Sign language: how to recognise signs from the Universe

I find it quite intriguing that, in a population which is largely skeptical about the presence of a higher power, society has a low-key fixation with signs from the Universe. But theological musings aside, it does seem as if many people are very open to receiving messages from the Universe to help them navigate through life – particularly when it comes to validating certain life choices. Trouble is, it's not always easy to recognise signs – plus, given the human brain's fondness for overanalying things, we can sometimes ascribe meaning in the wrong places rather than where it *actually* is. 

I remember hearing the holistic nutritionist and all-round wonderful human Dr Libby Weaver talking about how the law of attraction means we attract what we focus on (a message that comes up time and time again in angel card readings). She gave the example of someone considering buying a certain type of car, let's say a blue VW Golf. Suddenly they'll start seeing blue VW Golfs everywhere, causing them to exclaim: "It's a sign!" It's not. This is simply a result of them being more aware of that model of car – a focus that attracts more VW Golfs into their atmosphere. It's an easy mistake to make. The angels do have certain signs they typically use such as feathers (read more here), but often the signs are not so prescribed.

Sometimes signs can be highly personalised and really obvious. On a trip back to my homeland, New Zealand, for the Easter long weekend recently, I was due to drive a rental car from the main airport in Auckland to a holiday home two hours away, at the same time a menacing cyclone was closing in. Predictions were dire – authorities had warned people to postpone their holiday plans and stay off the roads, many of which were likely to be shut or flooded. My boyfriend and I considered delaying our road trip until the following day, when the storm would have passed, but the owner of our holiday property insisted the area was in no danger, as the storm had by then moved eastward. We really did not want to wait a day to depart, as it meant we'd be caught in a massive amount of holiday traffic on Good Friday. Torn, I checked in with my intuition, which told me I would be fine to travel down that night. 

As we hit the – eerily empty – highway out of town, I received a barrage of text messages from worried family and friends trying to convince me that we were making a risky trip and should stay in Auckland for the night. Feeling uncomfortable, I again asked my intuition; it assured me once more we would be safe. The phone messages continued, and my boyfriend, noticing my discomfort, reasoned that if conditions changed, or we encountered road closures, we could always turn back. I agreed... but I still felt afraid of the unknown. 

This is the point where understanding your intuition gets really tough – sometimes fear can get in the way, masquerading as divine intervention. Fear was making me question my choice – clouding the certainty my intuition had conveyed. I asked Archangel Raphael (who is associated with travel) to surround our car in green light to keep us safe, and asked Archangel Michael to shore up my confidence. Feeling very anxious and wondering whether I'd misinterpreted my intuition, I asked the angels for a very clear sign that I could easily understand. No less than 30 seconds later – I promise I am not making this up – some very familiar guitar riffs came from the radio. It took me about five seconds to place the song, but when I did, I had to stifle a laugh. It was 'She Talks to Angels' by the Black Crowes. That, my friends, was no coincidence. Since this song came out in the 90s and hasn't exactly remained on heavy rotation, it was highly unlikely to be playing on a mainstream commercial radio station at 6pm on the Thursday before Easter. There was an added layer of meaning, too – the song spoke to me personally. I've loved it for years, mostly due to its title (and yes, I am aware it's actually about drug use not being a lightworker lol). No doubt about it – this was a very clear sign that everything would be OK. 

Although I felt relief coursing through my body, I'd be lying if I said I felt completely relaxed the rest of the journey. I was still on edge as we drove on, but I absolutely knew in my bones that we had made the right choice (because even when you know this, you can still be scared!). We made it to our destination safely, with no disruption. The storm turned out to be something of a storm in a teacup, passing over an area well away from us and causing very little damage. Which, of course, the angels had known long before authorities had*. 

Of course, sometimes signs are not this obvious, so it can be challenging to understand them. My advice in those situations is this: trust the feeling. If it *feels* like a sign, it most likely is. Usually signs are confirming something you already know on a deep level, and that feeling of knowingness confirms you've understood correctly. Signs are something you *feel*, not *think* – which is why you should never go looking for them, nor specify to the angels what sort of sign you'd like to receive. Try to leave your brain out of the equation.

On a related note, I'm often contacted by people who've seen what they've identified as a sign, but they don't know what the meaning is (i.e. they hadn't asked for divine assistance). In that case, the answer will always be this: it's basically a postcard from the angels. They're saying hello, we're here, we're looking after you, and everything is going to be OK – so stay positive. Which is pretty welcome on any day, right?!

*Just for the record, I don't recommend disregarding official advice...

How to hear your intuition better (and what can go wrong when you don't)

Of all the questions I’m asked on the regular, this is probably the most common: 'how do I know when it's my intuition talking to me?' I totally get why this is such a stumbling block for people. When you think about the nature of intuition (ethereal, can go against logic, experienced differently from person to person, etc) it's not surprising that learning to identify, let alone trust, your gut instinct is such a struggle for so many people – including myself.

Firstly, here's what your intuition is NOT. 

It is not the voice that tells you you've left your hair straightener on (that's paranoia). It is not the voice that tells you that you won't be good enough until you lose 5 kilos (that's your inner bully). It is not the strange gurgling noise your stomach makes (that's probably indigestion). It is, however, that gentle voice telling you that you need to ring your sister because she really needs to hear from you. It is that deep feeling of knowingness you get when you see a job advertised and you just know you're going to get it. It is that shudder emanating from your core you get when you meet someone who everyone else fawns all over but who you sense is not being straight up. In short: your intuition is a deep knowing feeling that often radiates from your core. The art of recognising that voice does get easier with practice. 

Even after all these years familiarising myself with my intuition, I still sometimes fail to recognise it. A few weeks ago I went on a weekend break to the Gold Coast (for the benefit of my non-Aussie readers: a beach city popular with holidaymakers). In the days leading up to our departure, every weather forecast told me to expect thunderstorms and non-stop rain. I was so disappointed — I had really looked forward to lazing on the beach. Then my intuition kicked in, telling me to take my bikini. 'Ridiculous!' I told it. 'I'm not going to the beach in the rain!' I checked the weather again - still storms forecast. Yet as I packed my bag, again and again it told me to pack my bikini, and even later in that half-awake state as I was drifting off to sleep the night before my flight (FYI this is a prime opportunity for messages to come through from the Universe, because your brain, which normally offers resistance, is winding down for the night). I arrived on the Gold Coast sans bikini, beach towel nor shorts... and the predicted storms did not eventuate. It was gorgeous sunny skies and soaring temperatures all weekend. I ended up lying on my raincoat on the sand, wearing weather-inappropriate clothes, then looking longingly at the hotel pool (and whingeing constantly, which was my boyfriend was *soo* thrilled to listen to). 'Told you so' said my intuition. Obviously being without a bikini is a ridiculously first world problem with no great consequences, but it is an example of how the intuition can prompt you multiple times yet you can still overlook it – and the repercussions of that can be much greater than a beach holiday falling short of expectations.

I also had a massive 'd'oh!' moment during a recent angel card reading for a client. Among other things, the client wanted to know whether she should give a former flame another chance as she felt she had unfinished business with him. As I started shuffling the cards, my intuition told me strongly that they didn't have a future together. But when I turned over the cards relating to romance, I doubted myself. Cards signifying 'true love' and 'worth the wait' came up, so I emailed her a reading assuring her of the need to give him another chance. She replied a day later saying the guy had changed his mind about seeing her again, leaving her disappointed and confused. I felt awful – and I knew that it was my own fault for disregarding my intuition, which had been so clear from the get-go. I emailed her back apologising, explaining what had happened. I told her what I should have told her in the first place – that true love was in her future and that romance would be worth all the disappointment she was enduring now… so instead of letting hurt and doubt close her heart, she'd need to be willing to take a chance on love. Although somewhat embarrassing for me, this was a valuable lesson– that I needed to trust my intuition instead of disregarding it when it comes up against information that seems counter-intuitive. 

So where did this leave my poor client? Well, reassured that this heartbreak is not how her story ends… and hopefully this initially confusing reading might have actually helped her in another way, too. I emailed her a story from a fellow angel card reader – who I'd turned to for advice – which explained brilliantly why our intuition sometimes gives us information that seems wrong, but isn't. Many years ago, my friend had been on and off with a guy for three years when he asked her to move overseas with him. She asked the angels whether that was a good idea, and they said 'yes!'. So she quit her job, booked her flight and excitedly started packing. But a week later he told her it was over – for good. As you can imagine, she was devastated. When she asked the angels why they'd misled her, they said they’d given her the information she had needed at that time. It was only when she properly committed to the relationship that it could properly end. If it hadn't, she'd still be playing the half-in, half-out game. Ending that attachment cleared the way for a new relationship to come into her life – and that's how she later met her now-husband and father of her children. Not exactly a pleasant lesson for her, but a necessary one. I think it's something we can all learn from. The Universe always knows best. The better we get at listening to it, the smoother our journeys through this lifetime.

If manifesting isn't working out for you, this might be why

With so many angel card messages lately urging us to set intentions to manifest what we want in our lives, I thought I’d write about how we sometimes block our dreams from coming true by wanting them too much.

Wait, what?

Bear with me. I *know* that sounds counter-intuitive. How can you want something too much? I mean, no one would set a goal for something they didn’t really want, right?

The problem is that when we want something so much that we devote all our focus to it, we don’t give the Universe enough space to make it happen for us –  and that messes up all the good energy we’re trying to send out. We get in our own way. We try to force it before the time is right, jumping on every opening that seems like it could possibly be the way forward, instead of pausing to let our intuition guide us. We might pursue business opportunities that don't suit us and chase potential romantic partners who aren’t that into us. Speaking of romance, my own love life is a case in point: I believe that I only got the relationship I’d yearned for after I had stopped looking for it. I had not given up on love, I had just given up the search for it (for the record, love is not something you find. It finds you... when the time is right).

There is such a thing as being too attached to something. If we idealise how we want our lives to look, we may become tunnel-visioned and not realise that the Universe is showing us a better way. The problem is not the wanting of said thing, it’s the clinging to said thing.

This isn’t just a trick to play on ourselves so we don’t get too disappointed if something doesn’t work out, BTW.

When we ask the Universe for something, there are only three possible answers it gives:

·         * Yes
* Not yet  
             *  I have something better in mind

Here’s an example. Last year I was completely fixated on my goal of making my reiki practice work. It was haemorrhaging money, and I exhausted every avenue my Mastermind group and I could think of to attract the clientele the business needed. I sensed I’d made a misstep in opening a business without establishing a client base first, but I was in too deep and I felt I couldn’t just walk away (flogging dead horses has always been a hobby of mine, lol). I was so obsessed with making it work that I’d staked my sense of self-worth on the success of the venture, so that when it inevitably failed, I felt like I was the failure. Not exactly a healthy approach.

I’ve already written about my struggles with that resulting sense of failure (read that post here) but here’s a brief summary of what went wrong (or right, depending on your perspective): the Universe was trying to steer me in a different direction, but I hadn’t been listening. Because I was too attached to how *I* thought it should happen.

A lot of spiritual experts encourage people to emotionally invest in their goals, which is all well and good, but if we are *too* attached to our visions, we can overlook cues from our intuition that there might be a better way – or that what we want simply isn’t right for us at that point in our lives.

Lesson learned. Now when I set goals and intentions, I ask the Universe for help, then let them go. Your move, Universe.

Of course the Universe always responds to action (you should never be passive about your goals), but there’s only so far you can go before you’ve got to get out of your own way. Surrendering to the Universe is the only option – and the Universe is, after all, better at organising things than you are. 

This has worked brilliantly for me in recent weeks. One of my aims was to get a regular spiritual column in a publication. To solidify that intention, I focused on the euphoric feeling of having such a gig that would beautifully marry my two career streams of spiritual guidance and journalism (hint: the Universe loves it when we attach emotions to our intentions). I contacted a few editors, but heard nothing back. Then I pretty much forgot about it. I didn’t give up, I just knew there was nothing more I could do to bring the column into being. I knew that if it was meant to happen, it would. 

And, almost 12 months later, it has.

A few weeks ago, a former co-worker put me in touch with a commissioning editor who was looking for a monthly spiritual column on her magazine’s website. After some discussions, we arrived at a formula, I wrote my first piece, and it’s just gone live. I’m thrilled. I’m aware that it might not work out long-term... but then again, it just might. Either way, I’m happy. Because as much as I wanted this opportunity and am enjoying it, I didn’t *need* it.

That’s the best way I can sum up non-attachment: wanting but not needing. It’s a pretty helpful strategy to keep in mind. Except for when it comes to nachos, which I both want and need on the reg, obviously.