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BEAVER
The Frogs Return Moon (April 20 to May 20) is the
second moon of Wabun of the East. The mineral totem for
the moon is the chrysocolla, the plant is the blue camas,
and the animal is the beaver. The color is blue and the
elemental clan influence is the Turtle clan.
From the chrysocolla, people in this position learn to
balance the earth and sky within themselves; from the
blue camas, to sustain themselves and others; from the
beaver, to make all environments as pleasant as possible.
This is the position to explore when you wish to learn
about stability, and the value of hard work, luck, and
your ability to create and maintain an orderly and
beautiful environment. The frogs return Moon will teach
you about perseverance, patience, stability, and
practicality. People in this position need to guard
against being too stubborn, overindulging, and holding
back all their feelings. |
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ANIMAL:
 Beaver
is the animal totem associated with the Frogs Return
Moon. The beaver is, apart from man, the only animal
capable of changing its environment drastically to
provide for its own peace, security, and contentment. The
beaver is the largest rodent in the United States. Adult
beavers weigh between thirty and seventy pounds. Beavers
never stop growing, and can grow to three to four feet in
length.
Beavers do not make many sounds. Occasionally they
bark, hiss, or squeal, but usually they only make a soft
mew in the privacy of their lodge. They slap the water
with their tails to warn of danger. Beavers mate for
life. They are affectionate parents who keep their
children around for two years, or until the next litter
comes. Old males who lose their mates sometimes become
surly.
The beaver is a land mammal that spends a lot of time
in the water. Its body is amazingly engineered to suit
its habits and habitat. Beavers' adaptable bodies could
have made them the dominant animal on earth except that
beavers have two things that men desired: beaver fur
(long used for making gentlemen's hats) and a gland that
secretes castoreum. Castoreum was regarded as a cure-all
from the time of the early Greeks until the eighteenth
century. Beavers were in such demand that the search for
them probably did as much to motivate European
exploration of the Americas as anything else. Because
humans wanted their parts, beavers were almost driven to
extinction by the 1800s. Finally humans discovered that
beavers helped maintain the water table and were of great
value to fishing, wildlife, vegetation, and aesthetics,
so they let the species live.
Native people had also valued the beaver fur and meat
and had used the castoreum to effect healing, but they
had hunted beaver with moderation and respect. When the
Europeans came they encouraged the Natives to hunt more
beavers and offered the most prized trade goods in
exchange for beaver fur. These practices helped to erode
the traditional Native culture in some areas.
Working with the beaver can teach you about stability,
balance, tradition, true value, adaptability with the
environment, healing, affection, tenacity, hard work, and
self-reliance. |
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PLANT:
Blue Camas is the plant associated with the Frogs
Return Moon. Blue camas was an important food for many
Native people. It is essential to use only camas with
blue-colored flowers. Any with yellow or greenish white
flowers are deadly poisonous. Blue camas is a good food
staple, and can be used to make pancakes, molasses, and a
sugar substitute. It is a food that has sustained people
for thousands of years. Blue camas is purported to be
good for balancing blood sugar levels and as a purgative
and emetic. This plant is excellent for creating movement
where there is stagnation, for providing sustenance, and
for teaching discrimination an all levels of life.
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MINERAL:
 Chrysocolla
is the mineral associated with the Frogs Return Moon.
Chrysocolla helps to balance the elements of earth and
sky within you. It assists you in reaching the highest
realms of consciousness while keeping a firm foundation
on the earth.
Chrysocolla is a stone of good medicine that can bring
luck and health to the wearer. Chrysocolla helps purify
the heart, mind, and spirit. It helps to balance, ground,
and have an overall sense of well being and strength. It
is a stone that promotes a feeling of peacefulness and
stability, thus giving you a stronger sense of connection
with the earth.
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