It recently occurred to me that I’ve written next to nothing about my own spirit guide. When I use the term “Spirit Guide” I’m referring to the being who has been beside me since birth, and who will walk beside me in spirit my whole life here as Kate. We have many spirit friends and teachers who come in at certain parts of our lives, but everyone I think has at least one “Spirit Guide” who agreed to be our personal “guardian angel” of sorts from the moment of our birth (sometimes sooner than that) until after we have processed our life review after our death.

I could go on and on about what I think spirit guides are and what they do, but that’s not what I sat down to write. No, I wanted to introduce you to Aries, my own Spirit Guide.

I first came into communication with Aries when I was in my early 20s, while in my bathtub after doing a meditation suggested in one of Sylvia Browne’s spirit guide books. It worked, and I saw the face that has now become familiar and comforting.

Aries presents to me as he appeared in his last incarnation on earth. He manifests as a shorter male energy with a powerful, muscular body, golden brown skin with yellow undertones, wide-set, dark eyes, a very round face and a wide, gentle, loving smile full of very large, white teeth. His hair is hidden (or possibly shaved off) and he always wears some type of head dress. The head dress is sometimes gold and blue, sometimes green and red, sometimes feathered, or sometimes just a simple off-white fabric like linen. He is always bare-chested and appears in a variety of upper-body decorations. He often shows me a gold and blue vest, but occasionally a full-length robe that is open to show his bare chest underneath. Sometimes he’s wearing nothing on his upper body but some gold cuffs on his wrists or upper arm, or large gold plates are tied over his chest or arms.

As I write this I realize that I’ve never paid much attention to his lower-body. I’m aware his legs are as strong and fit as the rest of his body, and I have an impression of criss-cross lacing of footwear up to his knees. His feet are large for his body size and firmly planted on the ground, toes facing slightly outwards, rooting his presence in his stance.

He occasionally appears with sacred symbols painted on his arms, chest or face. He would be a fearsome, powerful, possibly domineering presence to meet in his last life. He was very strong physically and psychologically. He had a lot of power in his community and had a spiritual leadership role that dove-tailed in the planning and construction of buildings. He has always struck me as Aztec, although he seems to like to present with Egyptian or Roman twists now and then. He has experienced physical death as a violent spiritual sacrifice in more than one incarnation. He fears absolutely nothing.

He is also a being of almost no words. This is probably why I’ve never written about him, because I don’t sit back and chat with Aries the way I have with other beings. It would feel absurd to do so, like trying to strike up a casual conversation with the overlord of the Ocean. I call him Aries because this is my sun sign, and he did not offer me a name but simply nodded when I offered this simple name to make a connection between him, my current incarnation which began under the sign of Aries, and the positioning of the stars that this name signifies. This was acceptable to him, sacred enough, yet simple enough for me to remember. It is possible he offered me a name I couldn’t translate or pronounce. It was also significant that “Aries” began with the letter “A” which came first in the alphabet, and that Aries is the first of a new astrological cycle associated with the spring equinox. These are all things he’s made understood in the years that followed our first introduction.

Although Aries and I never chat, I have always been aware that he is constantly at my elbow. I don’t believe he leaves me for a moment. His response to my greetings, queries or requests is instant. Over the years, I usually address Aries in thanks for his constant assistance and protection. If I have a request for God, for angels or any other higher-level being, I almost always route it through Aries. I trust him completely and I know that if I ask him to ask heaven to help me with something, he makes sure the message gets there. He organizes the response and orchestrates all of the randomness that shakes down around manifesting something new in my life like a new job, an apartment or a safe drive home. He pays close attention to me during the waiting periods that happen when you have asked for a change, but you have to wait for the timing to be right. I don’t tend to take things to Aries unless I feel it’s very important, but when I do I have absolute trust and faith that he will take care of it. He always does, and I always thank him.

We have this very intense, powerful but nearly silent relationship. He is not my companion but my guide and my protector. He is awesome at his job, and it’s not his first time being my spirit guide. I think we make a good team.

Whenever I do meditations designed by other spiritual teachers designed to meet or speak with your spirit guide, Aries has always been there, always smiled his wide, white, benevolent smile, but we’ve never really spoken. If I need to say something or request some help, he nods. His nod does not communicate obedience or subservience, or even agreement. His nod is the commencement of his action, the thing he always does before he begins to implement his power. He loves being a guide, and he loves being MY guide.

So while I may write about conversations with thousands of other beings in the coming years, I don’t think I’ll ever write about conversations with my own Spirit Guide. Aries is here just for me.