The City of Bridges

I wish that I could get a photo of all the bridges in our city, lined up down the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon. But because of the bends in our river, that would be impossible unless you were taking an aerial photo. So this one, of two of the bridges, will have to do. This is taken from the deck of the Shearwater Riverboat Tour boat. My friend, Tamara, is the captain of this boat. One of my favorite summertime things to do is to go on a tour with her at the helm. She is a blast to talk with and shares all sorts of stories of riverboat adventures.

Saskatoon also has a few "Bermuda Triangles". Those who are sensitive, like Tamara, myself and my eldest daughter, can feel it physically. The GPS guidance system then will suddenly go all wack and tell the captain that she is driving her boat down Broadway Ave instead of down the river! Fun!

That metal bridge in the distance, the "Traffic Bridge" or the "Victoria Bridge" as it is called, will soon no longer be there. It has been declared as unstable and somewhat dangerous and is, therefore, blocked off to all traffic. It's a shame though because it is one of the more attractive bridges and was the first as well, linking up Nutana with Saskatoon proper. I believe that they will be replacing it with a new one down the road, but I am sure that it won't have the same character.

The Victoria Bridge is narrow. It was built for buggies. So when vehicular traffic started using it, things were a little tight. There was also a board walkway for pedestrians and cyclists along the side of it. My favorite thing to do was to scare the begeebers out of my sister by travelling fast in the car across the bridge with oncoming traffic. Now, you have to understand that this sister enjoyed the art of complete composure and intimidation of others. So to see her white knuckle it as I sped across the bridge with other vehicles whizzing past, just barely missing the side mirror, was soooo much fun! One has to love those moments of torturing one's older siblings.

Blessed Be

Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Ripe Berries Moon

July 23rd to August 22nd is, according to the Medicine Wheel, the Ripe Berries Moon. People born during this time period get adopted by the spirit of the Sturgeon. That little critter in the photo is a Sturgeon. Now, this is a fairly small Sturgeon. They can get much bigger. The Sturgeon is the power animal that is the "King of Fishes". It brings to those it has adopted the ability to be a natural born leader and to be able to go into very "deep waters" in life and be perfectly fine. Sturgeon people don't often like the mundane chit chat that most folks see as "polite". They prefer to get into the deep soul talk quickly and not waste any time with chit chat. They can get to the point and are able to define what is a priority in any project quickly and easily.

They also belong to the Thunder Bird Clan, which means that they are fire elemental people. Spontaneous and combustible are their middle names. Striving for spiritual connection and expression is their life-long goal. Sturgeon people have, however, the ability to work with fire, water and air, for the Sturgeon will jump from the water, see all of what is out there on the surface, and dive back into the depths. The mere balance of fire with water is amazing, but putting it with the ability to also encompass the air element is astounding.

The medicine plant for the Sturgeon person is the Raspberry. It's leaves are, when made into tea, strengthening and purifying for the reproductive system for both genders. Is it any wonder so many pregnant women will drink Raspberry Leaf Tea to strengthen their uteruses? The mineral totems for the Sturgeon are Garnet and Iron, both of which help to keep the Sturgeon person grounded while doing their deep soul work.

Blessed Be

Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Dragonfly Medicine

Has anyone noticed the abundance of Dragonflies around lately? There is a very good reason for it....they eat the mosquitoes that have also just previously been abundant. The mosquitoes are, for those who are unfamiliar with the little critter, the insect form of the pterodactyl. They swoop in like a swarm of hungry dinosaurs and pick you up to take you back to the hive where they feed you to their young. Shhhh! I hear them now! Don't let them find you! I have noticed that the mosquitoes are getting immune to the repellent that I have been wearing. So I had to upgrade to the heavy duty stuff that could possibly be my own demise at a later date. But at least for today I can be left alone by the little bast.....'s.

The other day, however, I had a very brief freak out. I was trying to unlock the garage door, which takes a little fernangling, and was being swarmed by those pterodactyls when suddenly I was crawling from head to toe with a strange sensation. I looked down and realized that I had been bait! The dragonflies were all over me, eating the mosquitoes! I just stood there and let them do their job. I loved seeing the process. The feeling of the dragonflies on my bare arms, legs and head was, admittedly, weird. But once the mind got over the "Oh, my God! What the he....is happening to me?" thing, it relaxed and allowed me to remain part of the circle of life. I must admit that being bait was not my idea of a good time....until now. This form of bait is okay, provided that the mosquitoes don't carry any life-threatening disease.

Dragonflies are the insect form of dragons. Is it any wonder they eat the insect form of pterodactyls? They also teach us about the aspect of illusions in our lives, whether those illusions be from out there somewhere or from within ourselves. A very handy medicine to have around.

Blessed Be

Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Down the Rabbit Hole

So often I hear people ask me if because they have experienced something "weird" I think that they may be going crazy? I have to ask them, however, why they immediately equate weird with crazy? Weird is simply something with which one is not familiar. It is easy to ask ourselves, "What if I'm wrong? What if I'm just crazy?" This does, after all, eliminate any personal responsibility for whatever reality we are experiencing. It is much more difficult to ask ourselves, "What if I'm right?"

Experiencing something strange and, at the same time, being right forces us to rearrange our realities. A trip down the rabbit hole does not a crazy person make. Not many people get to take that trip, after all. And those who are chosen to do so are the lucky ones who are then able to bring that mystical experience to this realm and have a different understanding of the interconnectedness of all things, places, people and realities.

We are living in a time when the "weird" is becoming more predominant. This is because of the shifts in the energy fields of the Earth. Where one stable vortex once was there is now simply a field of grain. Where there once was just a house is now a most powerful vortex that can transport us and other beings to many different realms. We are having to create a new road map of energy lines and vortexes. As a result, more people are now also becoming aware of the "others" that are passing through. And some who have never before "travelled" are now getting their ethereal visas. This is a scary time for some, and that is why Hollywood is making millions of dollars off of that fear. But for the most part it is an exciting time because now what was once deemed as "weird" is becoming common knowledge. This can make my job as a shaman easier, which is good. It has also presented its own set of challenges in terms of helping otherwise unreceptive individuals to begin coping with their new found perceptions. It is an adjustment. We must, however, adjust. After all, if we try to stay stagnant we will simply be left in the dust as the rest of humanity evolves. So go ahead, take a trip down that rabbit hole and see what you might discover. And as you do, remember......have a sense of adventure!

Blessed Be
Trent
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn
www.deerhornshamanic.com

Reflections

Isn't it amazing how things look a certain way until you look at it from a different angle, then suddenly everything changes? This photo was taken by myself at the zoo. It is a photo of reflections in water. However, as soon as I turned it sideways, then, BOOM! there is a face looking back at me.

I think that this is how it is with many things in life. Just when we think we have the whole thing cased we find a surprise just around the corner. That can certainly feed into people's fears because most humans do not like the element of surprise. So often people just want things to stay the same old way and never, ever change. There is, for them, a certain amount of security in that. But the element of surprise is what motivates all of us to grow. When we have to change things, even if it is just our own personal perspectives, then we have to grow within. We are, in effect, rewiring our inner hard drives. That way we are able to adapt to and take in more information that will, over time, help us to survive as a species. The more we rely upon nothing changing, the more vulnerable we become in our stagnancy. Things that do not change in nature do not survive for very long. We may fool ourselves into thinking that because we have technology and are therefore removed that much more from nature, that we can beat nature at its own game, but that would set us up for a harsh awakening at the end of the day.

Now back to the photo. I wonder who that is? It almost looks to me like the Green Man! Is his mouth open, ready to say something? Or is he just gonna stick his tongue out at me?

Blessed Be
Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn

Strong Sun Moon

I have been remiss in my writings about the moons of the Medicine Wheel. Well, let's pick it up from the moon we are in and hopefully I will be able to write about the others later. We are currently in the Strong Sun Moon (June 21-July 22). The medicine of this moon is that of a bright and sunny disposition and the ability to over see the bigger picture. The Power Animal for this moon is the Flicker. This is a Robin sized bird that feeds on the ground, as the Robin does, but also feeds on the grubs in the tree bark, like a Wood Pecker does. Because of the collar around it's neck, it is often referred to as the "Tuxedo Bird". The shock of red on its cheeks indicate that this one brings to those of this moon the ability to enjoy life to the fullest and the need to be a bit "dolled up" when going out in public. The rust of the underside of the tail feathers show a great amount of creativity that is carried by Flicker people. There is often a pink stripe on the back of the neck, which indicated the great amount of compassion that Flicker people carry within their hearts.

The Flicker will tap (pound) on any surface with its beak. Sometimes they make me think that they simply like the sound that they can make! They definitely have their own rhythm, as do Flicker people. Flicker people will often confound others who don't understand the concept of flowing to the beat of your own drum. Group consciousness does not concern the Flicker person. Instead, they enjoy individuality and the ability to make their own decisions regardless of what others may think.

People born in the Strong Sun Moon have a natural vitamin C deficiency, so the Wild Rose becomes the plant totem for these people because the rose hips are laced with rich vitamin C and can be made into a healing tea. The Carnelian Agate is the mineral totem. This orange member of the agate family often has a deeper orange to red stripe through it. It helps those of this moon to stay on track with their creative flare.

Those born during this moon also belong to the Frog Clan, which is all about the water element. So tears will flow easily and laughter will ripple easily in a balance Flicker person. An imbalanced Flicker person will become guarded and dark in their emotions because they are not allowing them to flow. Walks in the rain, swimming, having a shower, playing with the garden hose and drinking water are all important activities for the Flicker person.

You won't find a more caring, loving person than a Flicker person. But they do tend to wear their hearts on their sleeves, so it is also important to be gentle with them, for their hearts become wounded easily.

Blessed Be
Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn

Canada Day

I have found myself wondering at times if there is such a thing as a patriotic Canadian?  By that I don't just mean the folks who go all hooforah on Canada Day.  I mean those of us who are proud to be Canadian every day.  I get tired of people saying things like, "I don't think I'll vote this time because the choices all suck."  Well, if you don't vote you don't have a right to complain.  It is a privilege to be able to vote in a world where many countries have dictatorships and there is no choice whatsoever.
Now I am not saying that we have to all wave our Canadian flags every day.  I am just saying that we need an attitude adjustment.  Canadians can be complacent.  That is something that we should never allow ourselves to become because as soon as we do we lose our power as the people of this nation.  We need to be vocal and to stand up and be heard.  We need to be able to strive for changes in governmental policies as well as changes within ourselves.
We did earn the "timid" and "powerless" image that other countries have of us legitimately.  Yes, we are polite.  But yes, we can also be pushovers.  We need to stop that and grow national spines.  And yes, for the love of God, wear red and white on Canada Day!!!

Blessed Be

Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com
http://www.youtube.com/trentdeerhorn