Befriending the “monster”, or overcoming one’s fear of the “other”, is a common theme in many folktales where the relationship between the two main characters, one human and the other a wild animal, shifts from one of hunter and prey, to one of parent and child, ancestor and descendant, brother and sister, or lovers. It is a voice from the past that shows up again and again in stories from around the world suggesting that planetary ecological restoration may depend not only on conservation efforts but is, at its heart, a relational job calling for us to re-story ourselves into belonging with the wild.
Read MoreMakers of Dreams: Gifting us Dreams on Wings
The Makers of Dreams is an ancient folktale from the Isle of Skye revealing the intimate relationship between dreams, wild birds and the seasonal changes in the landscape that happen at this time of year in the northern hemisphere. As the air cools, creatures of the earth settle into hibernation, and the nights become longer beckoning us to also sleep longer, and dream. Many species of birds begin migrating, and the journey between this world and the dream world that the story alludes to mimics the way the birds in the “real” outer world are literally journeying between landscapes and worlds as well.
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