Watching for Signs

61, the Raccoon, the Elephant, the Giraffe, the Turtle and the Peacock

In my practice for client’s that are open to the idea, we talk about the Universe, the signs that people feel they are attuned to, and how these signs can help them. I too look for signs and think about all the possible meanings.

Sometimes I try to convince myself that the signs aren’t real.  That somehow what I am seeing is just a coincidence and that there is no meaning attached to any of it.  That was true until recently when the signs came flooding in over and over and over.  Whenever I asked for a new one, just to be sure, that new sign would show up. Just. Like. That. 

Let me explain what happened.

Anyone who knows me well knows that the number 61 has special significance for me.  1961 was the year a special person in our family, who passed away five years ago, was born.  And 61 is the number I would see over and over after his passing in times that I have needed support or some remarkable change was about to occur.  Or at least that’s what made sense to me.  It made me feel that he was watching over us, that he saw what was happening and that he was with us for guidance.  I saw it all the time and each and every time it made me feel comforted, good, protected. 

About 8 months ago I realized I had not seen 61 anywhere in a very long time.  I thought, okay maybe my time with 61 is over.  The support I needed has come to an end and maybe it is time to move on.  Occasionally, I would see a random 61 and look skyward and say thank you.  I thought maybe his work with us was done.

Boy, was I wrong.

It was October 2019, a time when my family seemed to be at another an important crossroads and I worked to find ways to build my practice.  It was almost at that precise moment that 61 showed again.  Incessantly. Everywhere.  Mostly on my phone.  My phone ALWAYS seemed to be at 61%.  But it showed up in other places.  Pictures on Facebook, photos on Yahoo news.  I can’t tell you how many times it was 61 degrees out.  It was also a time when I had an explosion of clients and was basically able to build my work in the way that had never happened before and which my family needed.  Whoa.  Is it happening again?

But what did it mean this time?  Was 61 giving me a message for my husband?  Or was it for me?  Or both?  I have a really hard time sometimes listening to the message or believing that it is actually happening.  Maybe it was just an especially warm fall and it just happened to be 61 degrees more often than not.  Maybe I was forcing my phone to be at 61% because I look at it too often.  Or maybe on any particular day 61 just happens to be a popular number of likes a person would get on Facebook. 

I consulted with a friend, a friend who is a true believer and understands the very nature of the signs of the Universe.  I asked her what to do.  She simply said, “if you are in doubt, ask for another sign”.  Hmm, another sign. 

She suggested raccoons.    

Raccoons.  Yuck.  I don’t like raccoons.  They are sneaky and mean and they are constantly in my garbage.  Raccoons.  Of all the possible signs to ask for did it have to be raccoons???  But I trust my friend and if she says look for raccoons, for raccoons I shall look. 

And guess what. Exactly one week after her raccoon suggestion, at 7:30AM as I was walking with my daughter to the car to take her to school, TWO, not one but TWO plump, nasty, gross RACCOONS, ambled across the street towards the gutter next to my house. TWO!!  RACCOONS!!  IN BROAD DAYLIGHT!  My daughter as my witness.

And then there were raccoons EVERYWHERE.  And I mean EV-ERY-WHERE.  Not just sitting next to a group of deer as I was driving down the street, not just sneakily grabbing the garbage at night, but in every Facebook post, every article I read, every commercial on TV. They showed up on a random re-run of my favorite sitcom.  Even my son while out taking pictures snapped the perfect shot of a raccoon sitting in the hole of a tree.  Who knew raccoons were so popular?  Or had they always been there and I just didn’t notice?  Again, my disbelief took over.  This can’t possibly be a sign.  It’s got to be just a coincidence.

Just a coincidence, right?

In my disbelief my friend and I decided on another sign, even though she knew another sign was not necessary.  I was obviously not convinced. 

I needed more clarity so I asked for something I knew I would never see rummaging through my garbage.  I asked for elephants.  Yes, elephants.  There is NO WAY I would see an elephant walking down my street canoodling with the deer, right?   Raccoons are so common of course I would see them everywhere.  Little did I know the secrets of the Universe and how elephants would show themselves to me.  Over and over and over.

I made a commitment to elephants, thinking there is just no way.  Nope, I will not see elephants. 

Until I took a short trip to Chicago to visit an old and dear friend.  And as we were innocently getting our nails done I looked up at the TV to see a safari show on, wait for it… elephants!  Okay that is seriously NOT the sign I am looking for right?  Elephant shows are on ALL THE TIME.  There is nothing unique about my seeing this, right?  Right??  I shook off the possibility that this was a part of my sign. 

The Universe must have seen me shake because what happened next was truly remarkable.

The next day my friend and I decided to leave Chicago for a quick trip to Skokie to see a museum exhibit on Ruth Bader Ginsberg.  None of this is important other than to say we were talking excitedly and were distracted by our trip when I get into her car and lo and behold!  What do I see?!  In her cup holder?!  AN ELEPHANT!  YES, AN ELEPHANT!  A Ganesh, to be more specific, the ELEPHANT-headed Hindu god.  Yes, you heard me.  The ELEPHANT-headed Hindu god, sitting right next to me in my friends’ car.

I sat there trying to collect my thoughts.  Shock.  Consumed by disbelief.  Aghast.  Utterly dumbfounded.  I tried to explain to my friend what was happening while simultaneously crying and laughing.  I am not sure she completely understood my story and I am not sure I gave the story any clear credibility.  But she happily explained the meaning of my new Elephant-headed best friend. 

Ganesh (or Ganesha) to the Hindus, is the god of beginnings, traditionally worshipped before any new or major endeavor and is the patron of intellectuals, bankers, scribes and authors.  Ganesh is the remover of obstacles.

Ok, so I randomly pick elephants as a sign.  Is it possible that this relates to a message from 61 at my husbands’ request for me to build my business and then getting an influx of clients?  Did he remove obstacles for me?  Did 61 bring me to Ganesh for this purpose?  Is that even possible?  I have no idea if this is real, but it certainly is nice to think about.

And I also think my head is about to explode.

So I leave Chicago feeling a little closer to some answers, a little more accepting of the signs and with a little Ganesh of my own that I put in the Northwest corner of my house to maximize his powers.

And the elephants kept on coming.  On the internet, in the background of an episode of Family Guy, as part of a clue on Jeopardy.  At this point the average person would probably be convinced, right?  But not me.  Maybe I am overly skeptical, or maybe I am just greedy for signs, but I asked for more. 

And more I got.  Giraffes, turtles and finally peacocks.  Everywhere I looked.  Sometimes alone, sometimes in pairs, sometimes one right after the other.  61, raccoons, elephants, giraffes, turtles and then peacocks. 

And I have proof of all these signs, time stamped, dated proof.  Because every time I saw one I took a picture.  And I sent these pictures to my friend.  Because I needed someone else to experience this with me.  Every time I saw a sign I sent a picture.  I know I must have driven her crazy, but I couldn’t stop.  Because I needed a witness.

And each time I would see a sign or a series of signs I would catch my breath.  And smile.  And feel protected.  Each time I asked for a new sign I received the very sign I wanted.  So something was happening right?  But what was it?  What was the big meaning?  What was I supposed to be seeing?

My friend would tell me over and over, “no, it is not necessarily something bigger, it is just the fact that you are receiving, that you should just feel the support, acknowledge the support and accept the support.  It doesn’t need to be anything else”.  But that wasn’t good enough.  It had to be more.  So we started asking each other more questions.  Are these signs related in bigger deeper ways?  Why have we been drawn to animal signs as opposed to songs or flowers or butterflies?  Maybe this was the Universe’s way of keeping me busy and distracted as almost all of this occurred right before and during the great Pandemic of 2020.  Was it possible that these signs were also tied to the world at large??

Now this next part may make me sound really, really weird but bear with me.

Using the book Animal Speak by Ted Andrews we looked up all the animal signs we saw starting with raccoons all the way to peacocks.  And this is what we discovered.  Of all the animal signs the raccoon seemed to be the most relevant, especially given the Pandemic issues and all the uncertainty during this time.  If you think about it what is the most relevant aspect of a raccoon?  Its’ mask.  Let me say that again.  Its’ mask.  According to Andrews, raccoons hold the knowledge of transformation through their masks.  What has been the most relevant part of this Pandemic era?  The MASK.  Maybe this meant I should ask the question how would I transform during this time?  How would this ultimately affect me?  How would I change?

I believe signs point you in a direction of clarity, a new way to look at your world and show you a new way to respond.  Some may say this a self-fulfilling prophecy, that I wanted to see these particular signs and that somewhere in my unconscious mind I made them become a reality.  I suppose that is one way to look at it.  But the other perspective, the one which I choose to adopt is about faith, faith that if you open yourself up to the world around you, if you are attuned to the signs that are meaningful to you, then a great awareness can grow, a transformation.

But what about all the other animal signs?  Why did they all appear?  Probably as confirmation for me to open my eyes and stop being such a doubter.  Or maybe to show that signs can morph but they all have the same meaning.  They are all interconnected in some way, just like all of us, just like the Universe.  What started out as 61 changed all the way to peacocks but they all pointed me in the same direction, to accept what I know is true, that I am protected and loved, that everything works out the way it should, and that transformation is good.

So what is the moral of this story?  Why am I sharing this with you?  Because it’s about trusting yourself.  It’s about knowing that everything will work out, that the Universe has your back.  It’s about putting your attention to the things that bring you peace, joy, and comfort, and opening yourself up to the idea that maybe, just maybe, you can adapt to what is presented to you.  It is about the interconnectedness of all signs, both big and small and when you raise your awareness to these signs great discoveries can be made.  It is also about talking about the signs that you see, having another person join you on your journey, objectively and with an open heart. And during a very stressful experience sometimes this is what you need.

And also it’s just a really fun story to tell.