Woke up early feeling kinda restless, you know? So I brewed some coffee and stared out the window. Then bam! A huge blue dragonfly just smacks right into the glass. Scared the heck outta me! It hovered for a sec, its wings shimmering, then zoomed off. Felt like a weirdly specific hello.
Getting Curious & Hitting the Books
Right. Coffee could wait. That bug got under my skin. Pulled out my laptop and just started googling like mad. Typed in “dragonfly meaning.” Holy cow, info overload! Found tons saying it was about change, transformation… kinda vague though. Then dug deeper into spiritual stuff. Kept seeing words like “illusion,” “lightness,” “adaptability.” Wrote it all down in my messy notebook.
The Backyard Experiment
Needed to see this in action. Grabbed my camera and old yoga mat, plonked myself down by the pond in the backyard. Sat perfectly still for ages, feeling kinda silly. Mosquitos loved me. But then… they started showing up. First one, then two, then a whole little squadron darting over the water. Watched one land on a reed. Its wings were like stained glass up close. I tried getting a photo, but they’re fast. Mostly blurry shots! But watching them? Totally hypnotic.
Piecing It Together (The Big 5)
Back inside, itchy and covered in bites (thanks mosquitos), I compared what I saw to what I’d read. Started making real connections:
- Change is Okay, Actually Essential: Saw them go from ugly nymphs to these glittery fliers? Literal transformation happening right in the muck. Felt like a kick, like “hey, you can handle big shifts too.”
- Don’t Get Stuck in the Mud: Dragonflies zip effortlessly between air and water. Reminded me I sometimes wallow in worries. Need to lighten up, change perspective like they do.
- Those Wings! Seeing Illusions: That iridescence? It shifts depending on the light. Made me think about how easily I believe my own negative thoughts – maybe they’re just tricks of the mind, shifting colours, not solid truth.
- Focus, You!: Trying to photograph them? Impossible unless you watch where they’re going, not where they are. Total lesson in focus and seeing the bigger path, not just the immediate distraction.
- Embrace the Short Flight: Their adult lives are super short. Made me realize I waste too much time stressing about the future. Need to just… be here now. Like they are, fully in the moment.
The Totem Connection
This part got deep. Started thinking about dragonfly as a sort of guide, a totem. If this flitty little thing keeps showing up for me, maybe it’s nudging me towards those messages?
Next day, tried something simple. Closed my eyes when feeling stressed. Pictured that dragonfly hovering. Felt… lighter somehow. Less stuck. Tried asking myself silently during tough moments: “What would the dragonfly do?” Usually, the answer involved moving perspective or trusting the process of change. Sounds corny, but it really helped break negative loops.
Spent the whole evening jotting this all down – the smack on the window, the bug bites, the blurry photos, and finally those five clear-as-day messages clicking into place. It wasn’t just book learning; the little buggers showed me in person.
