A Sign...

This photo is part of my 365 Project I did last year and posted on Flickr. You can see the entire project here.

Day 9 of 365 (January 9, 2007)

Feathers mean a lot to Native Americans. Although, I and my children are not full blooded Cherokees, we are very in tune to our heritage and its spirituality.

To us a feather isn’t just something that falls out of a bird, it means much more. To us the feather symbolizes honor, strength, wisdom, power, freedom, trust and more.

In Native American cultures, eagle feathers are given as an honor. The person chosen is selected because they have done a brave deed, such as fighting off a bear or going up against the enemy.

Although this feather is not an eagle feather, I am taking it as a sign, a profound sign...

I found it laying in my front yard, right there, obvious, almost as though someone put it there on purpose. I saw it as soon as I step out of my car...and I was stunned.

My husband and I had just returned from seeing our son off on his second deployment to Iraq. My son is very proud of his Native American heritage and very proud to serve his country, so this is a gift, it is a sign, it is a symbol...and I am displaying it on my wall proudly.

© 2007 BarGal Photography
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All photographs may not to be used without my written permission.
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(Update: Our son returned home safe and sound on March 5, 2007. You can see the 365 Project photo on that day in the link for the complete project set at the top of this posting.)