Monday, March 7, 2022

Letting Go, A Hermit Crab Reflection: An Angel Message

                                      
Angel messages are light-filled and easily recognized by the love they create in our hearts. And, often they pop up when least expected, but are always appreciated. 

You never know what the universe will unfold at the local farmers' market on Saturdays.  That's what makes it fun.  Some random off-beat items may symbolize my inner landscape.  An angel message, of sorts, plays out in synchronicity.  Something amusing recently happened. While digging through a vendor's wares, this elegant hermit crab paperweight turned up.  I chuckled at my reflection on  its spiral, silvery shell.  A mirror for what I'd been feeling lately,--too big for my shell.     

A hermit crab is an animal best known for its habit of occupying the empty shell of a snail.  The crab uses the shell to protect its soft abdomen, which it twists into the shell.  As hermit crabs grow they exchange their tight shells for larger ones.  Years ago, that's what happened to my young son's hermit crab. When Hermie was too big for his shell, a couple of larger shells were placed nearby for his shopping convenience. The choice was up to him.

Hermit crabs move to a new residence in the dark.  Courage and vulnerability are needed to step out of the protection of an old shell, and scurry into a better fit. 

I never forgot the hermit crab's lesson on letting go.  You can't force a hermit crab out of its shell, it won't let go, and would rather split in two.  Nature had to take its course.

One morning, to my delight, the shift had happened without any help from me.  I was amazed to see Hermie happily dressed in a beautiful new sea shell.

Change is hard, but sometimes necessary for growth.   The good news is the angels are here to guide, comfort, and protect as we leave our old shells behind and reach out for the new.

                                                                      LETTING GO

 To LET GO does not mean to stop caring, 

it means  I can’t do it for someone else.

To LET GO is not to cut myself off, it's the realization

      I can't control another.

To LET GO is not to enable, 

but to allow learning  from natural consequences.

To LET GO is to admit powerlessness, 

which means  the outcome is not in my hands.

To LET GO is not to try to change or blame another,

       it's to make the most of myself.

To LET GO is not to care for, but to care about.

To LET GO is not to judge, 

but to allow another  to be a human being.

To LET GO is not to be in the middle arranging all the

      outcomes, 

but to allow others to affect their own destinies.

To LET GO is not to be protective, 

it's to permit another to face reality.

To LET GO is not to deny, but to accept.

To LET GO is not to nag, scold or argue,

 but instead to search out my own shortcomings and correct them.

To LET GO is not to adjust everything to my desires, 

but

       to take each day as it comes and cherish myself in it.

To LET GO is not to regret the past,

 but to grow and live.

      To LET GO is to fear less 

and LOVE more.

                                                       --Author Unknown

 

What angel messages are coming to you today?  Look for the happy things of God to brighten your day.

 Love and peace,


Rae Karen