RAVEN MAGIC
photo ©elizabeth irvine
The New Mexico landscape provides a vast view from the perch of our new home site. On a recent evening, Ron and I sat quietly looking out for miles. This expansive view always seems to bring a magical feeling. Maybe the best way to explain this feeling is having a sense of a stronger connection to everything and everyone, and to the bigger picture of our lives.
As we sat taking in the sky and each other’s silent company, my husband noticed some ravens circling overhead. One by one, they then began to land on a dirt pile next to us. I counted. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. Seven ravens sitting right next to us. At first I was a little startled and had a fearful thought, oh no– what are seven ravens doing sitting next to us? Ron said this is so cool.
The next morning, we picked up our book on animal spirit meanings to understand more about Ravens:
Throughout time, Raven has carried the medicine of magic. This is true in many cultures across the planet, to honor the raven as a bringer of magic. In native teachings the color black means many things, but it does not mean evil. The blue black of Raven contains an iridescence that speaks of the magic of darkness, and a changeability of form and shape that brings an awakening in the process.
RAVEN MAGIC watercolor elizabeth irvine
I felt inspired to create a painting to honor our experience, I named it RAVEN MAGIC.
In New Mexico, there are numerous sculptures and paintings of ravens and I now understand their meaning. For Ron and I, this MAGICAL moment on the hill represented an opportunity to think of how anything came from creation — out of darkness, from a void of nothingness. The challenge is to bring it to light. In doing this, we honor the magic within.
AFFIRM: I wake up to the potential that I hold within me.