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Trust

We rarely speak about the elements on the Medicine Wheel and when we do discuss them, we usually move quickly through them as if they are steps within a process rather than actual whole experiences. For example I’ve been spending lots of time with our new Beagle puppy. She’s been with us for a little over three weeks. During this time I’ve observed how important trust is to dogs even more so than it is to humans.

When CT played his drums last weekend, Bella ran back and forth from the living room to my desk where I was working. She was nervous and scared. She didn’t trust the noise. When we started teaching her to walk and sit, we noticed that she sat sideways rather than confidently forward. After a while we realized it was because she wasn’t completely comfortable with what she was doing. In the car, in the dark, in the back yard and while roaming the neighbourhood all of her behaviours translated to trust. Did she trust the dogs in the neighbour’s yard; did she trust the leaves and the wind; did she trust the people who asked to pet her; and did she trust us to take care of her? For pets it is different than for humans, they don’t seem to have the choice to be independent and autonomous. They always have to answer to someone else’s commands, demands and life style.

Seeing trust from our little Beagle’s perspective has been humbling. Every day she shows us a little bit more trust as if to say: “My trust is earned.” After having been around dogs my whole life I’ve always noticed that dogs who trust their masters, respect their masters and will even give their life for their masters. We don’t realize how difficult it must be for a puppy or an adult dog to be shuffled from home to home; strangers to strangers. As humans, we’re quick to complain about abandonment and rejection; but we’re not always aware or responsible about abandoning and rejecting others whether it be other humans or pets. I remember when my kids were born my husband and I limited their exposure to people for the first month. It somehow made sense to us that before they could trust others they needed to be able to trust us and their new home. Genetics may mean that we share blood, genes and at some paranormal level ancestral burdens; but it doesn’t mean that it guarantees trust and love. With newborns just trusting their physical bodies seems difficult. At first when you have babies it’s uncomfortable to call yourself mom and dad as if you need to earn the titles somehow… For E and I it took getting up at night for feedings, changing diapers and slowly getting to know our newborn babies before the words fit. Lets put it this way, being parents wasn’t a given just because we had sex and gave birth to them. It’s not any different with a pet.

Trust is something we can work on and the more we develop trust the more it vibrates in our aura and the more people can feel it. I’m a huge dog lover and at some point in my life I had the opportunity to be around wolves. I knew that I couldn’t approach them in the same manner that I approached dogs. They have a stronger basic instinct and because they are wild animals they don’t see humans as masters. For them it’s more about submission and domination. They live according to natural and cosmological law. Still I was incredibly surprised when the male wolf identified me as his alpha and right away expected me to take my role by his side. At some point, the wolf brought me the half top side of a caribou’s head with antlers and all and dropped it at my feet. He waited for me to pick it up and in his world, he expected me to eat from it, honour his gift and acknowledge him as a strong hunter. I understood at that moment that he was seeing things in me that I hadn’t explored completely yet or integrated. I also noticed that I wasn’t present enough to him or others yet because I couldn’t read information from their aura that could dictate my choices, my actions and my intentions in return. I found in that moment that this wolf was the higher specie and that I still had lots to learn and to change.

With time I learnt to read the aura vibrating around Ravens, Chipmunks, Herons, Snakes, Mice etc… Trees, and even Homes. I’ll admit I find it so much easier to express myself through working on my aura and filling it up with strong medicine than with words. Unfortunately there are less and less people who have the ability to read me. Still, I’m always amazed at how many humans unconsciously use intuition and hypersensitivity. I’ve also gotten impatient with time, with people’s speeches and self-indulgent stories. I prefer paying attention to the energy that vibrates around people. It’s often more informative. I tend to believe that if people focused more on the power they can grow within themselves and learn how to use it – they would be more content with themselves and life.

I watched my kids and their friends grow up; and I was always impressed at the difference between a child that is encouraged to trust and a child that has trust issues. One seems more in tune with the World and more aware; more excited about life and eager to be part of it; while the other seems discouraged, depressed, and quick to judge it all. We often forget how important trust is to our healthy, individual growth and development.

In the last few weeks I had to choose a veterinarian for Bella. I knew that I didn’t want to return to the vet we had for Lucky or for every other dog before Lucky, going as far back as when we lived with our parents and had pets. Luck hated going to the vet and I noticed that many of the other cats and dogs who consulted that same clinic shared similar behaviours. None of them seem interested in each other; always racing for the door; disinterested in cookies; and trembling under the chairs of their masters, whining or growling. Lucky would shed uncontrollably. Through my whole life I was told that it was “normal” for our pets to hate the vet.

“It lasts barely half an hour,” would say my father, “they can handle it.”

With Bella’s arrival in our home, I decided to make a change. I chose to ask the dreaming to find me a vet that would best suit our family and our vision of the World. I was extremely confident that I would find a place that would bring us a new and better suited experience for us. It didn’t take more than a few nights and I was directed to a new veterinarian building in SH. I was pleased when I arrived at the clinic and found cats lounging all over the reception area and in the windows. Dogs were left roaming the back room pleasantly playing with each other. We didn’t wait very long before we were greeted in one of the examining room where a technician suggested that we take Bella off her leash.

“Let her explore,” she suggested, “it’s the only way she’ll trust us and this environment. We don’t want her to be afraid of the veterinarian do we?”

I don’t think I ever smiled so much. After a bit of sniffing and climbing, Bella finally laid down by the door and fell asleep. “WOW!” I thought to myself “a sure sign of trust.” I talked about our visit for days to family, friends and neighbours totally impressed with these people and this clinic, almost eager to return.

I believe that there is a way to change your life if you’re committed to make it happen. It takes feeding positive, envisioning energy to your spirit. I like to see it as nourishing your aura or your turtle shell with strong and positive attitudes. It will eventually attract new people, new challenges and new experiences to your life. It will bring you to a path of beauty and abundance. It’s worked for me and it’s worked for many of the people who have chosen to walk the path along with us as well.

Trust… It’s more than just a word or a stone on the Wheel, it’s an experience.

When you can infuse trust into everything you do in life and connect your story to the earth, the wind, the rain, the rocks even, you begin to feel strong, content, happy and nourished. It’s then, that you start emanating the medicine of trust and start inspiring those around you. This is the way of the Circle.

P.S.: Thank you to Bella for reminding of me Trust and bringing it to my personal Medicine Wheel this month.

Comments

Anonymous said…
hello, i've been enjoying reading, here..some intersting thoughts in your posts.


"...Still, I’m always amazed at how many humans unconsciously use intuition and hypersensitivity. I’ve also gotten impatient with time, with people’s speeches and self-indulgent stories. I prefer paying attention to the energy that vibrates around people. ..."

yes, but not everyone has that ability to see the energy that vibrates around people...and their speeches and self-indulgent stories can be their way of learning about themselves..of getting to a place where they can perhaps learn to recognise those energies without further need for their stories.
isn't it about learning about ourselves and our world in our own way..learning to trust in ourselves regardless of what others think about how we are.??

"...It’s often more informative. I tend to believe that if people focused more on the power they can grow within themselves and learn how to use it – they would be more content with themselves and life."


and yes again,lol,i agree in that it can be often more informative.. yet no mattter how much we may feel we know another..we cannot know them as well as they know themselves(if they are open to that knowing). yep..it's all about the growing, isnt it?

this has obviously triggered something in me..food for thought!

great post by the way.
trust was in my thoughts alot yesterday. we humans can place so many complexities in and around it..and in reality is is so simple and instinctual. and yet it can be easy to get lost among some of the chaos of everyday life in regards to trusting.. when it's to be earned and there are so many small deceipts around us in the world. There again, i guess, we cant be deceived if we dont believe..and learn to trust ourselves most of all.
Lisa F. Tardiff said…
Ari,

Thank you for taking the time to write a comment.
We all have different perspectives. It's great if we can share our different perceptions and get to a point where we can actually see a full Wheel.

It's true that not too many people these days have the ability to see the energy that vibrates around people. Individuals who have the skill are a minority. To be totally honest we are "breed that is close to extinction right now."

I hope you understand Ari that my blog entry was not in judgment towards anything or anyone out there; as well as what people are living and their journey towards learning and healing. In fact, I was simply attempting to divulge my reality (the great stuff and the challenging stuff as well) and give a perspective; which most people don't consider.

I'm glad this blog entry touched a nerve (so to speak) and I'd love to hear more about your story and how you deal with your life's journey.

Are you interested in Shamanism? And how do you apply Shamanism to your life? What attracted you to "my" blog?

Take care.
LISA
Wheelkeeper said…
Your story is timely for me Okwaho. I have been looking at vets myself and found one where they had a big fat cat in the lobby, they had adopted it when the owners brought it in to be "put to sleep", because it was too fat. They had overfed it for years. Instead, the vet clinic took the cat in and are limiting its diet and it is losing weight. To me that spoke of people who really care about animals. The other vets were always noisy and I didn't like the atmosphere of the places.

Trust is a huge thing for us all. It takes time and has to be earned... not taken for granted or expected from the get-go. Once earned,it is a precious gift to all concerned.

MaryRose
WampumBlueRaven said…
These pass few months, since the Interpersonal Moon, there has been a tread -or a theme if you will of protection - and the experience of trust has repeated played a big part in it.

A lot has to do with us, my partner and I, building a safe and secure home for ourselves and your family in the boarder sense of the word, but also for our children.

One day as I was walking trough the dog park back from work going home- I saw two black Labs playing free in the park- I though to myself " This is the type of relationship I want will all human begin." Why can't I always have that"- it was more about their energy and dynamics that made me smile because I wanted to join them myself -start run with them and getting down all four. LoL.

Little did I know from that point that Dogs- were going to be my teacher-It made me want to work on my HUMAN RELATIONSHIP more to create or change some of that energy- and it did.

Well I must go work now- going to walking through the dog park on my way to work always one of my favorite parts of the day!
Bye for now,
Nathalie
PS: The beautiful egg W has created is starting to emerge in these theme of protection- but also emphasis changes in my life-for a new one. I just keep getting the feeling nothing will be the same.
ex: an interview for a new job for next week
Emily said…
I really enjoyed reading this today.
Thank you Lisa and Bella for reminding me about TRUST.

BEautiful picture of Bella by the way :)
Anonymous said…
hi Lisa,

thanks for replying. am glad i didnt offend you (hope i didnt). i seem to have developed a knack, of late, of easily offending people.. i dont mean to. will pop back and respond more fully to your reply when i have time..want to think a little on your questions too.

warm wishes.
Lisa F. Tardiff said…
Thank you Nathalie for sharing your story about the dog park and acknowledging the role that synchronicities play in our lives. I agree with you animals do share with us the greatest of lessons.

Emily - thank you for noticing the photo. I loved the red of the Autumn leaves in the background this is why I took the picture. Fall is somewhat related to Bella and I think I captured the impression in this picture. It's cool that you picked up on it. Good dreaming.

Mary Rose - Glad you found a great vet for your cat. They are so important.

And finally Ari - I'm not offended at all. I think it took a lot of courage to share your story. I certainly don't expect people to always see things MY way. LOL I truly believe in the teachings of the Medicine Wheel and in the power of 36 different perspectives. I think we can all gain so much from listening to each other's polnts of view and stay open to whatever they reveal in the end.

So far what I'm seeing is that trust vibrates through all kinds of experiences and challenges us all equally.

LISA
Anonymous said…
I liked your blog it made me think how much trust my dog has in our family.

There is a new documentary on psychic kids that runs every Sunday on discovery chanel that is very interesting. They talk about having this gift of seeing auras and deceased people. Reading energy off objects. What I found interesting is a teen boy who almost died when he fell out of a tree and could see his body laying there. About a week after this acident he started seeing spirits. I do believe people with this gift are definitely a minority.

Chris (Hardrock)
Cougar-D said…
We also just got a new puppy-Jade- thanksgiving Sunday she joined our family. She is 6 months. Having two dogs is so different than one. You have to deal with so many things that didn't come up with the first dog.

As soon as we picked her out we questioned if we could trust our decision, our reasons, the timing.

As humans, we’re quick to complain about abandonment and rejection; but we’re not always aware or responsible about abandoning and rejecting others whether it be other humans or pets.

A week ago I went back to the SPCA and found out that our new dog was abandoned by her previous owners. In 6 months she had changed homes 4 times ( that we know). This made me realize that Jade had a story before us and part of it will make it harder forbher to bond to us. I guess this blog makes we wonder if she will trust us, just as much as our first dog-t-bone. Without a doubt our first dig trusted us. He never wants to leave our side. And we in turn trust him.

Dallal
Lisa F. Tardiff said…
Dallal,

The more you devote to Jade and the more you trust, respect and commit to Jade --- the more Jade will trust you. Dogs aren't like humans they don't keep grudges and they don't carry burdens.

She may not be like your first dog and her unique story will definitely impact the family's story -- but you'll see you'll love her as much as your old dog. She'll be important to you and she'll show different virtues and different qualities to explore and enjoy.

Don't allow your fears and your questioning to cheat you from this adventure. Let it all empower you.

LISA
WampumBlueRaven said…
Just wanted to share with you these two stories about dogs- we just got cable and I left upon this Tv Show called " At that end of my leash" it about the trust and relationship building between dogs and human
click on website below if interested...


http://www.slice.ca/Slice/Watch/Default.aspx?categoryID=1189156066


Click on Season 6
Episode 66 & 78

Cheers Dallah,
Nathalie
Lisa F. Tardiff said…
Nathalie,

Yes - I know the show "At the End of my Leash."
It's a good show.
I like the "umbilical technique" that this man teaches. it makes a lot of sense and it resembles our understanding of the three first mysteries of the Wheel.

Thank you for suggesting the link.
LISA
JP said…
I enjoyed this blog on trust. It's neat to see it in action too. I'm babysitting Bella this morning and it was interesting to see her reaction when you left. The first thing she did (after whining at the door) was circle around the house sniffing. It was like the smell that she knew and trusted was gone and she was trying to locate it. It showed me that trust is not a "mental activity" but something we live at a physical/visceral level.
Anonymous said…
hi Lisa, i've intended to come back to this post and respond to your original questions..time flies and i'm not really sure how to reply. first off..yes i'm interested in shamanism, as for how i apply it to my life, i dont really and yet i stummbled upon some interesting articles during the time i replied here(yours here included)that resonated, in that i felt these elements were already a part of my life..but i had no name for them its just how i've grown to become over the years of struggles and general life. i've since been reading more about shamanism and am open to learning more about the teachings. being from celtic origins as far back as i can trace am interested in looking further into any histories i can find there.

recently i have been finding that i have experienced something and then come across (without looking for) information that corresponds with what i'd experienced.. feeling kind of like a little confirmation. i find it difficult talking about this stuff.. mainly because i dont really know how to express what i feel especially when its not on a level with general society. and over the years i've become very self relient emotionally. and that comes back to trust again!

i was chatting with a friend the other day and i found myself saying that 'i have always as far back as i can remember had an intense (underlying) fear and mistrust of people' (generally not all). thats not usually the kind of thing i'd offer up to someone lol, but its true and also it took me by suprise, the depth at which i felt this. i've had incidents throughout my childhood years that have contributed to this but it goes much farther back.. i remember feeling a terror of people when i was tiny and not yet able to wonder at why! my best friend as an infant was my granparents dog..always by my side even when i slept. she wouldnt leave the room until i woke and apparently, as a baby, she would run downstairs to inform them that i was awake. i've wondered if she sensed my fears.

quote:'...So far what I'm seeing is that trust vibrates through all kinds of experiences and challenges us all equally.'

..still learning about trust, it's a constant, isnt it?

i've heard it said that, you are not a nice person if you dont trust? i took that onboard for a while, until i realised that i needed to trust my instincts..as far as i can. swings and roundabouts.

thanks again for your time here.

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