I'm reminded of a good dose of Woodchuck medicine I got last year. So, I thought I'd take a moment to share this Rx from Nature as an example of how we can interpret symbolic phenomenon according to our life experience.

Last Winter a Woodchuck decided to make lunch out of the wiring in my Jeep. When all the electrical gauges fritzed out on me (whilst driving, ack!), I took the Jeep to my mechanic. He saw tell-tale gnaw marks on some of the hoses and wires around the engine.

Apparently, Woodies crave salt - especially in the Winter. So, apparently, my Jeep innards offered the little guy a perfect salty snack (I live up north where salt is used to keep ice & snow manageably melted. That salt accumulates on vehicles in the Winter - tasty treats for salt-craving critters).

Of course, being predisposed to symbolism (or should I say, a bit obsessive-compulsive about interpreting symbolic meanings that crop up in life), I set to interpreting this odd-ball occurrence.

I knew that Woodchucks are natural burrowers and hoarders, so that prompted me to take stock of stuff I might be holding on to. Grudges, emotions, burrowed resentments. I got mindful about what I was harboring. I intuited the Woodchuck as a messenger encouraging me to release some things I'd been storing that no longer served me.

It didn't take too much digging for me to identify my inner stockpiles. I'd been accumulating and retaining a lot of stress at that time. In fact, I was so overwhelmed, I had paid very little attention to my level of anxiety. That industrious Woodchuck pointed my attention to how I was holding in and repressing a lot of serious unrest.

When it comes to symbolic interpretation, everything counts. I dug deeper into my contemplation and recognized my Jeep as a symbol of direction, movement and navigation (ie: It gets me where I need to go). That crazy encounter with the Jeep-eating Woodchuck reminded me that stress can stall forward momentum (and indeed, I could see a major decline in my progress in the final destination of various goals due to stressful blockages).

Furthermore, that Woodie munched on the electrical system - and that felt like a sure-fire sign that I needed to take a look at my own electrical (nervous) system. I had to ask myself 'What's eating at my nerves?'

After a time of soulful contemplation about this symbolic phenomenon, I was able to piece together a narrative about the 'Woodchuck Experience' as it related to what I was enduring in my life at that time.

This is just a brief example of how seemingly (and admittedly irritating) events can serve as enlightening tugs at our attention.

I'm a firm believer in non-coincidence. There are unspoken lessons offered in seemingly unrelated events in our lives. These events beckon our awareness. They are cues for us to snap out of our stupor and investigate deeper meanings.

So, for example, the next time a sparrow lights on your windowsill at the precise moment you've thought about your grandmother - instead of dismissing it - take a moment to give valid meaning to that event.

To be sure, there are profound meanings and messages stirring just beneath the surface of our common experience.

That means there is guidance at every turn in our lives.

It just takes a little meditation and contemplation to piece together the symbolic puzzle. In time, we can formulate a big picture as it applies to what's going on in our life experience and garner vital guidance in the process of understanding these events.

I hope this tale about Woodchuck medicine offered you insight (and a few 'chuckles' too -ha ha :).

Image credit goes to Dave Atox at Flickr Creative Commons