Issue #28 The Magic Heron Newsletter – What creature teaches us about hunting down resources?

Welcome to the 28th issue of The Magic Heron Newsletter, a fortnightly newsletter with a focus on journaling, writing, and learning nature’s wisdom through midlife. 

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Texas, March 13, 2021

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Hi there !

Spring made an appearance this week and got me all excited about getting outside and then a cold front pushed it out. Warm temperatures should return this week and I will start working in my yard and get ready for a little gardening.

One morning we had a brief hailstorm that was dropped pea size hail and then it was over as the sun came out and it warmed up for the day. It seemed quite strange. There was no rain, thunder, nothing. Just a little hail and then it was over!

This week I published the new book and a notebook! 

Homemade Spice Mix Recipes: 62 Tasty Spice Blends and Seasonings for Vegetables, Meat Dishes and Fish is now available on Amazon. 

The notebook features a really cute vintage retro beach bike and is perfect for spring notetaking. I can’t wait to use mine to take notes in as I plan my garden. 

I noticed the first leaves have appeared on the dwarf apple tree in my front yard. And I’ve washed the bird feeders and hung them out on the porch with new seed. I’ve been waiting for a string of warm days so the butterflies and other creatures can emerge from the leaf litter and then I will rake the yard. It’s important to wait before raking the leaves, because they lay their eggs in the leaves and then feed on and under the leaf layers. Raking or blowing the leaves disrupts their life cycle and eliminates the beneficial insects. Leaves are a natural habitat for moths, butterflies, salamanders, chipmunks, box turtles, toads, shrews, and earthworms. 

This week’s Newsletter Spirit Animal is the Wolf.

This week’s Newsletter Spirit Animal

Wolf Symbolism and Meanings:

The wolf has endured many false misunderstandings, misconceptions, and false stereotypes. Strength and loyalty are some of the characteristics of a wolf for a spirit animal or guide. The wolf is a social creature and is friendly and gregarious. 

Communication with each other is done through eye contact, body movements, touch, and complex vocal expressions. They are expressive vocally and physically, teaching us how to do the same. Wolf also possesses intelligence in using strategies during hunting, habitat, and migration. We can apply these same lessons in our own lives. 

Wolf Symbolism:

• Loyalty
• Cunning
• Intuition
• Intelligence
• Independence
• Compassionate 
• Communication

Wolf hunts down resources for survival and can teach us how to do that in our own lives, like gaining an education either on the job, reading books and free resources on the internet, or going back to school. 

Meditate with the wolf to learn what messages it has for you. There is a SPIRIT ANIMAL WOLF printable journal listed below that may be of interest to you in helping you journal your messages.

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Recently Published . . .

New Books!

1. Yay my new book is live!

Homemade Spice Mix Recipes: 62 Tasty Spice Blends and Seasonings for Vegetables, Meat Dishes and Fish

2. I loved putting this notebook together for my best friend … she loves these retro vintage bikes and I think the cover came out really cute!

Be Free: Blue Beach Cruiser Bike notebook

Recipe

Here’s one of the recipes from the new book. My daughter and I recently had blackened salmon and absolutely loved it!

Blackened Spice Mix

1 tsp ground basil

1 tsp ground thyme

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp white pepper

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp onion powder

2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp paprika

Use for fish, shrimp, salmon, poultry, beef

–

Recently Published . . .

New in the Etsy Shop!

1. SPIRIT ANIMAL WOLF, Animal Guide Totem Meanings, Spirit Companion, Spirit Companionship, Printable Journal Prompts and Cards

2. Printable Mandala Coloring Journal

FREE Herbal Course

1. Does herbalism spark your creative fire? If you doodle all over your study notes and dream of filling your materia medica with beautiful, accurate botanical illustrations, then the Botanical Drawing for Herbalists Course is for you!

Botanical Drawing for Herbalists Course

Interesting links . . .

Here are some interesting links I came across on my ventures through Internet Land this week that I thought you might enjoy

1. How Do Hummingbirds Find Feeders?

2. 10 Perennial Vegetables That Grow Back Each Year

3. 28 Stunning Spring Wreath DIYs

4. HOW TO MAKE OAK GALL AND COREOPSIS BOTANICAL PAINT WITH REBECCA DESNOS

5. Stinging Nettle Identification, Benefits, & Recipes

6. An Important Reason Not to Rake the Leaves on Your Lawn

***I use Mountain Rose Herbs for ordering all the herbs I use. Every order I’ve received has always been fresh and gorgeous. Click here to order the herbs you need for your teas, infusions, spices, and other ingredients for your kitchen:

Mountain Rose Herbs

Journaling Inspiration . . .

1. Journaling ideas for a happier day

2. Journaling Ideas: Topics, Tips, and Ideas

3. Does Your Mental Health Need a Boost? Get Started With These 25 Writing Prompts

Random Nature Fact . . .

Bats can’t walk because their leg bones are too thin.

Nature Journal Video . . .

1. Pressing flowers and nature journaling can be a fun, crafty, botanical way to get more creative in your art journal, junk journal, or nature journal. In this video I experiment with different techniques of incorporating the pressed flowers and pressed plants into my journal.

Pressing Flowers and Nature Journaling

Nature Journal Prompt . . .

Use the picture above to practice drawing in your nature journal and noticing details about this animal.

Wolf facts: 

Lifespan: 6-8 years

Scientific name: Canis lupus

Weight: 70-145 lbs

Speed: up to 37 mph

Habitat: forests, wetlands, shrublands, grasslands, tundra, pastures, deserts, mountain peaks

What it eats: moose, elk, caribou, white-tailed deer, mule deer, rodents, hares, waterfowl, eggs, lizards, snakes, frogs, salmon, large insects

What eats it: grizzly bears, polar bears, mountain lions, humans

Did you know? 

During the Pleistocene period, dire wolves, grey wolves, and coyotes coexisted. Dire wolves were bigger ad stockier than the grey wolf and had a bite force 120 times the force of a grey wolf bite.

What I’m watching . . .

1. My daughter and I are watching Firefly in the evenings as we wind down from the day.

Firefly Season One Trailer

What I’m reading . . .

1. Bird by Bird: Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott

Quote I’m pondering . . .

“For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks, its insides come out and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction.” 

–Cynthia Occelli

Questions I’m considering journaling on . . . 

Time to plan my garden. What do I want to plant? What do I have time to take care of? What ways am I going to preserve the harvest?

Journal Prompt . . . 

What is the first thing you do when spring arrives?

Happy Journaling!

. . . Shanna

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I’ll be back on March 27th!

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Links

Shanna Lea Author website
Books on Amazon
Magic Heron Creations Notebooks on Amazon
Magic Heron Creations Etsy Shop

. . . Shanna Lea Author

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