of Acupuncture Techniques

Authors will describe their practices and theoretical framework and read from their books. Audience questions will be followed by a book signing.

Kaleo and Elise Ching live and practice in El Cerrito, Robert Johns practices in Berkeley, and Reiki teacher Don Beckett is from Mesa, Arizona.

“We’re interested in helping people understand how these modalities work and how effective they are. Hearing how our authors, who are also practitioners, treat different diseases helps people see whether a given modality might be helpful with their own troublesome conditions or something a loved one is struggling with.” Most people who don’t use alternative medicine find it hard to distinguish how these different systems work. “The goal of the November panel is to have the audience come away with a clearer idea of how chi energy works in Reiki, acupuncture, chi gung and creative work,” Hough said.

“The Berkeley Public Library is excited to be working in partnership with North Atlantic Books to better serve the interest in mind/body/spirit their readers are seeking,” said Douglas Smith, Deputy Director of the Library. “We’re pleased to be expanding our programming, outreach, and collections in these important directions.”

ALL ABOUT CHI
Get Well! Alternative Practitioners Answer Your Questions About Healing series
Saturday, November 21, 2009
2pm-4pm
Berkeley Public Central Library
3rd Floor Community Meeting Room
2090 Kittredge Street
Berkeley, CA 94704

Do you plan to attend this event?

Wheelchair accessible. To request a sign language interpreter, real-time captioning, materials in large print or Braille, or other accommodations for this event, please call (510) 981-6107 (voice) or (510) 548-1240 (TTY); at least five working days will ensure availability. Please refrain from wearing scented products to public programs.

Transformative and Inspirational Living with Lucy Harmer – November 2009

Each month author Lucy Harmer dedicates her journal entries to the theme of “transformative and inspirational living” – finding the fun, magic and laughter in everyday occurrences! She explores ideas, thoughts and quotes from her two books, Discovering Your Spirit Animal and Shamanic Astrology.

November 2009

Shamanic Astrology
Exploring the Personality of your Spirit Animal Sign

© Copyright 2009 Lucy Harmer

Last month in my journal (October 2009), I gave an overview of what Shamanic Astrology is. This month, I am going to explore the twelve spirit animal signs of the medicine wheel a little deeper, so that you can begin to discover the special qualities each sign possesses.

There are twelve astrological “signs” on the medicine wheel, which are represented by twelve different spirit animals. Shamanic Astrology teaches us that inner power derives from knowing the properties, characteristics, and qualities of each spirit animal (known as their “medicine”), and applying this in our own lives.

To get you started, here are some of the main strengths and weaknesses of each of the twelve spirit animals. It is really interesting to note that weaknesses are often just a mirror of our strengths and qualities. What we see as “weaknesses” can often be transformed into “strengths.” Take Falcon people, for example, whose “weaknesses” can be their tendency to be impulsive and headstrong. Transformed, these qualities become Falcon people’s strengths – their spontaneity and pioneering nature.

(If you are not sure which spirit animal sign you are, you can find out by looking your birthday up in the second table below – “Which animal sign are you?”)

Strengths and Weaknesses of the twelve spirit animal signs:

I always find it fascinating to look up the qualities of my friends, family and work colleagues. It is amazing how much their spirit animal sign can tell you about why they may behave in certain ways!

You can find out more about the personality of your own spirit animal and how you relate to the other signs, in my book Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign. You can also discover the different spirit animal clans that you, your friends and family belong to, and your own special plant, stone, element, color and life path.

Which animal sign are you?
To find your spirit animal sign, just locate your birthday from the dates below, according to your place of birth. If you were born north of the equator (eg; USA, Canada, Europe), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Northern Hemisphere.” If you were born south of the equator (eg; Australia, New Zealand, South Africa), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Southern Hemisphere.”

This month, I wish you lots of fun and magic in exploring the strengths and qualities of your own spirit animal sign, and discovering those of your friends, family and work colleagues too!

Love and blessings,
Lucy

Shamanic Astrology is available for purchase directly through NorthAtlanticBooks.com, as well as major book stores and online retailers.

CLICK HERE to learn more about courses, seminars and workshops offered by Lucy Harmer.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Shamanic Astrology.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Discovering Your Spirit Animal.

Lucy Harmer’s Shamanic Astrology Forecast – October 23 to November 21: SNAKE

“Lucy Harmer’s style is simple and her astrological information amazingly accurate… her book is an inspiration to us all.”
– Mark Woodley, schools director of the British Astrological and Psychic Society

Welcome to Lucy Harmer’s Shamanic Astrology monthly forecast for the Northern Hemisphere! Each month Lucy will share inspiration and ideas for the coming weeks from her book Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign.

Shamanic Astrology is based on the study of the movement of the sun and the moon during the different seasons of the year. There are twelve astrological “signs” which are represented by twelve different spirit animals. To find out your own personal spirit animal sign (the sign you were born under), please check the table of spirit animals at the end of this article. Shamanic Astrology teaches us that inner power derives from knowing the properties, characteristics, and qualities of each spirit animal (known as their “medicine”), and applying this in our own lives.

Each month I will focus on the spirit animal for that month, and describe the “energy” of the month itself and also the influence of the moon. I will also indicate which other spirit animal signs will find this month to be particularly beneficial, and why.

October 23 – November 21: SNAKE

Month of Frosts and Transformation

Spirit Animal Sign of the Month:
Snake is the spirit animal which corresponds to October 23 – November 21 (in the northern hemisphere). If you were born at this time, your spirit animal sign is Snake and you share Snake’s strengths of being imaginative, accommodating, passionate, strong, charismatic, discerning and tender. You may also share some of Snake’s weaknesses and can have a tendency to be headstrong, jealous, secretive, hypercritical, compulsive and grudge-bearing.

Medicine: Snake’s medicine is the ability to accept change easily, to adapt, and to live each experience to the fullest. This can be used in any situation to let go and welcome change with joy.
Element: Water
Stone: Malachite and Copper
Color: Burnt Orange
Plant: Thistle

Energy of the season:
Snake’s month is the time of frosts and transformation. The sun has now lost most of its strength. Dead leaves cover the ground, starting to turn into mulch to replenish the earth; the process of death and transformation has started. Growth slows down and energy is driven inward. This month is a good time for understanding the past and taking stock of the things that matter, so as to prepare for the start of the new cycle. It is a favorable time for breaking free from old bonds, leaving the past and moving in a different direction. It is propitious for reflecting on how to use your energy and inner resources in the future.

Energy of the moon:
Snake’s new moon started on October 18th and the full moon is on November 2nd. The period from October 23rd until November 2nd is the ideal time for recharging your batteries and transforming the things that no longer work in your life. It is a good time to clear clutter and transform old patterns of behavior. After the full moon, from November 3rd until November 15th, the time is favorable for taking stock of your relationships; it is a time for releasing any emotional bonds that are holding you back. November 16th brings the new moon in Owl; this is the ideal time for designing or launching projects that you have wanted to set in motion for some time. It is an excellent time for breathing new life into existing projects, as we move from a water moon into a fire moon.

This month is particularly favorable for the following signs:

Snake:
If your sign is Snake the energy of this month is very favorable because it corresponds to the month and the moon of your birth. A new cycle is about to start in your life and this is the best time to start planting seeds. Use the sun’s energy to take stock and head off in a new direction.

Woodpecker/Wolf:
If your sign is Woodpecker or Wolf this is a very lucky month for you, with lots of harmony because you are in your own water element. A multitude of opportunities will open up for you in this period and this is the best time to give destiny a helping hand!

Brown Bear/Snow Goose:
For Brown Bear and Snow Goose people, this is a very dynamic month, full of energy which favors the conception and birth of new projects. You will feel new motivation and a renewal of your energy at this time.

Table of Spirit Animal Signs:

To find your spirit animal sign, just locate your birthday from the dates below, according to your place of birth. If you were born north of the equator (e.g., USA, Canada, Europe), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Northern Hemisphere.” If you were born south of the equator (e.g., Australia, New Zealand, South Africa), then look for your date of birth in the column headed “Southern Hemisphere.”

© Copyright 2009 Lucy Harmer

Shamanic Astrology is available for purchase directly through NorthAtlanticBooks.com, as well as major book stores and online retailers.

CLICK HERE to learn more about courses, seminars and workshops offered by Lucy Harmer.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Shamanic Astrology.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Discovering Your Spirit Animal.

Outstanding New Books for October

This month’s titles are all about becoming aware, releasing negativity, and embracing a more positive lifestyle. To understand more about yourself, the people around you, and how we all fit together, check out Shamanic Astrology to make sense of why we behave as we do, or Slow Sculpture for a science fiction approach to human (and extraterrestrial) interaction. Need to assertively yet respectfully confront a loved one about a delicate situation? Finding the Words will help you to find the right words. The Raw Food Lifestyle will give you something to gnaw on if you’re hungry for information about the health and healing aspects of the Raw Food Movement. Or perhaps your personal or professional space is littered with negative energy. Sweep it away with Spiritual Clearings. As you endeavor to become more aware, to let go of the negative, and to dwell in positivity this month, keep in mind the newest books that North Atlantic has to offer.

To order, please visit www.northatlanticbooks.com.

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Finding the Words: Candid Conversations with Loved Ones
By Susan Halpern

Finding the Words offers principles and practical suggestions for those moments in relationships when one wants to be kind but also must discuss a sensitive matter. In thoughtful prose, Susan Halpern explains how to communicate with care in order to strengthen and increase our loving connections. The principles provided in the book—speaking from the heart, stating intentions, and deep listening—enable readers to navigate difficult encounters.

Halpern draws on her years of experience as a psychotherapist, wife, and mother to suggest possible, scripted solutions and positive outcomes for a wide range of situations. An essential book for finding one’s way back to intimacy from conflict, nagging discomfort, and anger, Finding the Words teaches methods of responding, negotiating, and compromising. While there are numerous guides to relationships, no other book presents life situations—along with actual words that can be used to cope with them—with such vitality and wisdom.

$14.95 US/ $18.95 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-838-7
248 pages; 5-1/2 x 8 1/2
On Sale October 6, 2009

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Spiritual Clearings: Sacred Practices to Release Negative Energy and Harmonize Your Life
By Diana Burney

A blend of spiritual and practical material, Spiritual Clearings offers a comprehensive checklist of circumstances that may require ritual clearing—whether the situation involves confronting illness, feeling “stuck” in life, having trouble selling a home, or high employee turnover. Diana Burney discusses different categories of energy, its presence in the invisible world, and the unseen influences or beings that may be drawn to discordant energy. Through spiritual clearings, Burney proposes, we can release our own negativity as well as guide unseen negative forces toward the light. The book’s clearing rituals include prayers that invoke the assistance of higher beings such as archangels and Ascended Masters, incantations and chants from different spiritual traditions, the visualization of divine light and the violet flame, and the expression of gratitude. Spiritual Clearings provides readers with a clear path to fulfilling their potential and creating a personal environment of confidence, creativity, love, and acceptance.

$16.95 US/$21 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-815-8
184 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 13, 2009
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The Raw Food Lifestyle: The Philosophy and Nutrition behind Raw and Live Foods
By Ruthann Russo

Ruthann Russo has been a vegetarian and vegan for more than 20 years, and in 2007 became a passionate raw-food enthusiast. She brings that passion to the pages of this comprehensive introduction to raw and live food. In simple, encouraging language, she conveys a wealth of information, from the philosophy of raw-food nutrition, to how it affects the body, to how to transition from a regular diet to one that promotes physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

Using examples from her own life, Russo lays out a practical plan for making the switch that starts with realizing the need to change one’s diet (and health), and then stresses small dietary changes to discover what raw foods work, and assessing reactions. She profiles food preparation and supplements (superfoods, vitamins, green products), and emphasizes the spiritual aspects of the movement, exploring meditation, yoga, Buddhism, peacefulness, and fasting.

$16.95 US/$21 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-837-0
256 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 20, 2009

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Shamanic Astrology: Understanding Your Spirit Animal Sign
By Lucy Harmer

In this thoughtful book, Lucy Harmer shows readers how to find their spirit animal. She provides detailed descriptions of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the twelve spirit animals—for example, falcon is enthusiastic and adventurous but can be impulsive and impatient, while deer is sociable and eloquent but can be lazy and superficial. Once readers determine their spirit animal, they can better understand their relationships with family, friends, and associates. Readers will be able to uncover the hidden treasures of their personalities and their secret talents, as well as the color, plant, and totem stone corresponding to each spirit animal. For readers who want to take shamanic astrology to the next level, the book includes the first complete lunar calendar for the Northern and Southern Hemispheres to help them determine their spirit animal rising sign and discover how the moon influences their daily life.

$16.95 US/$21 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-826-4
264 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 20, 2009

Click HERE for the author’s website.

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Slow Sculpture: Volume XII: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon
By Theodore Sturgeon

Theodore Sturgeon was a model for his friend Kurt Vonnegut’s legendary character Kilgore Trout, and his work was an acknowledged influence on important younger writers from Harlan Ellison and Robert Silverberg to Stephen King and Octavia Butler. His work has long been deeply appreciated for its sardonic sensibility, dazzling wordplay, conceptual brilliance, memorable characters, and relentless treatment of social issues. Sturgeon also authored several episodes of the original Star Trek TV series and originated the Vulcan phrase “Live long and prosper.”

The last in North Atlantic’s series reprinting Sturgeon’s complete short stories includes classic works such as the award-winning title story, which won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards in 1971, and “The [Widget], the [Wadget], and Boff,” a creative exploration of the human ability to achieve self-realization in response to crisis. The book includes a new Foreword, Story Notes, and a comprehensive index for the entire series.

$35 US/$43 CAN
Trade Paperback
978-1-55643-834-9
312 pages; 6 x 9
On Sale October 20, 2009