The Wardrobe’s Best Dressed: Hummingbird: Messages from My Ancestors by Diana Raab

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                               Visitations

    Some people are your relatives but others are your ancestors,
    and you choose the ones you want to have as your ancestors.
    You create yourself out of those values.
                                                                                     ~ Ralph Ellison

Each   day   a  hummingbird visits  the  garden  outside   my
writing studio. She  loves the  red  trumpet  vine  that  bears
delicious nectar. She hovers in the center of the flower for a
few  seconds, levitates, and then  moves on to the next vine.
Her  movements are so quick that I have to keep a close eye
so  as  not to miss her  before she flies  away. She  seems  to
have  a  lot to  do over the  course of  her day as she bestows
her magic on plants and other sentient beings.
    It’s  been  said  that  those  who  were close to  you  before
they  died   commonly  send  messages  in  the form  of  bird
spirit  guides. Hummingbirds,  in particular,  resonate  at  a
high  vibration, which  makes  them  more  connected to the
spiritual  realm.  They’re  also joyful  reminders and tend to
open  our  hearts  and make  us smile. They’re referred to as
messengers  from  the heavens  because  they often show up
when  people  grieve  the  loss  of  a  loved  one.  In this way,
they can also be  healing. If you ever watch a hummingbird,
you’ll  notice  that  it  can   come  to  a  complete  stop  when
traveling at high speed.  Also,  their movements are often in
the  shape   of   an  infinity  sign;  thus   their  connection  to
eternity.
                                                ***

    I’m  quite  sure  that  my  grandmother,  who died in 1964
at  the age of sixty-one, frequently visits me in the form of a
hummingbird.  She  sends  messages  of  love and  offers me
ongoing   protection. She   reminds  me  that   everything  is
temporary and of how important it is to enjoy my time here
on  Earth. She tells me that her time here was too short and
that  being  my   grandma   and  caretaker  was   one  of  her
greatest joys and accomplishments. She reminds me to rise
above the  everyday, rudimentary concerns of life  and  look
at  the   larger  picture.  She   says  that,  with  love,  we   can
accomplish  almost  anything,  and a life without love  is  an
empty one.
    If we pay attention, the universe has  a way  of sending us
signs.  I  believe  that  if  we  pay attention, we  receive signs
from  the  departed that help show us the way. Some people
call  these  entities  guardian   angels,  while  others  refer to
them  as  spirit  guides.  They visit in different forms, so you
must opyour heart to the  secret  messages  being  sent your
way.
                                                ***

    When   my  grandmother   and   father   were   alive,   they
provided me  with unconditional love, and  they continue to
do   so  on   their   visitations.  They  don’t   give  me   direct,
detailed instructions. Rather, they support and guide me on
my life  journey. I  sometimes  feel  their  presence over  my
right   shoulder  as  if  an  energy  were   coming  through—a
physical sensation  such  as  tingling  or chills  in  the  upper
part of my body. Once in a while, I feel their presence when
one of  my extremities  falls  asleep. Sometimes I  hear  Dad
giving me  advice or  telling me that everything will be okay.
    My grandmother’s messages come  to  me  in other subtle
ways—an  unexpected bird, an out-of-the-blue phone call, a
certain  book falling  off my shelf, a  certain song playing on
the radio, a light flickering in the  house, or her  whispering
into my right  ear.  It  might  only  be a word or  two, but it’s
usually enough to relay an  important message, much as the
hummingbirds seem to do.
    This connection  with birds  can also  be a way  to connect
with our own souls.
                                                 ***

    For  the  most  part, children and young adults take things
in stride; but sometimes, if they have a difficult time expres-
sing  their  feelings, their bodies  give  them  messages. After
my  grandmother  died, my parents  began  fighting  a  lot. It
was  difficult  to watch  and  impossible to  process. I believe
my   childhood  asthma   might   have  signaled   that   I   was
stressed   by   circumstances   at    home.  According    to  the
Cleveland  Clinic, traumatized  children have  shown asthma
rates fifty times higher than their peers. As  an adolescent,  I
hung out  with  teens  who took  illegal  drugs,  and  I  stayed
away   from   home   as    much    as    possible.  I   felt  adrift,
searching  for a  way  to reconnect  with Grandma.  Now  I’m
left  to  wonder if the  hummingbird  visitations are a way  to
make  that  connection.  Are  her  messages  a way  for me to
heal  from  my grief both over losing her and over not  being
wanted by my mother?

Reflections / Writing Prompts

1. Write about an incident from your childhood that
   transformed you.
2. Who in your life, alive or deceased, provided you
   with the most unconditional love? Describe how
   they displayed their love.
3. Discuss the first time you lost someone whom you
   loved deeply.
4. Write about an experience you’ve had with a
   visitation from a deceased loved one.
5. Write about a book or books that changed your
   worldview or perception.

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