Finding Connection

By Tiffany A. Dedeaux

My Ebony Sister asked me what I needed for this next chapter of my work. As I am answering and realizing that I need to focus my work, she begins sharing with me what resonates in her journey. At that moment two deer appear from the brush, cross the trail before me, and disappear on the other side. In the middle of thoughts of how surreal and magical this was, I did think this could be a joke about why two deer crossed the trail…but I’m just goofy that way.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels

What is not goofy is the timing. My sister says, ‘Awww yes, Deer Medicine.’ I know that Deer is about gentleness and lures us into new adventures but how can that help? My calling, my passion is around the career, which is why I’m a Career Coach. What I’m looking to do is not so much connect people to the perfect dream job so much as I am about the process of crafting and finding satisfaction in the career that you create. But what does that have to do with Deer? As the story goes, Great Spirit called and Deer, having heard, immediately hit the trail to Sacred Mountain. A demon, determined to keep Deer and all others from connecting to the Great Spirit, blocked the trail, breathed fire, and made scary sounds. Deer looked at the demon with love and asked to pass, melting the heart of the demon and making the way for all of us to connect with the Great Spirit.

Deer as a Hero on a journey 1) hears the call 2) immediately answers the call 3) and overcomes fear with love. What that tells me is that any time there is a challenge we can be our own HERO. HERO as I suggested in another post, stands for HEARING the call, ESCAPING the past, REACHING for something more, and OVERCOMING fear. We may not hit all the steps, as Deer didn’t seem to have a past to escape, but there still is a sequence to the journey.

Consider your current career challenge. If you’re not satisfied with how things are, at which stage are you stuck and what would it take to get you going?

Suggested Reading

Medicine Cards: The Discovery of Power Through the Ways of Animals by Jamie Sams & David Carson

About Tiffany A. Dedeaux

Tiffany is an ICF Career Coach and a cross-pollinator of ideas with a background in broadcast journalism, social and ecopsychology, and coaching. Tiffany’s nearly two decades of experience has helped her to identify the power of story in connecting us to each other as well as to our environment. A believer in the power of reflection, practical application, and celebrating victories, Tiffany understands that the more we all live our dream, the more we can model it for future generations.
This entry was posted in Career, Creative Metaphor, Decisions, Ecopsychology, Life Vision, Narrative Ecopsychology, Story / Narrative, Wilderness. Bookmark the permalink.

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