BIG Change: How The Beasties Helped me.

Transcript from a  TED -style talk I was peer selected to give at The Martha Beck Coaches Summit in Phoenix in 2012.  

BIG change can be scary.  You want to talk about fear?  Try explaining to your physician colleagues at the hospital that,  ummm  yes……you won’t be coming back from your sabbatical to practice medicine because -  you have discovered that wild animals have helpful messages and that is what you are going to do from now on.  Unfortunately , I had yet to meet the honey badger when I had that conversation.  More on the honey badger in a moment.

What I want to share with you today is  that I discovered that big change is much easier and much more FUN when you travel with great companions.   I have found that the wild animals,  or the beasties,  make the most amazing companions.   I am going to tell you about 4 special beasties that helped me move from out of that fear and into the light.

About 2 years ago, I was terrified.  Looking at me from the outside you might not have known.  Heck! I think I even kept my terror a secret from myself at times.  I knew that I was yearning for a new life.  I longed to be creative, to inspire people.  I felt trapped.   I was exhausted, confused and terribly unclear.   About half way into my Martha Beck  coach training…I stumbled into the idea that wild animals- or as I like to call them- the beasties might have helpful messages for humans.   I learned that they might even confer some kind of power or energetic assistance to humans.    As strange as this sounded…it oddly intrigued me—I figured  it was quite  possible that I had gone completely banana pancakes but at that time I was willing and open to try anything

One of the first helpful Beasties to darken my door was a Bear…this Bear happened to be a mothering sort of bear, with two cubs.   I was struggling then,   knowing I was not ready to go back to medicine and that I wanted to keep spending time in the woods and learn more  about this ancient way of life called Shamanism .    I didn’t know how I was going to do all that and pay the bills.    What she told me was that where I wanted to go was not actually that far off..and all I need to do was simply enjoy the journey and stop every once in a while to dig around for some honey.   As crazy as it sounds – this message helped me to relax a bit and think that maybe things would be ok.  I also felt I now had a companion. I was no longer alone.

The very next Beastie to appear was a little less mothering. It was a Black Mamba snake.  At the time, I was in South Africa with a friend visiting family for a Lobola ceremony. According to Wikipedia:  The black mamba is of the most aggressive and highly venomous snakes on the planet.  Seriously??   This snake appeared  in a dream.  I decided that the Black Mamba snake -  message or not-  was not welcome.  I screamed and plugged my ears.  I did not want to hear a message from a mamba.

What I have learned now from working with literally hundreds of people and  thousands of animal encounters is that often the Beasties that show up and scare us the most hold some of the most powerful messages for us.

Finally, I decided that I was willing to sit down with this Mamba snake and listen to what it had to tell me……this snake was asking me to step up to the plate and dance —it wanted me to answer the call……..it wanted me to face my fears and step into my own power.   Looking back ,  I realized how many times I had refused this call in my life.  When I did finally accept this challenge from the snake -it was a wordless experience,  as so many Beastie encounters are.  I found myself feeling  full of peaceful powerful energy  and strangely read to face whatever happened  next.

The third Beasties that showed up to assist me last year was the honey badger……remember…..you don’t have to be in the wild to receive messages from the beasties- although going outside is highly recommended…… sometimes they  show up in youtube video.  The honey badger has been described as one of the most fearless animals anywhere-  and also it really just does not give a gosh darn what other animals think of it.    The honey badger video  which shows her fearlessly plunging into bee infested caves and biting the heads off dangerous vipers… has 30 million hits-  my hunch is that the honey badger is here with a powerful message for all of us.   For me, the message of the honey badger was to fearlessly plunge in after my  dream.   To move towards what lights me up and to  do it with a reckless disregard  for the opinions of others…

The fourth Beastie was an elephant…now elephants are amazingly patient and wondrous Beasties.  I could go on for hours on how much I love elephants.  Elephants don’t worry about obstacles in their path….if, for example, there is something they want in a high tree branch that is out of reach—-they simply pull the tree it out of the ground at the roots- to clear a path to their prize.  Their process can be kind of messy but Elephants usually get what they want…..

This particular elephant, Alice is a very salty pachyderm and she like to tell it like it is…she reminded me that although not everybody “got” me-  that   I was born to FREAK….I was born to do and see things differently—I was born to be an agent of change….Alice taught me that STRANGE and eccentric was not only ok-  it was  AMAZING.   You see, Alice gets extremely stoked when others express themselves in their own freaky way and She also likes to surf, a lot.

What I have learned from the Beasties is that we are all connected …animals, humans, the wind, the sun, the stars, the ocean….the earth….. we were all placed here to follow our own  FEEL GOOD, to expand and express our uniqueness.

Each time we move towards what lights us up—the entire web of life is positively impacted.   Just as when each Beastie does what it was born to do we all benefit.   As Marianne Williamson says-  we were all meant to SHINE  its not just in some of us-  it is in  everyone- and as we let our own lights shine-  we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same……

I invite you to NOTICE the Beasties that are showing up in your life so that you that you can move with courage and enthusiam towards what lights you up and in turn set the whole web of life ablaze.

Curious about how to get the messages of the Beasties that are meant for you so you can move towards what LIGHTs you up?  I invite you to check out my book , What The Walrus Knows, on Amazon.  

 

 

The Law of Entanglements, A guest post By Author of “LiNK”, John Serpa

The Law of Entanglements

en·tan·gle  (n-tnggl)

tr.v. en·tan·gled, en·tan·gling, en·tan·gles

1. To involve in or as if in a tangle.

Have you ever stopped for a moment to consider the entanglements you encounter on a given day merely by being an observer? Have you ever felt by mere watching, you ‘somehow’ mysteriously got involved in the action?

In quantum physics and in neuroscience, this paradigm gets downright peculiar.

First, the quantum view:

Quantum entanglement occurs when sub-atomic particles such as photons and electrons, interact physically with larger molecules and then become separated; the type of interaction is such that once entangled, one object cannot be fully described without considering the other. In other words, they are viewed as a whole and not as singular.

Wow, that’s heavy!

Neuroscience entanglement occurs when mirror neurons fire upon observing another person’s actions. Mirror neurons are a special breed. Unlike other neurons in the brain, they don’t respond to conventional motor stimuli. Research suggests they spring into action when an individual observes tasks performed by another person. The mirror-neuron effect also enables the observer to adopt the point of view and intent of the person he observes.

Even more astonishing, while studying mirror neurons, researchers noticed that when mirror neurons fire, neurons controlling basic motor functions start to resonate. This implies that for the observer, mirror neurons act as a primer for the motor response, which can lead to imitation.

How do I know?

While writing my just published book LiNK The Fascinating Ways Our Minds Connect, I discovered that over 140 years of neuroscience and behavioral psychology research proves outcomes are bolstered when we connect our minds to the beneficial vibrations of those we observe, whether it’s the endearing smile of a best friend, the flight of a butterfly, or a wild horse galloping across a prairie.

Do you see the significance of this? We’re designed to link to others, from the time we’re conceived, throughout childhood, during courtship, into old age, and the myriad of relationships that come in between. In aggregate, this array of linking stitches a finely woven fabric called—life. It’s up to us to determine how wildly exciting that life can be.

Each one of us is unique—born with an array of talent and potential. The choice becomes whether to link our minds with the beauty around us or cower under a protective shell. I prefer the former. I want to interface with people who motivate me to become a better person. And conversely, I want to do the same with others. The greatest wonder of linking to the minds of others is that life becomes a fanfare.

That’s downright Beastie!

Did I say Beastie? It appears within the realms of nature, replicating action and grasping the intention of those in our world around us can yield valuable results. Specifically, ‘Beastie’ refers to taking on the attributes of any insect, reptile, bird, mammal, that has ever existed, from salmon to wooly mammoths to dragonflies.

How do I know? Sarah Seidelmann. She recently wrote a book titled, What The Walrus Knows: An Eccentric’s Field Guide to Working with Beastie Energies, and in this finely crafted prose she guides us to discover a vibrant way of connecting ourselves to the essence of creatures in nature.

It’s primal message? To learn appreciation, intention, and what we can do to bolster the law of attraction. That is, to pause each day to—as she says—Follow Your Feel Good. Upon doing so, you’ll discover a richness about yourself and those around you that has been missed. And…like in physics and neuroscience, entanglements will not result in confusion and difference, but rather you’ll relish in the shared state of positive feelings, cohesion, and a higher state of mind than you ever imagined.

So…are you ready to discover that Beastie that resides within you? It all starts with turning a page. (Sarah’s breakthrough book can be purchased here: http://tinyurl.com/7r4mc8x .)

The available evidence is clear—when we chose to link with those around us we’ll reap bountiful rewards that cannot be measured by bean counters. But to the watchful eye of the seed planter, life becomes a great adventure!

 

Guest Post: A Beastie and Follow Your Feel Good tale set in Vienna

It started as an ordinary day but looking back I know you would have been as uneasy as I was with the way things were going. Boyfriend out to work; me tidy kitchen, try to make sense of the newspaper in a foreign language, shower, dress, about to leave to buy some groceries when he comes back in. “You must go,” he says. Only an Austrian can say this with such finality. And so, 20 minutes later, I was standing alone with my suitcase on a footpath in Vienna.

Somehow, it was a relief to find myself heart-broken, in a foreign city. But this wasn’t a hurting sort of heart-break. Instead I felt a new surge of excitement. Looking back, it was like I was given a gift. Now I understand I had clutched a thread of feel-good and was being dared to follow it.

Swept up in the perfect film-script of it all, I found a place to stay. It was a cheap hostel called, really and truly, “Believe it or not”. It was winter. By day I found myself in the grand National Library, sniffing some of the oldest books in Europe. Lunch time I’d wind up in the newly built Le Meridien Wien, amid conferences about cutting-edge technology, feasting on a croissant with smoked salmon and glasses of gruner veltliner. Before dark, I’d head back to “Believe it or not” via the Volksgarten, passing elegant ladies and men wrapped in furs and proper hats armed with sausage dogs; whilst across the park, horse-drawn carriages arrived at the Schonnbrunn palace delivering beautifully dressed, ball-gowned couples to the finest dances of the Season.

I had little money, but I never felt that. In one of the grandest cities in the world, free to wander wherever I chose, I felt like a princess in disguise. Everything was quirky, cosy, opulent or unknown. Everything a mystery to be unravelled. Every experience I stored up in my mind to be told.

I haven’t told the story of why I lived in Vienna, in a dorm room with 11 various others, for three months. I haven’t told the story of how, after weeks of walking past restaurant windows filled with couples in love, who were laughing, dining, sharing, I longed for a new love of my own. I haven’t told how I made a day-trip to Grinzing; and sat out, warm in the sunshine, watching wide, white birds of prey cartwheel high in the sky. It was here I decided to make it my new priority to discover someone in the city to love. How on the tram on the way back I doodled a floor-plan of the ideal Viennese apartment I would share with him. Or how two days later he walked in to the café where I was sitting at the bar, and asked me my name. I haven’t told the story how we laughed, and went out to dinner, sitting in that same window I’d walked past the week before alone; or how, upon learning I was a writer, he offered me his apartment to write in whilst he was at work. Believe it or not- it was the configuration of the napkin drawing I had made.

And I haven’t ever told anyone how, one morning, a few weeks later, we sat drinking morning coffee and munching pastries on his freshly mussed-up bed, in front of big windows which look to the hills behind Vienna. He told me that the French claim ownership of the croissant, but actually it was the Austrians, who fought and won the fight for Vienna on those very hills, who made the first croissant in the shape of the Turkish emblem to celebrate victory.

As he told me the story, again I saw two white birds of prey- I’ve since discovered they were eagles- rise high above the green copper roofs and float towards the hills. I got the feeling it was time to go.    

from Eagle Manifesto in What The Walrus Knows :

 ”MAGNETIZE.  Envision.  Draw in what you love.  TRAVEL TO REFUEL.  Feed your soul.  Discover Spirit.  Connect with power.”    

Although I’ve studied many energy practices throughout my career, joining Squirrel Radio woke me up to the powerful communication of the Beasties. This wake-up has affected not only my daily life, but the stories of my past have taken on new depth and meaning. The Eagle is the national bird of Austria, and in Sarah’s “What the Walrus Knows” among other beautiful gifts, we learn its presence brings the gift of clarity and vision. As long as we follow our intuition we will be heading in the right direction. And in taking it’s message on board at that time in my life, I found as long as we Follow our Feel Good, only good awaits us on the path.

Two days later I followed my feel good from Vienna on to Edinburgh. But that’s another story.

About Samantha Honey-Pollock:

Australian-born Samantha Honey-Pollock is a personal trainer and board-certified holistic health coach via the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She is also a feng shui expert and angel intuitive. Author of the forthcoming book, “Gentle Peace- Extraordinary Wellness”, Samantha consults to individuals and businesses in the UK and across the globe, specialising in the art and science of personal fulfilment.

Website: http://www.eatingwithangels.com

Facebook: Samantha Honey-Pollock

Twitter: @AngelsLightly

Do PRETTY CONCERNS hold you back?

My brilliant friend and digital Shaman Marian Lansky sent me a quote she found on PINTEREST, my latest not-guilty FEEL GOOD pleasure.
The quote was this:
“You Don’t Have to Be Pretty. You don’t owe prettiness to anyone. Not to your boyfriend/spouse/partner, not to your co-workers, especially not to random men on the street. You don’t owe it to your mother, you don’t owe it to your children, you don’t owe it to civilization in general. Prettiness is not a rent you pay for occupying a space marked “female”.

I thought to myself….huh? Do I feel like I have to be pretty? As in, wash my hair, apply makeup, accessorize etc?? On one hand…I often kind of enjoy getting all “balls to the wall pretty” as my sister, Maria likes to joke….and a lot of the time, I really could don’t give a rat’s arse. When I am alone or with my family or friends I feel no need to be “pretty”. However,  when faced with the choice to do a video or not….I often sigh heavily if I am not already in the “pretty” state because (I believe) I would have to go do that. So I guess YES- sometimes Pretty concerns hold me back. AND, sometimes I feel pretty without doing anything – i.e. sans makeup or other decoration. But, as the author of the quote later points out,  some pretty “has a shelf life”.  Or does it?   Is pretty simply a state of mind? I think that the woman in the video below is not just pretty but stunning and gorgeous:) “Pretty” is in the eye of the beholder I suppose. Does needing to feel pretty (when you don’t) hold you back?

Click here for VIDEO: Beautiful Maia

Blowtorch

I was diagnosed at 19 with malignant melanoma. It dawned on me that if I might die very soon then, I should definitely enjoy what was left. It was a lucky break. I realized that life was meant for living. The timing could not have been more perfect.

I extracted myself from the college library pre-med madness and begin re-focusing on people again: being with them, socializing connecting, goofing off and playing. It was a wondrous time.

When I entered medical school, of course, my new way of living was challenged again. But, something inside me had shifted. I knew on some atomic level that it was my purpose to live my life like a torch burning brightly.

I managed to go through medical school and residency without too much light snuffing. Slowly, as my own family grew (into four amazing children) and my practice grew, I became disconnected again. My life had become complicated and I had become less illuminated.

Having had that fortuitous shift at 19, I caught myself at 43, took a sabbatical and realigned my focus. Now, after much recent internal seeking, I am back to living my life as a torch. In fact, my torch feels stronger and brighter than ever before and that feels good. Some days, I feel like a blowtorch (big smile).

In my daily experience, I see a lot of people seeking light. Some are starving for it. But, of course, this is an illusion. We can always choose light. Connection. Hugs. Calling a friend. Music. Petting a dog. We are all potential blowtorches. It is not just in some of us. It is in each of us.

One of the fastest ways to recharge my blowtorch-ness and to feel connection is by spending time in Nature. While it might appear I am alone, I am actually in some of the most wonderful company among the stars, squirrels, trees and great lakes rippling and swelling together.

I would like to move to a place of even greater ease…to be that blowtorch burning, fearlessly, moving along my path doing what I came am here to do. That next internal shift might just look like some spectacular northern lights…strange, wondrous and magical.

What one word describes the way you life—what word do you live by? Originally published at life by me

Beastie of the Week: The Moth

 

 

Spreading the FEEL GOOD Feevah

We know now, thanks to new research on the Science of Happiness,  that  happiness is truly contagious (as is a lack of it!).  As a Pathologist in a large community based hospital, I took part in some drills and planning for the dreaded Avian FLU in our large Hospital Complex.  The overhead announcement would sound off for a “code white” (or some color, lol)  which was secret code for “Avian Flu meeting STAT”  for those “in the know”.   It was thrilling and a bit scary to be part of those meetings, knowing that we had an important role in taking actions to contain a potentially very destructive outbreak.   While I am eternally grateful for our enthusiastic Public Health endeavors, it got me thinking.   What  would happen if we had drills and dedicated Planning Committees at our hospitals to ensure that AN OUTBREAK OF JOY not only SPREAD BUT CREATED A WORLD WIDE EPIDEMIC?  I witnessed lovely person in our Lab launch a self-funded program to do just that!  On her breaks, she would bring little trinkets and treats (a grown-up’s treasure chest ) to people in their offices on a gleefully decked out,  hand painted SMILE CART.    I thought this was the greatest idea ever!  Administration was asked to embrace this small grassroots movement and formalize it somehow.    She was rejected for funding it and, eventually the cart got parked when her funds ran dry.    Of course at the end of the day, we cannot wait for the administration, or a spouse, or a group to decide WHEN, its up to us to administer the outbreak.    What would happen if we made a concerted effort ourselves to SPREAD JOY?     Be the index case!  I dare you. Spread the FEEL GOOD around:)  ~Sarah

 

What The Walrus Knows

MY NEW BOOK-  now available at AMAZON or Barnes and Noble.com  ……PLEASE Demand it (gently & non-violently, of course) at your local library or  indie bookstore:)  I hope you LOVE it!

walrus turns physician into author

November 2011 | What the Walrus Knows, by author Sarah Seidelmann, invites readers to join in the fun of exploring why certain animals show up in our lives, and what messages these animals may be trying to share with us in their teachings. Written in a quirky and delightful style, the book serves as an introduction to the ancient practice of animal totems, which she refers to as ‘Beasties’. Sarah shares tools which allow readers to begin examining the intuitive world of animal messages, and how appearances by Beasties can offer important information.

As a fourth generation physician, Seidelmann was living a nature-starved, hectic lifestyle when an unlikely walrus entered her life, changing every-thing. Through paying attention to the ancient practice of animal spirits and the traits associated with the walrus, Sarah found the strength and courage to take a sabbatical from her practice as a physician and spent six months in nature, reflecting upon her heart’s desires. She decided to leave her medical practice to become a coach, speaker and author.

Seidelmann asserts that there are messages trying to come into your life through the animals that show up in it. Regardless of where one lives, be it the city or country, by tuning into animal totems and working with the messages they bring forth, you can transform your life. In her charming book, What the Walrus Knows, Sarah decodes animal mysticism and offers up a valuable resource guide to Beasties.

Sarah Seidelmann was trained as a coach by “O Magazine”-famed Martha Beck, and is committed to doing transformational work with clients which allows them to live joy filled lives. She is the creator of FollowYourFeel Good.com and co-creator of the podcast SquirrelRadio. She lives with her husband and four children in a city along the shores of Lake Superior.

 

contact | Antonia hall communications

AHCAssociates@gmail.com

[707]234.9738

 

 

 

From the FEEL GOOD Laboratory: Most Highly Efficacious Ways to Find Your FEEL GOOD quick!

HIGHLY CLASSIFIED DOCUMENT:  for FEEL GOOD Afficionados only!

W A R N I N G:    The act of simply reading a report like this can cause an immediate FEEL GOOD- so please proceed with abandon.

DATA COLLECTED FROM: highly vortextual individuals (SELF-selected)

Correlation: top 3 methods are highly correlated with a p value greater than 1 giga-bajillion (>1.0 GBJ). And that’s seriously for reals what I would call majorly correlated.

 

TOP 10 FAVORED METHODS for entry into the so-called “FEEL GOOD” state include:

1. PETS: The act of watching them roll over for treats, walking with them in nature, off leash in canyon, napping with them, watching them nap (or just before), getting kisses, cuddling….this is highly correlated among nearly all subjects.

2. DANCING: This includes but is not limited to “dancing in a free way”, “dancing, dancing, dancing” , “dancing to Motown”, Bag dancing as in that modern thing and trance dancing.

3. NATURE: Contact with nature including but not limited to river flowing, birds singing, eagles, hawks, snowy trails, hiking, watching wildlife, running around trees, letting waves pound “self” in Atlantic or any ocean, walking barefoot, seeing the sun rise or set, listening to the rain, feeling the wind on your skin, laying on the ground…on the beach…in the grass.

4. MUSIC AND SINGING were tied. MUSIC that seemed most effective in group studied includes: Motown, Justin Bieber (really?, yes!) , Pat Metheny, South African hip hop, Patrick Hernandez and Edward Maya mentioned. Further study is def. needed.

SINGING was reported as loud…often to the point of causing dizziness, freq. performed in the car and some subjects also reported a related activity they mysteriously termed “singing, singing, singing

5. MEDITATION: Many different variations described including: just “breathe” (reported by my existentialist husband), yoga nidra meditation, MEDITATION Oasis Application for Iphone, Transcendental meditation and walking meditation.

6. So-called GRATITUDE ATTACK (where subjects apparently simply review what is good and well in their lives) is a highly efficacious activity. Subjects give very little detail but its apparently v. good.

7. HUGGING/SNUGGLING: Involving your honeys, dogs, cats, children and similar subjects. Sometimes done on a couch.

9. **SEX, not otherwise specified. Also includes “thoughts of sex” “daydreaming of sex” oh yes, and then there was “delicious sex” and something that was described as “delibertately sensual passionate sex” (more study of this subject is definitely indicated. )

**** this researcher predicts this is massively under reported due to the public nature of this experiment and a smaller uncontrolled private study indicates that this may have landed near number 2. Or 3. If subjects had felt more anonymous. more study and more sensual pleasure (in the mean time) is needed for all subjects.

FOR FUTURE STUDY:

Other subjects for finding your FEEL GOOD worthy of further study and reported in inconclusively small numbers include: monkey jammies (just putting them on), road trips, various foods, comedic films, TV, good books- esp. Shakti Gawain and good stories.

Respectfully submitted, Sarah Seidelmann, FEEL GOOD Laboratory Chief.

Thank you Nathaniel, Jeannette, Maria, Harmony, Laura G, Jody, happyme, Pj999, Annette, Monica, Greg, Christine, Nancy, Lisa, Sophie, Susan at Good Vibe University!

Beasties Can Help a Momma (or anyone, really) Get a Life!

Written originally for and posted at Mom Gets A Life

I am a physician, a mom to 4 fantastic kids, a wife, a friend and (now) a writer, coach and entepreneur.  I am married to another physician who is equally as diversified in his energetic portfolio.  Part of my mission in life has been to invite women to let themselves off the hook to show them that their dreams are possible.  Being a mom is hugely important.  AND Mommas  are  human beings with dreams, aspirations, needs, desires.   Mommas also need love, care and tending

I see a lot of Mommas out there who are shrinking (not shrinkage!! she shrieked!) from their own greatest most AMAZING AND SICK life by saying:

I can’t [pay attention to myself, go out and have fun, focus on me for a day, take a fun trip with friends, get a sitter….etc] right now because [fill in your belief about what your priority should be when you are a momma].

I am here to tell you:   Mommas must party.  We must pay attention to ourselves.  We must dress up (if that sounds fun),  cavort with friends, get sitters (or other humans) to watch our kids, write our books,  paint our paintings, check things off our bucket lists, laugh our asses off, act like children-   you know what I am talking aboutJ

I stumbled into the most amazing and magical way to help Mommas (and daddies and Grandmas too- and kids but, I digress) …by re-connecting with Beasties.   By Beastie I mean any creature from ladybug to elephant (including mythical Beasties like dragons and Unicorns too!).

Crazy?   Right?

Take a moment and think back to when you were around 3^rd grade.  What was you very favorite Beastie?  Did you have a poster, a necklace or a favorite film that featured them?  OR if that is too hard-  quick look around your home-  do you have any artwork, sculpture or other representation of a Beastie.  Is there a predominance of wolves….whales?…..geese?

It turns out that the Beasties are some of the best role model for us.  Did you know that even elks and giraffes get sitters?  Yes-  I witnessed it with my own two eyes in Africa.  While one lady giraffe is out and about at the waterhole (read:  party!!)  the other lady giraffe is covering her kiddos.

Bears, one of the Beasties near and dear to me, it turns out, ask a lot of their growing cubs and have very high expectations when it comes to their independence.  Why?  Because bears live (for the most part) alone and must be fiercely capable of taking care of their own needs.  This helped me understand why I need my older children to step  to the plate-  unload dishwasher, mow lawn, help clean for company…etc.

Momma lions are exquisitely affectionate with their cubs and also (it turns out) responsible for the vast majority of hunting in their pride (males are “pretty” but really cannot get the job done alone effectively….. mommas are the kick ass hunters)   When a momma lion is done hunting for the day and had her share of the feast  (read:  done with work for the day) ….she often will sleep in a heap for up to 21 hours.  It turns out that female lions expend so much energy during their energetic hunting that they MUST rest very deeply.  Yawn.  I’m getting sleepy.

So by studying the parental (and otherwise) moves of your favorite Beastie-  you just might be able to become the Momma (AND actress, world traveler, coach, musician, teacher, inventor, lover, comedian, forester) that you were meant to be?

Check out my book “What the Walrus Knows:  An Eccentric’s Field Guide to Working with Beastie Energies”  which has a dictionary of 50 different Beasties and a Manifesto for each to show you how to live LARGE and be a  fabulous Momma.

**Another hint-  finding out your spouse’s, friend’s, kid’s and parent’s favorite Beasties may also help guide you to figure out how to discover the best in them too?  Just ask your kids and they will tell you their favorite Beastie-  it can be that simple!