Capluna‘s Cactus

Oct. 24, 2007

When Marilyn Stockwell Colestock’s Christmas cactus started blooming on April 15 this year, she knew it was a sign. A gift from her sister-in-law nearly 20 years ago, the cactus had religiously bloomed only once a year at Thanksgiving. But last October, before her sister-in-law passed away, Colestock asked her for some reassurance.
“She was going to send me a sign after she died that she was OK,” says Colestock, “and I know that was it.”
Are there really signs around us sending messages from loved ones who have passed on? Or is life just full of meaningful coincidences?

SPIRITUAL CONNECTIONS
“All of us, whether we recognize it or not, whether we’re conscious of it or not, have been in the spirit realm,” says Sally McCoy, owner of Capluna, an alternative faith store in downtown Petoskey. Raised an American Baptist who taught Sunday school for many years, McCoy is familiar with Christianity as well as other beliefs. A Wiccan, neo-Pagan and Celtic-based shop, Capluna, as well as McCoy, address the importance of nature, as well as life cycles and the belief that all things embody spirit.
“I think the whole meaning of life is to have meaning in life,” says McCoy. “And the more meaning you infuse, the better.”
An inquisitive individual, McCoy has been contemplating existence since she was a child. “I think a tremendous amount about what we’re doing here, what this world is about,” she admits. Through her Native American, Wiccan and Celtic studies, it all appears to come back to nature.

NATURE’S INTENTIONS
Colestock’s sister-in-law, Gail Stockwell Talbot, was known to be a caring, spiritual person who was very tuned into nature.
“She had this aura about her,” remembers Colestock. “I think the plants could talk to her and she could talk to them.” Colestock’s Christmas cactus was just like the one Talbot’s mother used to have that also bloomed only at Thanksgiving.
Calls to local flower shops concerning an April bloom time for a Christmas cactus turned up a variety of responses. From “they bloom whenever they feel like it” to “the cold spring had something to do with it,” shop employees agreed that light, temperature and the specific type of cactus can definitely play a part. But Colestock has lived in her current home for four years and the cactus has not been moved. Positioned in its spot just steps away from a wall of sliding doors, did nature, with varying light and temperatures, play a trick?

A CANINE “SIGN”
Beans, McCoy’s beloved boxer, was a constant fixture in Capluna for many years before he passed away.
“My dog Beans was about to cross over…and he had a very long life; I knew I was going to miss him horribly, and I still do, but I asked him….to send me a new dog.”
It was months later when McCoy decided to find a female Boston terrier, with little success. Litters were all male or the females were already taken. Resigned, she set up an appointment to look at a litter of males one Sunday. “The day before, working in the shop, I was anxious and wondering if this was the right litter….I was just fretting about it,” recalls McCoy. An astrologer and her friend walked into the store, and, through conversation, McCoy learned that the astrologer’s birthday, July 3, was the same day as Beans’s, and that the friend’s birthday was June 29, the day the new litter had been born. “So I had one gal there talking to me who had Beans’ birthday, and one who had the new litter’s birthday,” says McCoy. “I thought, well, there’s a sign right there.”
Visiting the litter the next day, McCoy discovered that only one of the pups was actually born on June 29 (the rest were born the next day), so McCoy’s choice was made for her. The male pup, Seanachai, is now part of her life.
“That’s how I figured Beans communicated to me,” says McCoy. “I think if people are opened up to what we look at as coincidences, they’re around us all the time.”

LIFE’S MEANING
“Our ancestors were very much infusing meaning into everything,” says McCoy. “You know, if it hit on a certain day of the week or a certain hour of the day….there was a lot of meaning invested in everyday stuff.” But with ever-increasing reliability in scientific facts today, belief in the unknown is losing momentum.
“In our modern society we lose a lot of that ritualism and that layering of meaning and symbolism. It just becomes a nuisance to a lot of people and it gets dropped out a lot. And the more you drop that out, the less meaning there is in life.”
Trained in tarot and astrology, McCoy enjoys helping people discover more about certain areas of their lives, hopefully creating more meaning. “I’ve been an astrologer since I was a freshman in college, so some of my work, particularly astrology work, happened a long time before my spiritual development,” says McCoy. “Astrology’s kind of a wide view – to me it’s a wide view of your whole life: where you’re talented, where you’re challenged, what your tendencies are, what kind of family life you like, what kind of money, motivation, ambition you have.” For those seeking guidance on a particular timeframe – about three months – tarot might be the answer.

BELIEFS OVERRULE SKEPTICS
Flower shop and web site information provided plenty of incentive for doubt about the true meaning of an April Christmas cactus bloom, but McCoy and Colestock held firm to their beliefs.
“I welcome skepticism,” says McCoy, with a laugh. “I think skepticism is great. I am very skeptical myself, more so than most people would ever think.”
Colestock puts faith in the 20-year bloom history of her plant and the power of her sister-in-law’s spirit. “She believed in the spirit world,” says Colestock, “and as she was dying, the electrical system in the New Hampshire hospital started flickering. I know that was her spirit leaving earth.”
Do we really need a definite answer to the question? McCoy doesn’t think so.
“The reason behind the Christmas cactus happening to bloom on that particular day, is it still keeps us thinking, it still keeps us searching; and ultimately, that is the more important thing.”

If you would like to further discuss this or other spiritual topics, or to request a reading, you may make an appointment with Sally McCoy by calling Capluna at 231-347-2235.