Speaking of Spirit

Photo Credit: Public Domain Image  Bears hibernate. We learn this as young children in fairy tales, folklore and picture books.  When winter comes, bears find a nice cozy cave and sleep the winter months away...well, sort of. The fact is that hibernation doesn't mean that bears "sleep. "  They go into a state known as "torpor," from which they can wake quickly and easily if need be. The state of consciousness that bears enter is more akin to the meditative state of a practiced yogi.  The bears bodily functions slow down, but if they need to wake, they can and do. Bears teach us a great lesson in caring for ourselves. Like the bear, we, too, need to have periods of total rest. Times when we slow everything down so that we can process all that has happened, heal and return to balance. Each winter, I remember this - seems easier to remember when it is cold, icy and snowy outside.  Each winter, the call of Bear Spirit invites me to "hibernate....