“When we learn to read our lives symbolically rather than literally, new vistas open to us. This world, the world of ordinary life, once again becomes ensouled, mysteriously interconnected, meaningful, and fascinating.”
This quote by Robert Johnson appears in his book Living Your Unlived Life. Johnson was a Jungian analyst, author, and presenter, and a man of wisdom. I recently had an experience that exemplifies the significance and specialness of “reading our lives symbolically.” I was walking on a trail in a nature area, and for several seconds a hawk flew above and a few feet ahead of me, flying in the same direction as I was walking. This happening in itself would have been meaningful to me in that it showed a connection between nature and me. It was even more meaningful, however, because something similar occurred in the past and I intuitively felt the connection between the two experiences.
Twenty-eight years ago I attended a week-long retreat where the focus was on Jungian psychology and spiritual growth and the interconnection between them. Some of the authors who have most influenced my life path and the life paths of many other people have written about this interconnection, one of those authors being Robert Johnson. At the retreat there were group sessions and individual sessions with the facilitator who was a Jungian psychotherapist, as well as unscheduled time when those of us attending could reflect, journal, and spend time in the nature area that surrounded the facility where the retreat took place.
One afternoon as I was walking along a trail through the woods, a hawk appeared and flew a few feet ahead of me. There were tall trees on either side of the trail, and the hawk flew above the trail and in the same direction I was walking for several minutes. It surprised me that it flew along the trail for as long as it did; I would have expected it to fly off in a different direction sooner.
I shared this experience during an individual session with the retreat facilitator, and we talked about how this occurring was a synchronicity having to do with following my life path. Looking at what happened symbolically gave me reassurance that I’ll have inner direction that will help me to do that, as represented by the hawk seeming to lead me. We talked about how the hawk could be considered my spirit animal. According to certain spiritual traditions, spirit animals carry wisdom, meaning, and power.
The similarity of a hawk appearing to lead me both recently and 28 years ago was meaningful for me, once again a reminder of the assistance we receive as we travel our individual life paths. Over the years, I have seen hawks from time to time and when I see them I have been reminded of that first occurrence and what it symbolized. My recent experience adds another layer of significance.
The Creator speaks to us in many ways. Reading our lives symbolically, as Johnson says, is one of those ways.
