Osiyo frens,
I began receiving this teaching from the Ancestors on the 15th anniversary of my brother Kris’ death on September 14. It is a complex and powerful Grandmothers teaching about disentangling ourselves from the web of “fate” and moving to spinning our own destinies – as individuals, families, communities and world society as a whole.
Grandmother Spider begins this lesson by showing us the absolute power of our perceptions and actions when we have reached a high place on our spiritual journeys.

It is a terrifying and lonely thing to realize that we alone are responsible for our pasts and for the choices we make to change our future.
It is excruciating to have to spend the time necessary to disentangle ourselves from the web of fate – the belief that everything is preordained and we can’t do anything to change it.
But people who have been through a Dark Night of the Soul and into the healing process on the other side know solitude is necessary in order to do the healing work, process the trauma, reconnect deeply and personally with the Great Spirit, learn and accept the lessons of our personal and family histories, as well as those of our culture . .
. . . remember why we have come here at this time and place of great prophecy of all nations. . .
and to begin the work of spinning and weaving a new tapestry, a new path for our families, and better story to leave behind for our children and grandchildren.
Grandmother Spider Medicine is very powerful medicine that carries the sacred energy and lessons of the Divine Feminine, which are so greatly needed at this sacred time of prophecy and rebirth.

Spider Medicine reminds us of the power of the human female, our traditions and knowledge passed down from generation to generation, our crafts and art, our traditional ways and homemaking. She reminds us of the power of women’s intuition at a time that many seem to have lost their way.
Grandmother Spider reminds us of the wisdom of our Elders and shows us the path to bring the spark of light back into our lives after failure and she teaches us how to disentangle ourselves from the old ways and begin to spin and weave a new way of being.
Many of my sisters and brothers walking the Ascension path for these past many years are feeling very tired indeed. We have been working to disconnect and deprogram ourselves from the world system for a long time, and this has cost a great deal.
During this time of Raven, while the world is still in chaos, Grandmother Spider invites us to sit down, breathe, connect with our bodies and surroundings, and pay attention to our physical needs.
Use this time to connect with the Great Spirit and your guides, lift yourself up in whatever way you need.

Nurture yourself and spend some time organizing and planning the future. For the world we have come to start building is on the horizon. This is the time that we need to gather ourselves and make our plans. Begin making new earth connections. Because people are awake and will be needing direction.
Wayshowers – the early generations that began coming to planet earth and working in the 60s, 70s, and 80s to change people’s perceptions and bring humanity together have the ideas, experience, sacred knowledge and divine ability to begin spinning the new earth web of connections from wherever we are at this moment.
We are at the point of leaving behind the web of fate and taking the fire offered by Grandmother Spider and spinning our new tapestry in whatever way that means to us. However it best reflects our perception of the world and the dreams we want to bring into reality.
Our First Nations Ancestors tell of Grandmother Spider’s powerful medicine through teaching stories. This is the Cherokee Story, “Grandmother Spider Brings the Sun”

In the beginning there was only darkness and people kept bumping into each other. Fox said that people on the other side of the world had plenty of light but were too greedy to share it. Possum went over there to steal a little piece of the light. He found the Sun hanging in a tree, lighting everything up. He took a tiny piece of the Sun and hid it in the fur of his tail. The heat burned the fur off his tail. That is why possums have bald tails. Buzzard tried next. He tried to hide a piece of Sun in the feathers of his head. That is why buzzards have bald heads.
Grandmother Spider tried next. She made a clay bowl. Then she spun a web (Milky Way) across the sky reaching to the other side of the world. She snatched up the whole sun in the clay bowl and took it back home to our side of the world.
This is a great teaching story showing us the process of spiritual growth.
The various aspects of our personality go bumping around in the dark of the ego led experience, As we become awakened to the truths about ourselves, the clever parts of our psyche, Fox and Possum with their cunning skills go out first to see the new way of being – to go searching for the light.

Her trip to find the light reflects our hunger to follow the path of the Great Spirit which is always led by our own innate Spirit self.
Spirit always leads. And even though Spirit isn’t damaged in the process, Fox shows us the way to move forward.
“As soon as the generals and the politicos can predict the motions of your mind, lose it. Leave it as a sign to mark the false trail, the way you didn’t go. Be like the fox who makes more tracks than necessary, some in the wrong direction. Practice resurrection.” ~ Wendell Berry
Like the Eagle, Fox is a protector of families and an observer of and for the people. The intercessor who lives in the North with the Grandfathers who will show us the light ahead, and help us return safely to integrate the light into our beings.
Possum, reflecting the physical realm, gets her tail singed in the process of getting the fire (transformative knowledge, wisdom, truth) back to our psyche.
How many of us can relate to this? The many mistakes and dramas we create for ourselves as we take those early steps out of the dark and into the light.
It is difficult and dangerous work to bring the new light, the soul light up from the deep of our unconscious to meet the divine spark. To reconnect with our purpose and take that spark back into our daily lives.

Possum Medicine reminds us to be careful and use strategy as we tread this sacred path of healing.
Next Buzzard – the great purifying bird, messenger of transformation takes a crack. Of course, he puts the fire on his head because he’s a bird (intellect) and gets the feathers on his head singed off.
This not only offers an explanation for why buzzards have bald heads, it teaches about the power of knowledge and communication and how we must handle it with care.
Grandmother Spider tried next. She made a clay bowl. Then she spun a web (Milky Way) across the sky reaching to the other side of the world. She snatched up the whole sun in the clay bowl and took it back home to our side of the world.
Through Grandmother Spider, we see observation of what has been tried and been a bit destructive. She shows us the importance of creating a strategy and undertaking the humble yet crucial tasks (making a clay bowl) of preparing everything we need for the task.
Then Grandmother spun a web across the sky. We see here both a teaching about how Grandmother Spider created the Milky Way, how she chose not to walk the path of the earth first, but go to heaven – appeal to the sky relatives and the Great Spirit for assistance. For, when we appeal to Chi Manidoo and our helpers, they have promised to come help us.
And she brought the sun back home in her clay bowl. This part of the story helps explain the setting of the sun as it drops into the west – where the Grandmothers live.

Through observation, strategy, preparation, humble consistent work, and appealing to the powers of Creation, Grandmother Spider not only brought the entire light back to the psyche, she showed us how to create the web that we need to begin making our dreams into reality. The story also teaches that Grandmother Spider brought pottery making to the people.
Grandmother Spider teaches us that when we have reached the point in our awakening where we have experienced a shift in our perception — when we move from the place of sleep (where we are simply responding to and acting out our old traumas and those of our bloodlines over and over again) and –>>
Awaken to the truth of healing ourselves first in order to align with the Great Spirit,
that is the time we move from a place of believing in “fate” into the beautiful and expansive reality that we have the sovereign right and power to reclaim our destiny. To begin the work that we came here to do.
Grandmother Spider and the other teachers, Fox, Possum, and Buzzard show us the different challenges we face on the journey from living in fear to walking in faith. We have battle scars: singed head feathers and our tails have lost some fur, but Grandmother shows us that we can proudly carry those marks into our new life – to learn their good lessons and help them shape our new stories.

The creatures in the story teach us about teamwork and community, and how what we perceive as failure is usually the door opening to great success if we stay in the game.
“As Acheron would say, sometimes you have to fail in order to succeed. Whether we want it or not, there is an order in the universe. It’s hard to understand and many, many times it’s hard to swallow, but it’s there and our choices are our own. Failure is part of life and no one can succeed every time they try something. -Alexion”
― Sherrilyn Kenyon, Sins of the Night
The Ancestors remind us that Forgiveness is the most important and powerful medicine we have and we must remember to forgive ourselves for the choices we have made. We cannot move forward as long as we carry unforgiveness for it makes us bitter.
As we have said, all humans are simply Spirit beings who have come to experience life on Planet Earth, and specifically at this time. This means we have all come together to help one another evolve spiritually – for Mother Earth is a beautiful training ground for our souls.
Grandmother Spider is believed to have brought writing to the people, and she reminds us that we have each written our own stories while we were still in the spirit world. As we learn the lessons offered by the main characters we have chosen, we begin to understand the universal truths of the Great Spirit.

The spirit we bring to any and every situation determines the outcome of our every interaction.
If we bring a spirit of fear, we will receive fear.
A spirit of anger, we will receive anger.
But when we bring a spirit of love, we receive love.
Grandmother Spider shows us how love works – observing, being courageous in spite of failures, making plans, humble work, faithfulness, prayer, and coming home.
Love is a much better aspect of our infinite selves to offer everyone we meet.
For love is the gossamer thread that we need to spin the strong and delicate webs where we will weave the story of our own destiny.
Be kind to one another. Always.
It is my honour to be your messenger.
S’gi (thank you in the Cherokee language)
It is my honour to receive and share these teachings from my guides and the Ancestors. These are messages received and written to the best of my understanding. If I have made mistakes, I would be grateful for your input. If these messages don’t resonate with you, that’s okay. I wish you well. And if these messages do resonate with you – welcome to the family.
— kandace keithley, namadaki aandeg miimiiwe gekek kwe ~ Tsa-La-Gi
Whether you have input and comments for Bird Clan Messenger or are interested in learning how we can help you learn about and understand Native culture, please Contact us here

Support the Bird Clan!
Lots of ways to support our work – share on social media, join our Patreon community – or donate directly! Chi Miigwetch!
$11.11