What's Your Spirit Animal?

This would sometimes come up in conversation with my friends (you might be surprised how often), and I would never have an answer. I didn't know what my 'spirit animal' was, or how to find out.

Recently, I decided to sit down and actually do some thinking to figure it out.

And I finally found the perfect animal:

I'm an Octopus.

It's not one of those animals that would probably be an option in a BuzzFeed quiz or something, but I think it fits me perfectly.

1) Sometimes I do the whole invisible thing and try to blend in with my surroundings, other times I panic and escape (although I've never thrown ink on someone before), and other times I let myself glow and be colorful for all to see.

2) I am the queen of attempting to do multiple (possibly even eight) things at once. Honestly, it's so so hard for me to just sit and do one thing. I often will even try and find something to do while I brush my teeth.

3) Lots of arms for hugging!!

4) I like being all packed tight and squished in. Not like pressed against a wall in a sweaty crowd of people, but tucked into a corner surrounded by cushions and pillows and blankets, heck yeah! 

5) Weird (but like a good weird) :)

After I found my spirit animal, I thought it might be fun to try and find some for my friends. I put out a casual offer on Facebook and got THIRTY replies!

I'm not going to feature all 30, but here are some of them and a quick blurb on why I chose them:

Chris - Llama

Willingly bears burdens for others, warm, basically is Kuzco

Errika - Blue Whale

Deep soul, belongs in the water, gentle

Rachel - Ring-tailed Lemur

Boss (their packs have female dominance), acrobatic/athletic, lots of fun

Sarah - Golden Pheasant

Colorful/full of life, beautiful, one-of-a-kind

Dad - Emperor Penguin

Involved father, goofy but dignified, withstands harsh conditions

Mom - Grizzly Bear

Fiercely protective of kids, knows how to get stuff done and how to relax, warm

Annika - Mountain Goat

Wanderlust, adventurous spirit, gentle but daring

Mike - Red Panda

Warm, bright, and rare

Brianne - Magpie

Striking/artistic, free spirit, sometimes mischievous/a troublemaker ;)

Now, what do spirit animals have to do with a confidence-oriented blog?

Look at these:

In addition to these, other friends' animals were otter, zebra, barn owl, snow leopard, collie, heron, dove, elephant, hyena, swan, cheetah, hummingbird, flamingo, and more.

These animals are vastly different from one another. 

In appearance, in behavior, in everything.

But they are all wonderful.

They each have a key role in the animal kingdom.

Don't waste your time comparing yourself to an eagle if you are a dolphin.

You will never be an eagle, nor were you ever meant to be.

You have your own strengths, your own beauty, your own difference that you can make.

So stop comparing, and start appreciating what you can do and who you are.