Yes, a Chipmunk.

Most people don't know this, but I have been working with a Life Purpose Coach. I know that advertising work allows me great freedom, but the work isn't meaningful to me, in fact, it is rather the opposite. I feel strongly that if I must work, it should be doing something that is either beneficial in some capacity, or is personally meaningful.

So we've been going through various exercises, and this most recent one was a guided meditation done to a CD. Since I am not at all religious and don't have a god, this was my chosen method to access my "soul". The CD presents itself as a means to visualize yourself sitting in a beautiful setting, then walking down a path and coming upon what is to be your sacred area. One visualizes various things. (I'm rather reluctant to post my entire notes from the sitting, but they're pretty Timothy Leary-ish.) This methodology assumes you have a Protector (aka Ego) that wants you to be safe, protected and happy. You conjure up your Protector, and ask them to step outside the sacred circle you've put yourself into.

Any guesses what my Protector emerged as while I did this visualized meditation?

A Chipmunk. Yes, you read that correctly.

Where did that come from? Okay, so I go on with the rest of the guided meditation (which was quite visual, trippy and had interesting bodily sensations). After I was finished, I was very intrigued about this chipmunk. It seemed so random.

Thanks to the power of the internet, I was able to look up the symbolism of chipmunks. This particular website gave me my totem animal. Here is the description of my Chipmunk Totem:


Chipmunk, like squirrel, embodies the quality of trust.  They have little fear of people and are often found in rural areas, city parks and in the wild.  Chipmunks are very curious and take the time to explore everything that comes across their path.  They are inquisitive, fearless and playful. They do what they want to do in their own time frame.  They are quite vocal often drawing attention to themselves.  Chipmunk medicine people will not tolerate being told what to do or when to do it.

They make good leaders and spokespersons.

When a chipmunk is twelve weeks old they have the ability to be on their own.  The symbolism of the number twelve or the combined numbers of one and two should be studied by those with this totem.  Cycles occur regularly in a persons life and those with chipmunk medicine will often find that changes will occur in their life approximately every twelve weeks or twelve months.  Knowing this gives you forewarning and the opportunity for preparedness.

By watching the chipmunks behavior much can be learned.  They appear to scamper to and fro always in a hurry to get somewhere.  Starting in one direction, circling around and arriving back where they started from.  There is no detail that goes unnoticed by the chipmunk as they circle around andsee beyond the obvious. Chipmunk teaches the art of observation and
appropriate movement.

Chipmunks have an air of independence and certainty about them.  Their inquisitive nature leads them into unexplored territory and their detailed mind leaves no stone unturned. 

If chipmunk is your totem pay attention to how your energy is being used.  Are you thoughts constructive or destructive?  Are your fears keeping you from playing and enjoying life?  Are you in charge of your life or have you given you authority over to another?

Chipmunk is the messenger of many realms.  If this is your totem you are on your way to self discovery.

This was spot on. Fascinating. Telling.

When I spoke to my Coach this morning, we went through this because I identify with a lot of what is described above. It made sense to her that my protector showed up like this, because this is part of the conscious self, the ego, etc.

There was one other part of the exercises that I couldn't bring myself to do. It involves some journaling and asking questions of the "soul" or whatever source it was that gave me my last bit of information ("it" did tell me a "purpose", albeit a vague one, so I need to go back and ask some additional questions.)

This journaling exercise cannot be done by me in my livingroom. Or indoors. I have been having dreams about needing to go back to Yosemite. So there is where I will go to ask these questions, sitting by a river. How Herman Hesse, huh? I have long been drawn to listening to the river rushing and all the voices within, so I will go to Yosemite and sit. And ask. Ask the river.

A weekend has been carved out to go to Yosemite anyway, since I have been getting the jones.

Uh-huh. Jen's going a little crazy, a little too much granola for breakfast, a little woo-woo. Poor, dotty girl you might be thinking.

Hey, man, a chipmunk has got my back. Can you do better than that?