8 Auspicious Symbols

I challenged myself this week to come up with my own "auspicious symbols", based on an idea sparked by this Happiness Project post. This is harder than I would have thought. Every time I think I have my list solidified, I start picking at it and feel the need to rejigger it to include something mortally important.

I think I finally have them, though. This list will always be in flux, to be fair, but this list is what I've held to for over 24 hours. that's longer than I hold to most diets and most resolutions. It's something.

1. Octopus

Flexibility. Intelligence. The ability to be camouflage yourself no matter what your situation. I find the octopus to be aesthetically beautiful, but also a perfect symbol for many aspects of life.

2. Teasel

Freedom and being "wild" (there's history here). Resilience. The beauty in undesirable things.

3. Open mouth

Stuttering. Eating disorders. Passion uncontained.

4. Snaffle bit

Horses and the freedom of riding. The things that hold you back.

5. Bread

Patience. Warmth. Home.

6. Bloody knees

Childhood. Making mistakes. Pushing limits and coming out more interesting for it.

7. Ampersand

Possibility. Continuity. The infinite malleability of ideas.

8. Microscope

Remembering the beauty hidden in the everyday. Discovery. Focus -- both in a punny "must focus in order to see anything" sense and in the feeling of focused zen you get when you're engrossed in working at a microscope.

All photos from Pinterest