Signs from Spirit - Birds, Butterflies, and Beyond

Awhile back, when my spiritual journey deepened to new levels, I was deeply moved by the book Signs: The Secret Language of the Universe by Laura Lynne Jackson. Laura Lynne is a psychic medium, and in the book she explains how all of us can access the “secret language of the Universe” by learning to ask for and recognize signs from the other side.

At the time I read this, I was not tapped into my own intuition and gifts and I did not firmly believe that communicating with Spirit was possible. As I read the book and adopted the exercises she provided, a joyous world of possibility opened up in front of me. In real-time, I could feel the burden of loneliness lift — I came into a deep, somatic understanding that I am not alone, and that I am always supported. (I deeply hope you have this — and if you don’t, I believe you can)

In this book, and in much of the work I have been exposed to within the world of mediumship since, signs from the other side show-up commonly as an unusual animal, or plant, stone, or an object like a license plate. In response to our request to send us a sign — Grandmother, if you are there, please show me by bringing me a red cardinal— we find that a cardinal appears. Or, when in a moment of grief and despair, a butterfly lands unusually close to us and lingers, seeming to look directly into our eyes. It brings us peace, and a sense of not being alone. Our struggle eases. The signs bring us immense relief and connection.

In these examples, and in the ways that I have thought about it since reading Laura Lynne’s book, signs are a vehicle for Spirit / God / Source, or a specific Spirit Person — a guide, or perhaps an ancestor — to speak directly to us. The sign is that which the consciousness of Spirit passes through — almost as if it is an object that is used in order to get the message to us.

Lately, I’ve been reconsidering this view.

Instead of objectifying the animal/plant/stone as a thing that Spirit / a Spirit Person is using to communicate a message, what if Spirit / a Spirit Person is working in tandem with the animal/plant/stone to deliver a message?

If it sounds simple — let’s break it down.

There is a difference in worldview. In the old way, all beings that are not human in the story are objectified and devalued. The consciousness of the more-than-human beings is erased, as well as their potential agency and the truth of their Divinity.

In the new worldview, there is a non-heirarchical perspective of interbeingness. This concept, rooted in Zen Buddhism and proposed by Thich Naht Hanh, underscores the essential interdependence and interrelation of all elements of existence. The bird or the butterfly or the stone or the river are no less Divine than I am, have no less consciousness than I do or that of my ancestors in Spirit. We also are all deeply connected and in relation to one another. What affects one, affects the other.

What if the vessel of the sign is not a vessel but a willing participant?

What if the birds and the butterflies and the stones are working together with our loved ones to help us feel more loved and more connected to all of Spirit?

That is a worldview that resonates with me.

That is an exciting new perspective to see the world.

May it bring about more respect and connection to our more-than-human kin for you as well.