Cicada Counselling

Cicada

Growing up in Taiwan, I often fell asleep and woke up to the sound of cicadas. Cicadas in Taiwanese cultures are symbols of personal change, renewal, rebirth, and transformation.

Unlike butterflies or other insects that undergo complete metamorphosis, cicadas are unique in that they transform from one fully functioning state to another, undergoing a rapid and remarkable change within a relatively short time.

I think of cicadas’ transformation as comparable to that of humans. When we desire or want to make a change in our lives, we don't enclose ourselves in a pod and emerge the next spring. Instead, we tap into our innate resiliency and shed our old layers in response to life, ultimately transforming into a stronger, wiser version of ourselves. - Louis

As a settler and a storyteller, I am privileged to be facilitating, telling, and listening to stories on the ceded, unceded, ancestral, traditional, and shared territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations.

I am dedicated to ongoing learning about Indigenous practices and the process of decolonization, and I extend an invitation for you to join me on this journey. Here is one of the resources I found helpful in my learning as a settler.