Which Came First--the Totem or the Egg?

I've been looking for a nice dragonfly quote to go with the image I've started using as my avatar on a variety of different sites. I haven't found a quote yet, but what I have found is fascinating. I've always been drawn to dragonflies, but for no conscious reason other than I think they're cool. I love the way they look with their colorful bodies and delicate wings. I love the way they race around ponds and streams with the light reflecting off their gauzy wings, touching down and taking off again with no apparent objective or reason. Living in Central Texas, I also LOVE the fact that they eat mosquitoes, which are the bane of my existence a good portion of the year.

What I didn't know, however, was the role the dragonfly plays in Native American lore. The dragonfly is apparently a symbol of change. Some Native American belief systems view the dragonfly as a symbol of renewal after a time of great hardship. According to one source I read, dragonflies "remind us to take time to reconnect with our own strength, courage, and happiness."

Elsewhere I read that as the inhabitants of two realms--starting life in water and moving to air with maturity (but never venturing too far from the water), people who relate to the dragonfly have emotional and passionate early years, but achieve balance, mental clarity, and control as adults.

Hmmmmmm. I don't know much about totems, but the topic has come up recently on several occasions. I guess I assumed a person would seek out and choose their own totem. But perhaps I was wrong. Perhaps the totem seeks you. . . Or me as the case may be. Either way, I don't have to think very hard to come up with ways dragonfly lore completely reflects my frame of mind over the past several months as I've struggled to reconcile my image of the fun, vibrant, unstoppable young woman I once was to the "balanced, mentaly clear, and controlled" woman I have become. (And thanks, dragonfly folklore, that sounds so much better than "old and boring.")

The upshot? Even though I don't know exactly which way it happened--whether I found it or it found me--I'm certain I've identified my totem. And I guess it doesn't matter how it came to be, because the one tattooed on my shoulder is clearly here to stay.