By Peggy River Singer
A few years ago I spent a weekend at an Animal Communication class out in the country. While we were taking a break on the back porch Saturday afternoon, I discovered a tick walking up my arm. I'd never met a tick before, but recognized it right away thanks to all the media hoopla about Lyme Disease. "Oh, look," I said. "It's a tick!"
My horrified companions insisted that I kill the creature before it could bite me. So far the tick seemed inclined to be peaceable, but I had to admit I was worried. I didn't want to squash the poor thing with my bare feet, so I went back in the house and flushed it—with apologies.
Later that day, we were asked to silently decide on an animal we disliked or were afraid of, and meditate with that animal. We had to laugh when we found that each of us chose Ticks (surprise!). And what we learned from them was wondrous!
We asked the ticks why they bother humans when there are so many other animals they can feed on. The answer from one tick was: [Imagine a tick shrugging.] "Because we can." Humans are just another potential food source from a tick's point of view.
The ticks know why so many humans hate them, and they know we'll kill them on sight to protect ourselves. They said: "When you squash us, please put our bodies on a compost pile so we can continue to serve the Earth through our death."
By this time we were all feeling pretty awkward about the whole thing. Here we were, working our butts off to learn how to communicate with all life, and really believing in what we were doing. And yet, we had all freaked out and made sure the tick was dead before we even thought about talking to it! It wasn't our proudest moment, but it gave us a LOT to think about.
One of the ticks we communicated with was really furious with humans. He told us the anti-tick frenzy is a direct result of the chemicals and poisons that humans have been pouring into the Earth for so many years. Long ago the ticks volunteered to process those substances and transmute them in service to Life. But now their bodies are so saturated with toxins that they can't avoid passing them on—along with any diseases they are carrying—when they feed, making each bite that much more dangerous to both humans and animals.
When I connected with "my" tick while I wrote this article, he said he had no intention of biting me. He knew what would happen to him, but he wanted to give our group an opportunity to explore what it means to be Tick, and to face the fears we five humans had all absorbed, like it or not, from the anti-tick campaigns. One of Tick's greatest spiritual gifts is to remind us of the danger of inflating fears way out of proportion compared to risk. He wanted to help improve the relationship between his people and humans, because even a tiny tick-sized step toward that goal will resonate through the cosmos.
With all that said, we'll always need to take care of our physical bodies as well as those of our animal friends. This article is about balancing the important role ticks have in nature with taking precautions when in their territory so we can safely share the environment with them. We might not ever actually LIKE them, but we can choose to kill them quickly and humanely. And, it will only take a moment to put their little bodies on the nearest patch of dirt to nourish the Earth that is Home to us all.
Peggy River Singer is a heart-centered animal communicator, medium, faerie ally, Reiki practitioner, and lifelong writer. She combines her gift for communications with her psychic abilities to help create harmonious relationships among all who share the Earth. Connect by phone at 734-548-0194; and by email at newbluecanoe@aol.com. She shares her experiences and insights on her blog, angelsfairiesandlife.wordpress.com.
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