“He appeared for a reason, to let me know he’s happy I am back home, in Lethbridge. He wanted me and my family to know he is always watching over us, that love-based bonds never break, even after death.”

This is a quote from last year’s 420 blog post, featuring a Great Horned Owl who appeared at 4:20pm (sortof) and was subsequently named Willard, after my late father.

Check out last year’s 420 blog post here

When I wrote that post, published on 4:20am on April 20, 2022, I had no idea that it was Part One of a bigger story.

BUT, interestingly, I learned the next day (on April 21) that Willard the owl died on the morning of April 20, 2022.

He was found under his tree that morning in distress and died in the arms of the student who tried to rescue him.

I had taken the day off work to celebrate 420, but heard the sad story from my former colleagues at Lethbridge College the next day.

The sadness I felt for the loss of Willard was compounded by the fact that my mom had just been diagnosed with uterine cancer.

I also assumed Willard was the male of a owl couple and there was a nest nearby, so was worried about the fate of his partner and offspring.

And yet, sometime during the last week of May, I arrived at work one morning and noticed two people looking up into a nearby spruce tree.

Momma owl was proudly perched beside one of her three, newly-fledged owlets! The other two were barely visible, tucked close to the trunk.

I was thrilled to see Willard’s family had survived!

Tending to three owlets on her own during those final weeks of owl-rearing would not have been easy for momma owl, but she did it, proving that life prevails and…

‘Love-based bonds never break, even after death.’

This divine truth has been proven to me time and time again, often through the appearance of wild animals, and often randomly linked to 420 in some way.

On January 6, 2023, my mom lost her battle to cancer and her physical body has passed away.

I miss her, but I know she has moved beyond this physical realm and is with my dad now.

I know her presence will be confirmed by the appearance of wild animals, and possibly linked to 420 in some way, like my dad.

But she was a fiercely independent woman and may decide to communicate the truth of my opening quote in other random ways.

I can’t wait to see what she comes up with.

Random 420 photos/memories from days gone by…

For last year’s 420 post, I searched for the number 420 and published some photos with the ‘magic number’ in the file name. Some interesting photos emerged.

This year, I decided to focus on photos taken specifically on past April 20s, and it turns it, I got some interesting 420 photos in 2018, 2017, 2014, and 2013.

2013 was 10 years ago, and I was some what taken aback to re-discover I was on the Inca Trail, and it was day two of my trek to Machu Picchu.  What a way to spend 420!

Click on any of the images below to open up a slideshow of my some 420 photos from the past 10 years.

The Beginning of My Year of Self-Care

Last week, in my Animal Wisdom Card Facebook group, I described how choosing the Lynx Card inspired a decision to begin a year of self-care starting today, April 20, 2023.

The Lynx presents the following question, to which I answered ‘no’:

Are you allowing yourself the essential rest needed to honour your body, mind and soul?

Here’s the problem with the type of rest I’m getting lately:

I am sleeping a lot, watching TV a lot and reclining in my recliner a lot.

I feel like most of humanity would love to have the time to do these three things these days, but for me, it’s not rest..

It’s a combination of depression, anxiety, grief, intense global energy?, and who knows what else, overwhelming my system.

This is not a restful state of being, and needs tending to, so a focus on my well-being is in the cards for the next 365 days!

My intention is to be to answer ‘yes’ to the above question at a minimum by next April 20, but hopefully before.

I plan to write a follow-up post in a year specific to my year of Self-Care, and hopefully share many more stories in the days to come.

Until then, continue loving life and everything wild 🙂

P.S. Happy 420!! Here is another photo of some baby owls (Willard’s offspring):