Cardinals by Krista Angelique

This poem arrived out of spirit, upon taking care of my mother as she took her final breath...

I cared for Mother with the help of hospice, in her home, where she wished to pass into spirit. We administered morphine to ease the pain as her body struggled in letting go. My mother and I shared this most tender and sacred time of departure in one’s life, crossing every bridge together, till her last breath, with my cradling her body, and holding her hand just as she had asked me to do. This poem is about Mother's animal spirit, the cardinal.

Cardinals

In Shamanism, it is said, 

When a cardinal visits 

It is someone from heaven

Stopping by to say hello. 

They appear in one’s life

When they are in a time of despair,

And also in times of celebration. 

When my mother took her last breath

I already knew the cardinals would visit.

The cardinal was her animal spirit

And she loved their singing

As she, too, sang beautifully. 

A dear person,

Shortly after her death,

Found a cardinal feather. 

He gifted it to me

Knowing my connection to that bird

And how it was also my mother’s 

Power animal. 

I placed it next to her rosary

And the now dried roses 

we had placed above her head

After her ascension. 

My mother saw angels, 

Within her second wind,

She saw my wings, too,

Spoke of how beautiful they are.

She saw everyone in the room, 

The wings they themselves

Could not see on their own backs.

She saw angels, in us, 

And also those surrounding us. 

She turned to me and said,

“Krista Angelique, you’ll now 

Be the one who collects angels.” 

“Ok. Mom,” I said. “I will.” 

And now when the cardinals appear

Which seems almost daily now,

I say, “Hello, Mom, Thank you for visiting.”

To mom, to spirit, to the angels

That continue to guide and protect

And live within us all

Krista Angelique (E-RYT) has dedicated herself to the practice, study and teaching of yoga since discovering it in 1999 after dancing rigorously as a dance major in college. Krista has had scores of articles on Yoga, Wellness, and Spirituality published in nationally regulated magazines. She has a regular column at Elephant Journal here. She has taught Yoga in Prague every July since 2009 and has been sought to teach in Kuwait, Canada, Virginia, California, Kentucky, and Florida. She calls Kalamazoo, Michigan home, where she teaches Yoga, Meditation, offers Spiritual guidance, and practices Shamanism. She has cats, though also loves dogs, all animals. Her power animal is the Snowy Owl. 

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