Agree with the term ‘shaman’ – the more I read about it and experience life, the more I realize how deep and difficult that path is, and how we in the West still barely understand what is going on there. Needs a lot more respect, definitely.
So I realize how ignorant it would be to ever call myself a shaman, but I do like the term animist lately. Or if people don’t get that, I say I’m into ‘nature spirituality.’ I believe terms should be used, and defended and updated when necessary, so maybe in the future if you want to adopt a child the agency won’t be afraid of your religion.
My personal opinion on the relation of animism to shamanism is that animism is a world view/belief system (you believe that all forms of matter and energy have some type of consciousness and may potentially respond to you in a reciprocal relationship), and that shamans are specialists in that system who know more than the rest of us about how to keep those relationships working in balance.