American Buffalo – Animal of the Month

I never know where the inspiration for my next Animal Wisdom conversation will come from. This month, it came from seeing a photo of an American Buffalo in a friend’s Facebook feed! I had been planning on talking to a different animal in the next Animal Wisdom Circle call and I knew immediately that it time to use the Life Skill of FLEXIBILITY.

My conversation with the Buffalo

As soon as I connected with the Buffalo, I felt a sense of peace and power. I began the conversation with Buffalo by asking my three questions. His answers made so much sense given the biology and history of bison in the United States and they reinforced the theme of choice and how we are all connected – to ourselves, to Source and to the natural world around us.

What is your Spiritual Gift?

Longevity. Surviving.

What is your Spiritual Lesson?

Residing in Peace when there is Violence all around.

Do you have a message for people?

Walk on the Earth but leave a small footprint on the earth. Find a way to live in harmony with the environment and find your way to balance and peace and harmony.

The members of the Animal Wisdom Circle who were on the call live with me asked more questions and by the time we hung up, we were all feeling so PEACEFUL that we had to end the call so we could meditate and bathe in the peaceful energy of the Buffalo for a longer period of time with out talking!

This Spiritual Shit is Getting Real

My conversation with the Buffalo came a few days after the shooting in Orlando. I’d been asking myself the same question: how do I stay in my loving, peaceful state when I am surrounded by such hatred and violence? Buffalo’s elaboration on his spiritual lesson made it clear: honor the fallen, the dead but choose your response from your values and your priorities. You can’t ignore what is happening but you can choose how you respond.

Many leaders have echoed these words in different ways over the last few days and people are calling for action. Even as we mourn, we need to take steps to prevent this type of violence in the future.

The time to act is now.

Thanks for helping me make sense of humankind and our shared human tragedy, Buffalo. My grief and bewilderment in the face of such insane hatred and violence is given a course of action due to your thoughtful words. Thank you.

Now it’s your turn:

What does the Buffalo’s message mean to you? How can you apply his wisdom to your life? Please share your insights in the comments below.