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The Meaning of the Raven — Path of Enlightenment
During my trip through the Petrified Forest National Park and Painted Desert National Park, I saw several ravens at several of the park’s pullout parking areas. They wouldn’t move when I approached; so, I began to search for a deeper meaning of their presence in my travels.
The Native American tribes have various ideas regarding the meaning of the raven’s presence and appearance in one’s life. The raven symbolizes rebirth and grand transformation in one culture, which fits what I found out about myself on my RV trip across the country. My transformation came when I figured out that I’m happy being me and that life has a way of working things out independently without too much intervention. Basically, Reinhold Niebuhr’s Serenity Prayer, “Father, give us the courage to change what must be altered, the serenity to accept what cannot be helped, and the insight to know the one from the other.”
My trip showed me that I needed to continue letting go of the things that I could not change, like people’s opinion, social media persona, or the generally sour attitude of many people due to COVID-19 or politics. I can only control myself and my emotions and the raven’s presence…
