Mystery Mountain Lion

When Mark and I first moved here back in 2012, we were invited to a friend's 4th of July party. The shindig was held in a big workshop on the property (which we lovingly call The Barn) and the big garage doors were left open to let the fresh air of the night in. This was your typical Ozarks gathering. Food, good music, drink and of course lots and lots of fireworks. After hours of merriment, Mark and I were the last guests still there. Our hostess called it a night and headed back to her house to go to bed. We hung back to finish our drinks. As we sat talking, we were interrupted by a terrible screaming sound. We both froze; alarmed by this weird noise we didn't recognize. We started guessing what it might be...a coyote? No. A dog killing a small animal? No. The Chupacabra? Possibly. Then I remembered a Youtube video I had seen a long time ago. I think we might have heard a mountain lion!

We told our story to my friend a few days later, and she confirmed that a female mountain lion had been spotted in Ozark a few weeks earlier. We decided that must have been what we heard and that was the end of it. We didn't hear it again.

Female Mountain Lion.

Fast forward to last week, Mark is in our front yard late at night taking the dog to do her business. He was out there for a good five minutes and when he came in, he was excited to report that he had heard the same weird screaming we had experienced on that 4th of July almost 3 years ago. He said that at first he thought it was a woman screaming but he quickly realized it was an animal. We googled the sound of a mountain lion screaming, and he confirmed it was the same noise as he had just heard. The following video is audio of a mountain lion also heard in Missouri. Some kids recorded it with a phone. You can hear why Mark thought at first that it was a lady screaming.

I'm going to go ahead and declare that we have at least one mountain lion here in Ozark, which is great! If she isn't hurting anyone, then let her continue to hunt on the river and live peacefully. Do be cautious if you are one of the many people around here who have yard chickens, or small dogs that spend a lot of time outside. Come to think of it, I haven't seen the neighborhood dog called Lucky in a long time...

Stay safe, friends! And enjoy nature and her creatures! 

~ Love and Light ~ 

Spring Things

Spring fireplace mantel.

If you've noticed I haven't been blogging as much lately, you would be right. Spring is in the air and I have been keeping myself busy around the house and in the yard. I think we were all feeling a little stir crazy and it has been so nice to open the windows and get outside! 

Front door plaque. 

I spent the day of the Spring Equinox packing away all traces of winter and bringing out the spring decorations. You guys know from past posts how much I love celebrating the seasons and I always look forward to changing up the energy at Chigger Chalet on the Solstices. 

Silk flowers in a basket from Thailand.

I won't do most of my planting in the gardens until Mother's Day weekend (a tradition of mine) but I am cleaning up the herb and flower beds and we are putting in a vegetable garden this year. Our friend down the road got himself a truck load of zoodoo from the Dickerson Park Zoo, and had enough to spare a 4x16 foot bed for our yard! 

Zoodoo to become our vegetable garden.

I also made several spring planters for the front stoop and one for the back deck.

Spring planter.

Flowers are popping up from residents past...

Spring beauties!

The park across the river is buzzing with the sounds of children playing, dogs barking and people having fun. We have seen a lot of people kayaking and canoeing this past week too.

Spring planter on the deck, and a couple picnicking at the river bank.

Mark has been helping with the spring projects too. After loathing the wood paneling in the entryway every time I walked through the front door, we finally decided to do something about it! Mark painted the room a lovely pale gray over the weekend. The color is called woodsmoke by Eddie Bauer.

Wood paneling in the entryway.

We haven't added the finishing touches to the space (like new light switch plates, a new ceiling lamp and a storage bench) but I will post a picture when we have it finished. Just the fresh paint has changed the room dramatically and makes it feel much bigger than before.

New woodsmoke paint.

So, that's what we have been up to over here on the Finley. Soon the Farmers Market will be open, the festival season will be upon us and our calendars will be overflowing with things to do! I'll be sure to share my experiences with you! 

~ Love & Light ~

Park Time With Penny

Someone was grumpy this morning, so we went to the Finley River Park to play!

Grumpy Penny and her baby, Tracker.

Arriving at the park, we stopped to read this board. I am just now realizing that it says, "Continued from the other side". Doh! I'll have to read that side next time.

We head toward the water.

We can see Chigger Chalet across the way.

Penny hears people playing at the baseball field so off we go!

We hang out on the bleachers for a while and try to capture a decent selfie. 

Her face! So funny!

After many failed attempts and lots of fun, we go back to the trail by the water.

For the first time we cross through the creepy graffiti tunnel. 

On the other side we follow a trail for a few hundred feet and arrive at the hidden side of the dam! WOW!

We played in our new spot for a long time. We tried for one more selfie before calling it a day and then gave up! 

The water is so clear in the winter. The patch of trees in the center of the river is the "island" where the two eagles I watch live. Eagle Island. No sighting of my feathered friends today so we go home.

Penny had so much fun and was fast asleep in no time!

I'm so glad we had a chance to go to the park and take advantage of this gorgeous day. Missouri is famous for its crazy bi-polar weather, and I hear it may snow a bit this weekend! What a great January we have had! 

~ Love & Light ~

Beaver Symbolism

I wasn't planning to write about the beaver today. ( I know...yep. I said beaver. Go ahead. Laugh it up.). As a matter of fact I was going to do a post on Solstice and what it means to me and how I honor this darkest day of the year... but then I saw a beaver swimming down the river this morning!

I had been told that beavers don't live in the rivers of Missouri after I thought I had seen one when we moved to Chigger Chalet back in 2012. I decided it must have been a gopher as it was on the bank and not actually in the water and forgot all about it. Well, bright and early this rainy morning, I was standing in the Yogate Studio brushing my teeth and staring at the water when I saw it. He was trucking along straight down the middle of the river making a perfect V formation in the water. I knew immediately that it was a beaver and stood watching, completely delighted. He was headed North and twice I saw him dive down into the water and smack his flat tail on the water. I wasn't about to step away and grab my camera so I have no photo evidence but I know what I saw without a doubt. 

Of course the first thing I thought about is the symbology of the beaver and what it means that he made an appearance for me. The following is from Whats-Your-Sign.com and I love what it has to say!

Beavers are ingenious builders, orchestrating megalith dams that can change the flowing course of entire rivers. This impressive aspect along with its association with water makes the beaver an analogy for building our up dreams.

In essence, the beaver tells us to believe in our dreams as if they were real. Build on them as if the dream is your reality. Change the course of your life flow by structuring your life with a goal to coax your dreams into your physical reality.

Animal symbolism of the beaver deals with building our lives up around our dreams.

Dream symbolism comes into play with the beaver because it is largely a water creature. Water is symbolic of:

As a Water Creature, Beaver Meanings Include:

• Dreams
• Psyche
• Motion
• Emotion
• Intuition
• Subconscious

Animal symbolism of the beaver also deals with working diligently. The dams and these beavers build are sometimes eight feet tall and span across entire bodies of water. That kind of accomplishment doesn't happen overnight, nor does it happen by just wishing of completion. The beaver says: "yeah, it’s great to have dreams, but you have to work at them to make the real!"

But it's not all work and no play in the Beaverville. Play, enjoyment, fun and games are also among the beaver animal symbolism. Specifically, the beaver shares quality time with family. This is also another key symbol for us – it reminds us to take time for ourselves, and our family.

The beaver admonishes unbalance, and encourages us to set our priorities right. Working to fulfill life-long dreams is admirable, but not at the expense of neglecting our friends and family.

Beaver Meanings for Us Personally

• Clearer understanding of our subconscious thoughts and dreams
• Ability to mold our thoughts more constructively to suit our needs
• Determination to follow our dreams
• Diligence to keep and reach our goals
• Balance and flexibility concerning ourselves and our expectations
• Take time for self, friends and family. The people in our lives are most precious

Animal symbolism is a pure, natural way to help facilitate change within each of us. By tuning into animals such as the beaver, we can create an energetic dialogue that may answer some tough questions in our lives.

How so? Mainly, observing and connecting. When we pay attention to the beaver's behavior and proclivities, we can compare or associate those features to our own behavior. By doing this we can match up, mimic, or employ beaver qualities in our own lives with a goal to stimulate natural (or even wild) solutions for ourselves. For example, if we have a blockage in our lives, a littlemeditation on the beaver may show us how to "chew" through the barrier in our path. Working with animal meanings and animal totems also helps us move into a natural cycle of life, which is always a good state to be in for finding solutions!

Areas of Life in Which the Beaver Can Help Us

• Need encouragement or inspiration in reaching your goals
• When you've got the blues, and need a boost of energy (beaver is better than B-12!)
• You're starting new creative projects or building new business deals
• You're attending a family reunion or class reunion
• You need a little more structure discipline in the family
• You've want more clarity in dream interpretation or subconscious realms.

What an amazing sight to see so close to the New Year! A perfect reminder that the Universe loves action and rewards it with bringing us the things we visualize and dream about! 

~ Love & Light ~

Two Eagles

A pair of eagles were hunting the river late this morning. I knew something was happening when I walked outside and a large group of geese were frozen on the river. Not frozen like ice, but motionless. It was so quiet. Then I noticed the eagles perched in a tree behind my house and across the river. I sat on the deck and watched them for twenty minutes. The male cried out several times and it was fantastic! They kept an eye on Penny and I and the male made eye contact with me several times.


In the photo they are not very visible. I used the full zoom on my iphone but this is the best I could come up with. They are huge birds and the photo doesn't convey their size well. The male is toward the top of the tree and the female is to the right and pretty far below him.

A pair of eagles hunt the Finley River.

It is believed that if an eagle makes an appearance for you, the ability to hear spiritually and physically will awaken. The Native Americans say that eagle carries our prayers to The Creator. Eagle asks you to give yourself permission to be free so you may reach the joy your heart longs for. 

I am ecstatic to see this pair! I had heard that they lived on the Finley from neighbors and I even saw the male whiz by low to the water during the summer one drizzly afternoon, but having so much time to gaze at them today was an honor. They are majestic and beautiful beings. I embrace the wisdom imparted by these magical birds. 

~ Love & Light ~