Issue #44 The Magic Heron Newsletter – What creature teaches us about curiosity? + I’m So Excited!!

Welcome to the 44th 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, October 23, 2022

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Hi there !

I am so excited! Bryan Cohen’s Amazon Ads School 5-Day Challenge was a success! It was a lot of hard work—a lot intense learning packed into several days of videos and homework learning how to set up ads for my books in Amazon. I chose the Homemade Spice Mix Recipes book to start with. After a little over a week, my book just made the top 100 Bestsellers List the in Herbs, Spices & Condiments category! 

I’m planning to join the school down the line, but for now I’m proud to have completed this challenge and learn how to run these ads that have always seemed so complicated.

Last week, nature gifted us a newborn kitten. We were inside the house working on our computers and listening to the rain and thunder. The rain slowed enough for us to hear a kitten crying. We could not figure out where it was coming from. 

We looked in both yards and then found it, laying out in the middle of the grass and mud, completely soaked, with the placenta still attached. We brought it in immediately and my daughter set to drying it off and warming it up while I ran to the store to get kitten milk replacer. We never found the mother. 

My daughter has decided to name him Greebo, after a cat character in The Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett, one of her favorite series. 

He’s just shy of 2 weeks old and already has his eyes open. And he is a huge snuggler. 

So, we’ve been adopted by this week’s Spirit Animal! 

We’ve had Cat show up before as a previous newsletter Spirit Animal, but this time it showed up as a kitten, bringing a slightly different message.

NOTE: In case you missed this last time, I’m repeating it here:

I’m looking to make some changes to upcoming newsletters. The newsletter will turn 2 years old in February 2023. So, I think it is time for it to evolve and will make some slow changes over the winter.

I have some new things in mind I do with the newsletter to make it more fun, more in tune with the seasons, and full of meaningful content. 

And I would love your input! What would YOU like to see in the newsletter? 

What about this newsletter do you like? 

Not like? 

Want more of? 

Or less of?

This week’s Newsletter Spirit Animal

Cat / Kitten Symbolism and Meanings:

Kittens symbolize purity, curiosity, and natural goodness. They encourage us to be independent and self-sufficient.

Cats are adaptable and flexible in movement and in decision-making. Cat’s message can be to pounce when the time is right while also remaining in balance. 

Cat has a spirit of adventure, courage, and curiosity to explore the unknown. This can teach us to explore areas in our lives or aspects of ourselves that we do not know yet. And maybe, it’s time to explore new ways of looking at everything in our life.

Cat / Kitten Symbolism and Meanings:

• Attentiveness
• Curiosity
• Dexterity
• Clever
• Independent
• Magical
• Playful
• Spontaneous
• Sensitive
• Mysterious
• Intuitive
• Watchfulness

Explore more about Cat symbolism in the SPIRIT ANIMAL CAT, Animal Guide Totem Meanings, Spirit Companion, Spirit Companionship, Printable Journal

–

Recently Published . . .

New in the Etsy Shop!

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

2. Black Cat and Paw Print Printable Stationery, Pattern Background, Letter Writing Paper, Lined, Unlined, Planner Inserts, Notepaper for Women

–

New Books!

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

2. Halloween Coloring Planner & Journal: Coloring Pages, Planner Pages for Recipes, Weekly Menu, Decorations, Shopping, Trick or Treat, Costumes, Activities, Crafts & More!

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 to Make Thieves Cleaner

2. How to Make a Simple Chai Syrup

3. Sore Throat Relief

4.  A Cool Treat For Pups: Pumpkin Peanut Butter Ice Cream

5. The Best Way to Use Up Extra Zucchini

***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

Fall Recipe . . .

Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix 

From: Homemade Spice Mix Recipes: 62 Tasty Spice Blends & Seasonings for Vegetables, Meat Dishes & Fish by Shanna Lea

Ingredients:

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground cloves

½ tsp ground nutmeg

Ways to use: on French toast, marshmallows, whipped cream, snickerdoodles, oatmeal, pancakes, fudge, coffee, spiced nuts, pasta, roasted vegetables, popcorn

Autumn Fun  . . .

Fall Nature Bucket List! Go geocaching!

Geocaching is a fun activity you can do in your own town, parks, national parks, pretty much everywhere! My son and I went geocaching after he was recovering from his surgeries when he could start walking again.

What is Geocaching?

Download the app and go find geocaches here

Fun Idea From: Fall Nature Bucket List

Nature Walk Video . . .

Nature video to play in the background while you work, walk on a treadmill, or just to relax to!

2 HOURS Tropical Forest Walk – Virtual Hike at McBryde Garden with Bird Songs, Kauai Island in 4K

Journaling Inspiration . . .

1. November is National Novel Writing Month—Otherwise known as NaNoWriMo. Remember–you don’t have to write a novel. You can use this challenge to journal for 30 days, write poetry, essays, short stories–anything you want!

GETTING PREPARED FOR NANOWRIMO || Welcome to Preptober 2022

2. Sign up for NaNoWriMo here!

3. Writer’s Notebook Ideas: Collections to Keep Your Novels on Track

4. HOW TO CONSISTENTLY WRITE 1,000 WORDS PER DAY

5. How to Make a Sketchbook Journal (and Why You Should!)

Random Nature Fact . . .

Did you know male penguins propose? The male gentoo and Adelie penguins give potential mates a pebble. They use them to build their nests and there aren’t many rocks along the Antarctic shoreline. If the female approves, they will bond and mate for life.

Nature Journal Video . . . 

1. Maybe you are already doing it. Maybe you just heard about it. Either way you might be asking “What is nature journaling anyways?”

In this video I try to explain what I think nature journaling is, what nature journaling isn’t and why it is special.

What is Nature Journaling?

Nature Journal Prompt . . .

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

Lifespan: 12 – 18 years

Scientific name: Felis catus

Habitat: found on every continent except Antarctica. Found in human populated areas, on large islands, current or past human settlements. Urban, suburban, agricultural

Speed: 30 mph

What it eats: carnivorous—rodents, birds, fish, some insects

What eats (or preys on) it: coyotes, foxes, mountain lions, alligators, crocodiles, large snakes, other canids

Did you know? 

The oldest cat on record lived 38 years! His name was Crème Puff.

The biggest domesticated cat is the Maine Coon and can weigh up to 25 lbs.

What I’m watching . . .

1. My daughter and I have been watching Big Sky. We came in on Season 3, but it is really good so far.

Big Sky – Season 3 Official Trailer – ABC

What I’m reading . . .

1. I recently found this book when I was digging in my boxes of books that I packed up a few years ago. One of my all time favorites for writing inspiration!

Walking on Alligators: A Book of Meditations for Writers by Susan Shaughnessy

Quotes I’m pondering . . .

“The season for enjoying the fullness of life – partaking of the harvest, sharing the harvest with others, and reinvesting and saving portions of the harvest for yet another season of growth.”

–Denis Waitley

and

“Autumn, the year’s last, loveliest smile.” 

–William C. Bryant

Questions I’m considering journaling on . . . 

According to poet Robert Browning, fall can cause us to be sad for the trees that are losing their leaves.

In a writing prompt I found, it asked for you to have a conversation with the tree and describe fall, winter, and spring as if it didn’t understand. 

But I think the tree understands perfectly well. 

It’s the tree that needs to talk with us about how to change with the seasons. 

I will be journaling my deeper questions on this topic this week.

Journal Prompt . . .

Think about how the seasons change in your town from a sense of smell. Does the air in your town smell different in the fall than it does in other seasons? How does the season feel different and why?

Happy Journaling!

. . . Shanna

P.S. Is there something you like or would rather see in the newsletter? Hit reply and let me know!

I’ll be back on November 6th!

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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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