Elizabeth Keedy

This post is one of a series on signs and symbolism, and today I talk about where to see signs and how to understand them. 

If you’d prefer to watch the video, visit my YouTube channel.

Signs and symbolism are everywhere, and noticing them is a great way to receive confirmation of what your intuition is telling you.

For eons, different cultures around the world have gained insight into their lives by observing signs in their environment. And you, too, can receive these insightful messages by being more aware. 

Have you heard the hermetic saying, “As above, so below; as within, so without”? The latter part of this saying refers to our external world mirroring our internal world. In other words, we create our external environment through our thoughts, beliefs and actions, so by noticing what’s around us, we can receive clues for what’s going on inside of us. I mention this in my post on INTUITION. 

What Are Signs?

Here’s an example of a sign: the snail.

When Snail appears, one of its messages is going slow. You might think snails only show up when it rains, but you’d be surprised. And even when it does rain, you aren’t guaranteed to see any snails unless they’re giving you a message. So the signs we see are always relevant, and we often see other signs carrying a similar message. With the snail, another go-slow sign is the tortoise. 

If Snail shows up, it doesn’t have to be on your path. You might see a snail-shaped cloud or a picture of a snail, or you could overhear someone mention a snail. Signs appear anywhere they can get your attention. Are you taking notice?

Where To See Signs.

As I mentioned before, signs show up in nature. But signs can literally appear everywhere and anywhere. You might see them on your path, in the sky, on vehicles, buildings, shops signs, TV, your phone, billboards, magazines, books and newspapers, but signs aren’t always visible. We might hear something significant, such as meaningful song lyrics, something on the radio, or we might overhear part of a conversation. 

And things can happen around the home that have symbolic meaning, especially if it involves an accident or breakdown—I’ll talk about this later.

Also, if you’re psychically aware or connected to spirit, you can receive signs and symbolism that way, too. Once you start noticing signs, it can seem as though you’ve stepped into another reality where the universe is talking directly to you! 

How Do We Understand Signs?

In my experience, if you use the internet to interpret the symbolism of signs, it can be confusing. The interpretations might vary or be contradicting. But it can give you a good starting point. Sometimes, signs have personal significance, such as the robin redbreast. Some people associate the robin with a loved one who has died. But the key to interpreting signs is taking what resonates for you.

Here are a few pointers, if we use Robin Redbreast as an example:

• 1. First, look at colour. (Oh and by the way, one of my next posts is the symbolism of colour, so make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss it!) So the colour red on Robin’s chest is an energetic colour relating to action and change. The brown on Robin’s wings and body relates to the Earth and being grounded. One interpretation of these colours is: a change or new situation is entering your physical life.

• 2. Next, we can look at habitat and time-frame for relevance. Robins are most associated with winter and spring. Spring represents newness, growth and change. 

• 3. The third way to interpret signs is by noticing their action, where applicable. For example, robins show up in gardens when people are digging the soil because they know there’ll be a tasty bug. So this relates to opportunity. 

If we bring this together, we could say: robins represent positive change, new developments and growth.

Whenever I see robins, I usually see blackbirds too. For me, the blackbird’s message is optimism or a happy change in perspective, so these two birds are a welcome sign.

In addition to Snail, Robin and Blackbird each inspired an oracle card design. On the left-hand card, Robin is with Stag who has blossom growing from its antlers, and in the background we see a dawn morning. So the overall energy of this card is REBIRTH. On the right-hand card with Blackbird, I wanted to show how a different perspective can lift the mood and raise a smile. So this card is PERSPECTIVE. 

Right, let’s look at a different type of sign: the mountain. Now, you won’t see a mountain on your path—not literally, anyway! But mountains can appear as repeating images or maybe as references made to them.

So what is mountain symbolism?

Positive symbolism includes: reaching new heights, achieving something great, seeing things from a higher perspective, strength, stability, solidness and reliability. Challenging aspects could be: an obstacle, carrying a heavy burden or feeling stuck. And as a neutral interpretation, we have: peace, solitude, retreat.

Mountains appear in a few of my oracle cards, as you can see, reflecting different aspects of their symbolism.

For inanimate signs, here are a few pointers to help with interpretation: 

• 1. What element does it relate to?

• 2. What is its action (or non-action)? 

• 3. How is it viewed or what is its perspective? 

• 4. What does it do?

• 5. How does it make you feel?

Signs In The Man–Made World.

As well as creating oracle cards based on signs in nature, I’ve created DAILY SIGNS, a deck based on man-made signs, which you can read more about HERE.

I’m constantly amazed at how objects from everyday life give insightful messages just as much as signs in nature. My observation has shown me that our external environment really does mirror our inner selves. Seeing and understanding signs requires conscious awareness. If you rush through life at full speed, this realm of insightful messages with likely pass you by. 

Here are a few examples of signs in the man-made world, with their symbolic meaning. Then you can make up your own mind. 

This story is from years ago when I bought a six-month-old car. From a symbolic viewpoint, cars relate to how we move forwards or get to where we’re going.

So, within the first few weeks of owning the car, it developed several serious problems. At first, I figured it was probably a friday afternoon car. You know the type?—when the workers are daydreaming of the approaching weekend. But a little voice inside me, which I now know was the voice of my intuition, urged me to look deeper.

So here’s what happened: the brake servo unit failed, the alternator failed and the gearbox was leaking fluid which made the clutch slip when changing gears—for such a new car, these were big problems.

My life back then was a disaster: I was in a toxic relationship that sucked the life out of me. I felt stuck. I didn’t know what to do for the best. I rushed around and never stopped to consider if I was on the right path.

Here’s how the car problems translated to my life experience:

The failing brakes showed that I never stopped or slowed down. I was impatient. I was stuck in my head, thinking of the future. I rushed through life, so I missed the present.

The broken alternator reflected how I was low in energy from the toxic relationship and from running at full speed. My batteries were quite literally drained.

And the gear and clutch problem related to being stuck, unable to move up in life. No matter what I did, I never seemed to catch a break.

I got the work done on the car and about a year later, everything in my life changed—my relationship status, my career, my house—and it was only when looking back sometime later, when I’d gained more understanding of signs that I saw how I attracted a problematic car, because these problems were mirroring me.

If you have a better understanding of how cars work, maybe you can interpret this better than me. By all means, leave a comment below 🙂 

I’ve experienced other significant events where several things broke at home within a short timescale—when I interpreted their symbolic meaning, it was relevant to my life at the time. I realise things break, but when you get a run of them, it isn’t just bad luck. Your energy creates these situations to give you a message. 

As above, so below; as within, so without.

Okay, we’ll have a look at a couple more examples. Take driving, for instance. Have you ever had a succession of red lights—cos when you get one, you get them all—or conversely, with green lights? When this happens to me, I’ve noticed that the red lights refer to a delay, setback or obstacle that’s relevant to my destination or generally for that day. And when I get green lights, that tells me that everything’s moving ahead with no problems. Next time you drive somewhere, see for yourself if this is relevant to you. 

Right, here’s one more example: car registration plates. Ever since childhood, words and numbers on car registration plates have given me relevant messages, not only for things happening in the present, but for the past and the future, too.

Next time a car pulls out in front, don’t get angry. Look at the registration plate for a message. The numbers might be significant rather than the letters, or the model of the car or a bumper sticker. If you can’t see a message, maybe that car saved your life by slowing you down—you never know what hazard might have occurred on the road ahead. Whatever the case, always remember that the universe has your back. And if you stay alert, you’ll receive many insightful messages that are offering you clues into your own internal world. 

Okay, I’ll summarise the main points of how to understand the symbolism of signs:

• 1. Colour: Is it relevant? What does it mean?

• 2. Action or behaviour: What does it do? How does it work?

• 3. Habitat or surroundings.

• 4. Timeframe: Is there a relevant season?

• 5. Elements.

• 6. Personal significance.

• 7. How does it make you feel?

If you get confused about what the signs are telling you, write them down and note what’s happening in your life. Stay aware of your surroundings and keep an open mind, and after a while, you’ll see patterns emerge. If you’re still unsure of the sign’s message, use a logical approach to the interpretation, but more importantly, trust your feelings. And if you’re still confused, keep an eye out for my other posts on this subject, or you could leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to help you!

Until next time, bye for now, and have a wonderful day 🙂