I often hear non-Natives using the term "Spirit Animal" to describe something (or even someone) that they happen to like a lot. It's hard to explain, but those words are much more important to us. It is something that you are connected to at a cosmic level; a specific being that is actually a part of you. Kind of like a
soulmate, though there are more than one. It's a
noumenon & I can't say it any better than that.