Wolf

The wolf came to me through my wife, Coco. She has been working with myth with a fantastical group of women that have Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes as a guide and elder, who wrote Women Who Run with Wolves, Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype. The wolf gives clues and insight into what is knowable of the instinctual psyche. I see the wolf in Coco’s devotion, keen sensing, endurance, tenderness and intuitive knowing. And beyond this collection of traits, La Loba sings over Coco, stitching together the bones of a wilder soul that howls more than ever. It’s amazing how her wild awakening calls me to awakening, least we lose our flame together. Again, I’m beginning another journey.

As we learn how the wolf archetype provides awakening, the wolf has entered our lives in other ways. I’m reading the late Barry Lopez’s book, Of Wolves and Men, a stunning account that inverts the traditional fear and misconceptions of the wolf. My family is currently reading this, and as a father, it is my first step toward learning with my children the depths and mystery of an animal. My father, mother and grandfather taught me to look and see. I’m doing my best to continue that lineage of work. Our learnings hit home in a deeper way because we also have Apollo, our dog, that is partially wolf.