animal teachings

If We Only Knew…

If We Only Knew...

The snow swirled outside my Zen writing cottage as I practiced my yoga this morning. As I was moving through my poses feeling snug and cozy, gratitude rose up in me for this sacred space I feel so blessed to have.

Concentrating on each pose, holding it as long as I could by breathing 3-5 breaths for each sequence, I found myself in that place one strives for when practicing yoga – where time disappears and you just are.

After my yoga I moved into a 15-minute meditation to seal in all the calm goodness. Ahhhhhh….

Still in somewhat of a delicious trance, I rather absentmindedly was rolling my yoga mat when I looked up to see this sweet image of Miss Gidget watching me.

In that moment my heart melted and I thought, wow, if we only knew how much we really are loved…especially by our dear animal friends.

And calm, centered, and deeply loved I take into my day.

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Why I Went to See the Boycotted Dog Movie

Why I Went to See the Boycotted Dog Movie

I heard about, and read, the news regarding the boycotting of the movie, A Dog’s Purpose. Honestly, I didn’t watch the video as I don’t watch other videos of animals being abused and I wasn’t going to watch this one either. I’m not so sure that serves in a positive way to help animals.

I also have to be honest and say how disheartened I felt when I heard this video was going around and that a dog in the film had possibly been abused. I’d never, ever condone that type of behavior, and it makes me incredibly sad when animals are harmed and even killed because of humans.

But what also made me sad was that so many would now miss out on the message of the movie….because of some human that did (or didn’t, as I’m not so sure if there was a definite conclusion to this) something cruel and terrible.

I’ll admit that I was also a bit nervous that someone may see me at the theater yesterday and think bad of me being that I advocate for dogs in wheelchairs… and how could I then go see this movie?

But I followed my heart on this. I don’t know for sure what happened regarding that video — and I do have questions as to the validity of it. And if a dog was truly harmed or put in harms way that needs to be dealt with.

But I’m glad I went to see the movie. I thought about the author, Bruce Cameron, who wrote the book, and which the movie is made from. I believe with all my heart his intentions pure and good -to help us to see animals in the way in which we should, and the many gifts and teachings they bring to our lives.

The movie did not disappoint. It was simple in so many ways, but yet so deeply touching. Dog’s give of their whole selves to we humans, who have much to yet learn about unconditional love and compassion. They truly want us to “get it” and as Bailey does in the movie, he keeps coming back, in different dog bodies (and even as a female at one point to his dismay which was hilarious!), to serve and share the meaning of what life is all about….

To have fun and to be here now.

While this was a movie I wanted to see, and my birthday gift I finally got since there wasn’t anything playing (to my interest, at least) last July when it was my birthday, the message and gift of seeing this movie revealed itself on another level this morning.

John said to me with a bit of a frog in his throat, “Seeing that movie made me love our dogs even more.”

And this from Bruce Cameron’s facebook page that someone shared after seeing the movie, “The emotional impact left me stronger and even more appreciative of why we have dogs in our lives.”

Whoooosh, went my heart!  This is it…this is the message…and the magic…to love them as deeply as they love us, and extend that to our fellow human beings….

and why I’m so glad I went to see the movie that so many called for others to boycott.  I don’t regret it for one single moment.

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On Not Being Left Behind and into Awakening

On Not Being Left Behind and into Awakening

Late yesterday afternoon I saw an article on my friend’s facebook page titled, Humans are Waking Up: For First Time in Recorded History, Schumann Resonance Jumping to 36+

While I don’t completely get all the science or deep thought behind it (even though I consider myself to be a deep thinker!) what I do understand is how I relate it to how I’ve been feeling and so many others I know, too.

And this section of the article helped me too:  Scientist’s report that the Earth’s magnetic field, which can affect the Schumann Resonance, has been slowly weakening for the past 2,000 years and even more so in the last few years. No one really knows why. I was told by a wise old sage from India that the magnetic field of Earth was put in place by the Ancient Ones to block our primordial memories of our true heritage. This was so that souls could learn from the experience of free-will unhampered by memories of the past. He claimed that the magnetic field changes are now loosening those memory blocks and we are raising our consciousness to greater truth. The veil is lifting. The blinders are coming off. If true, it raises even more intriguing questions.”

What makes sense for me in reading this is that humanity is beginning to awaken – to what no longer works – to helping us to see what will work. Though this means we each have to do our own inner work. Something I’ve talked about a few times on my blog.

This sent me down a path last night of wanting to know more. While the speeding up of time feels frightening sometimes, I wanted to know how I could move through this rapid time of change in a way that will help me feel more grounded. I also wanted to know what does this really all mean?

That’s part of the mystery that is being slowly revealed to us – and only if we are willing to open to it. And I can say, even though I feel frightened at times, even anxious, I don’t want to be left behind. 

I also hope you don’t feel I’ve flipped my lid and gone all “woo-woo” on you. It’s always my wish that my blog is a soft place to land for those that aren’t always sure what to make of the world…because it is where I can find myself too if I don’t work to stay centered and grounded.

The more I explored last night, the more I began to feel at ease. I also realized that I’d been so worried about keeping up with the rapid change and worried how I was going to do that, I’d lost sight of how I can more easily move through this time.

Something I’d been preparing for all along – well, at least for the last thirteen years or so as I’ve walked my own spiritual path—moving more and more into who I authentically am— and how I am fascinated by the wisdom that animals hold for us, nature, and opening to our own intuition.

And that was it! I have the tools in place to guide me through these tumultuous times – not that it’s going to always be easy as I ‘m human and fall of the wagon now and then too. But it’s vital and important to keep my practices of ritual in place. Because when I do, I move through my days in a much more peaceful way, which positively affects those around me. And I’m really beginning to understand that my own vibration of peace and continuing the work of healing myself is what this awakening is about, and what we are all being called to do.

I went to sleep last night feeling less anxious than I have in a long time. This morning, I listened to Jocelyn Mercado of Sacred Planet talk about how she believes it’s the indigenous way of being we are moving back to. Something I’ve found a fascination with also the last few years.

It’s a way of living on this earth that does not need to be learned – we already know – we just must remember – and then we must begin to live in this way – one step at a time. But we must begin to move in that direction.

Jocelyn shared ideas of how we can begin to shift toward healing, peace and love talking about shamanic journeying, meditation, and understanding what Mother Earth is trying to convey to us. And I got so excited because I realized again that I’ve been walking this path for quite some time. It was a comfort to feel that I’m moving in the right direction.

One suggestion she had was creating altars, which is something I’ve done for quite some time too. But I loved her idea of bringing in the four elements of earth, wind, fire, and water. So before I moved into my yoga practice this morning, I created this altar:

The candle represents fire, the stones, pine cone, acorn and rocks, earth. The feathers represent sky and the small container of water. What I especially enjoyed was that having this small jar of water as part of your altar is a call to remember to just be in meditation with your altar as a practice. If you return to it after a few days and the water is gone it’s a gentle reminder of remembering to incorporate these moments of sacred and stillness into your everyday life.

I decided to pick at random an animal card to go with my altar for the day. And Swan couldn’t have been more perfect (taken from Animal Spirit Guides):

  • No matter what is happening your life right now, do whatever it takes to keep your faith strong.
  • It’s important to accept your life circumstances and surrender to the will of Spirit, trusting that all will work out.
  • You’ll soon find clarity and purpose in the confusion that you’re experiencing.
  • Focus on the fact that life is a precious and sacred gift, and express your gratitude and appreciation in as many ways as possible.
  • Whatever changes you’re going through, go with the flow.

And lastly from Animal Teachings: Swan is graceful and elegant. Swan brings our intuitive gifts to the surface, balancing insight with fair-mindedness. Swan reveals how to integrate inner beauty with our outward expression, teaching us to be clear and confident about our own personality.

As I moved through my yoga positions, standing in tree pose, my eyes locked on this bunch of pea pods hanging from our locust tree. They looked more alive than I’d ever noticed them before as if they came into a clearer view. I couldn’t help but think this is what we are being called to be – to see more fully and with greater depth the beauty around us.

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