Wolves & The Wild Self
Today’s meditation practice is one that evokes the emotions of winter and a deep connection to our wild selves. It is called The Call of the Wolf… and it isn’t for the faint of heart.
This practice is an invitation. It is an unearthing of your wild, instinctive nature. Not wild as in exuberant or loud; but wild as in the self that is born of and inextricably connected to the natural world . It is allowing us to fine-tune our inner listening and our relationship to our own wise intuition.
Wolves are known for their keen senses, their playful spirits and their deep devotion and loyalty to their packs and their mates. When our own wildness, our natural state, is healthy, we too are relational creatures with a wise intuition, playful hearts and deep devotion to the health and wellness of our communities.
I don’t think it is a coincidence that in this wintery time of year, I feel called to re-read Women Who Run with Wolves. For more than a decade, this book has lived on my nightstand. Author Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés uses myths and storytelling as a pathway to access the Wild Woman archetype. Our instinctual, nature-based selves - the part that is so often buried and lost by societal expectations and pressures.
In the foreword, Estés writes,
“No matter where we are, the shadow that trots behind us is definitely four-footed.”
And later, as she describes her own experience, she shares -
“Like my kith and kin before me, I swagger-staggered in high heels, and I wore a dress and hat to church. But my fabulous tail often fell below my hemline, and my ears twitched until my hat pitched, at the very least, down over both my eyes, and sometimes clear across the room.”
Everytime I read that, I feel a long and deep YESSSSSSSS. I feel the truth of these words and the value of remembering that truth.
Today’s meditation is a love poem to the wolf inside each of us.
As we settle into our practice, you will hear the winter woods and night and a pack of wolves howling at the moon,
Huge thank you to Gordon Hempton, sound artist and acoustic ecologist, for the use of these soundscapes. The wolves were recorded at Wolf Haven in Washington.
This Week’s Mini Meditation
Just the meditation; just for you!
The soundscapes in this meditation were recorded by Accoustic Ecologist Gordon Hempton.
Behind The Scenes
Y’all know I have a mild obsession with books, right? Many of the series I create are supported by the books that I read. This particular series on Winter & Wolves was inspired by a few books in particular:
Women Who Run with the Wolves
Becoming Animal
Cacophony of Bone
#BookSpinePoetry
*all of the content shared in my podcasts, newsletters & meditations is written by me {Meryl Arnett} without the use of AI. If you catch a mistake or typo, I hope it makes you smile knowing a real person is behind every word published 💛