Totem of the day is Swallow! Let yourself move past old pain and wounds in order to heal and move forward with your life. This may require removing yourself from the everyday aspects of life to get a wider look at what is going on. While your home is well protected from negativity, you may also need to let go of people in your life that are causing unneeded stress or negativity. While you may go through a period of stress, know that a time of abundance and peace will be there when you make it through the rough winds. Take time to travel back to your origins in order to help complete any spiritual journeys you may be going on. The Swallow spirit guide is known for it's connection to hope, love, faith, honor, and guidance. When Swallow shows up, it can be a reminder to focus on any relationship we may be in in order to make sure we are being the best partner we can to them. Loyalty, love, and partnership are strong symbols associated with the swallow which remind us to give our affection and attention to those we love while removing negativity within a relationship. These birds never fly far from their homes which meant that when sailors saw them, it meant land was near. So swallows became a sign of returning home from a journey and a sign of good luck. Some Southwestern Native American tribes such as the Zunis saw swallows as associated with rain. When you see this sign, remember not to let the little things get to you, but keep moving forward. People who connect with Swallow are often excellent guides to help others through their own journeys. These smart individuals are positive, light-filled souls that still retain a level of humble attitude. Romantic and loyal to their partners, they are known to show their love in a variety of ways to those they love. These souls are often graceful and quick while being able to rise above challenges even while keeping their morals and objectivity in tack.

Swallow, Hirundinidae, are insectivorous birds that can be found all over the world except for Antarctica. There are approximately 83 species of Swallow and they all belong to the passerine family of birds. Meaning they have feet arranged with three toes pointing forward and one toe pointing back to enable easier perching. Swallows consist of two subfamilies: the Pseudochelidoninae or River Martins, and the Hirundininae. Generally, the term Martin is saved for swallows with square shaped tails while swallow is often the species which have forked tails. However, there is no real scientific difference between the two. Another generalization is that West and South African swallows are non-migratory while those found throughout North America and Europe often undertake long-distance migrations. These birds can be found in a wide range of habitats such as grasslands, scrub lands, marches, and savanna. They have a preference for areas near water where insects can more easily be found such as near lakes or over waterways. The diet of a swallow consists primarily of insects with preferences depending on species. Often, swallows will target and consume larger prey items rather than swooping onto any insect. They will also avoid insects such as bees or wasps and, at times, consume certain fruits or plant materials depending on species. Extremely agile, these birds have a unique ability to catch prey while flying. Swallows will even hunt at different heights depending on species with some feeding closer to the ground while others hunt higher in the air. They have adapted to eating while flying with a streamlined body, and long, pointed wings that give them extreme maneuverability and endurance. On average, an adult swallow will grow to just under ten inches in length with a weight of around 2 ounces. Their long tails aid in their graceful, agile movements. Males will often possess longer tails and females will select mates depending on the length of their tails. When looking to attract mates, males will construct a nest and attempt to attract females with a display of song and flight. However, outside of breeding season, they are known to gather in large communities for protection. At times, these roosts can have up to 1.5 million individuals. Some species, however, will not gather together. Nest placements are highly dependent on species. Some Swallows will simply take abandoned nests such as woodpecker nests while others will build burrows in soft earth such as sand banks. Species found throughout Africa are primarily mud-nesters who build mud nests in protected locations while those found throughout the Americas are known to be cavity-nesters who find older, abandoned nests. Mud nests are built by both the males and females. Swallows are well known for being monogamous species that will stay with one mate for their entire lives. Sometimes, migratory species will come back to nest in the same nests every year. All swallows are known for being highly protective of their nests. A female will lay between 4 and 5 eggs in species living in temperate areas while those in tropic areas will have smaller cluthces of 2 or 3 eggs. These eggs hatch into after 18 to 21 days into naked hatchlings with closed eyes. Feathers will sprout after a few days and are urged out of the nests by their parents after around three weeks. Even so, the young ones will return to the nest to roost in the evenings for quite some time. Swallows possess a range of beautiful songs used to communicate, attract mates, express excitement, or to alarm others of a predator.