Re: Who is your own totem animal and how has it protected you?

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: : What would you (seriously and / or humorously) class as your own 
: : totem animal and can you (seriously and / or humorously)  recount how you feel it has protected / protects you ? 

: My totem animal is the rattlesnake.  As a matter of fact, I have been given the nickname of RattlesnakeWoman and I am quite proud of that. 

: In December of 1993, I quit my job and moved to Chesapeake, Virginia, in order to spend more time with my terminally ill mother.  I left behind the beautiful beaches of the northern Outer Banks, along with a job and an apartment that I loved dearly. After my mother's death, I was quite despondent and lost interest in almost everything. I missed my mother, I missed my job and I missed my old friends.  Although I had many loving, supportive family members, I felt utterly, miserably alone.

: I began seeking refuge on the peaceful trails that ran through the woods of Northwest River Park, and it was there that I first met Chris Petersen. He was a recent biology graduate of Old Dominion University and he was using radiotelemety equipment to track the movements of canebrake rattlesnakes within the park. I soon learned that the canebrake is the only rattlesnake native to Virginia(they call them timber rattlesnakes in the western parts of the state) and the university was studying them because they had become state endangered, largely due to habitat destruction. Of course, the fact that most people would just as soon kill a rattlesnake - or any other kind of snake - didn't do much to help their numbers, either! I accompanied Chris as he tracked the different snakes throughout the park that day and I was hooked. Suddenly, I had something positive to focus on! Here was an opportunity to spend time in the woods, in the middle of a city environment, and help in a study of an endangered animal (OK, so it wasn't exactly "save the tigers" but there aren't any of those in the woods and mountains of Virginia, anyway)! 

: For the next three years, I was in the woods and swamps with Chris a couple of times a week, helping to capture, release and track rattlesnakes, and I learned a lot. I learned that rattlesnakes are a beneficial part of the food chain, helping to control over-population of squirrels and other small animals and rodents. I learned that they will not strike or even rattle unless they are deliberately provoked or injured, prefering instead to lie motionless on the forest floor until the next unsuspecting squirrel comes along. I learned that they are beautifully marked, with shades of brown and tan and cream and olive and even rose. I learned to honor the power of the rattlesnakes, crouched on the floor of the forest only a few feet away from them as I took picture after picture, and the snakes never once threatened me - because I did not threaten them. Most important of all, I learned that we truly fear that which we do not understand. This truth applies not only to snakes, but to many things in life - including people. This is why there is racism, religious persecution and a host of other human atrocities in the world.

: For the last few years, I have returned to working full time and unfortunately, I no longer have the time to accompany Chris once or twice a week as he continues his studies on the canebrake rattlesnake.  Even so, Chris and I remain friends and I continue to be an advocate of the study and of the rattlesnakes, and I will always be grateful for the lessons I learned from them and from Chris.

: That is why I feel the rattlesnake is my totem animal, and that is how I came to be known as RattlesnakeWoman. I hope this proves to be helpful to you.


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