“Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That’s the problem.”
– A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh
Job: 12:8
But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.
We can learn a lot by watching animal behavior in both domesticated a
nd non-domesticated animals. Animals understand what it means to be truly present and in the moment. They are sensitive to our moods and emotions in a room, they feel the coming storm and changes to their environment. They protect each other and us in times of calamity. They recognize friend from foe. They know a healer when they see one.
Many times, I’ve had birds, dogs, fish, snakes, even a raccoon once, connect with me or ask for help. If a dog is struggling with hip dysplasia or arthritis, a tumor or other problem that can’t be seen, the dog will approach me and telepathically communicate the issue.
- I was sitting in front of a large fish tank at a restaurant. The fish alerted me to a chemical imbalance in the aquarium. I watched helplessly as one fish began hitting another that was dying. A third fish protected the first one and attacked the aggressor. I told the restaurateur that the aquarium was in trouble; he assured me the problem would be corrected the next day.
- In another instance, fish that lived in a tributary creek which led to a major waterway told me that their natural environment was about to undergo drastic change, and they were upset. I showed up with a camera the next day to record an individual illegally bulldozing the creek in order to make it flat. I contacted authorities with the evidence.
- A dog who had been abused prior to his most recent home, told me that his owners scared him when they approached him. He refused to tell me about the experience of prior abuse. He explained that if they would just get on his level he would be more trusting and less skittish. I demonstrated a better way for the young couple to interact with the dog. They have a much better relationship now.
- A king snake slithered to me in response to harassment by neighborhood kids. I picked up the snake and placed him in a safer area at the base of a tree stump. He stopped at the top of the hole at the center of the tree trunk and looked at me as if to say thanks, then disappeared.
- A Canada goose hopped up to me to show me his foot had become entangled in fishing line. Regretfully, there was nothing I could do.
- Dogs routinely walk up to tell me about their physical ailments, or enable me to see the source of a problem within. Other dogs recognize the gift of healing and approach me as they would an old familiar friend.
- More than once, I’ve had wild lizards crawl up on my hand and look at me. They are simply letting me know they enjoy the space they inhabit in the world.
- One day, my Chihuahua educated me on the art of stillness. A big snow and ice storm
had covered the city and nothing was moving – no trains, no planes, no automobiles,
no people – nothing could be heard but the faint crackling of ice. He sat outside on the icy front yard in 16-degree weather. He just sat there and looked around. When I asked him what he was doing he looked at me, then looked around again. I finally understood. For the first time since moving to Atlanta, the city was actually truly quiet and peaceful. We sat outside for a ½ hour that cold day and enjoyed the silence.
Even pets that have passed will continue to stick around. Sometimes I can see them and pass on messages to their owners. They feel no regret for having left the earth plane, they know that they were loved and are missed and come back to say hello.
Animals don’t worry about tomorrow. They live in the present moment, which is something we as humans forget to do. Patience and a lack of fear allows animals to connect with us.
“Dogs, on the other hand, don’t see the world in terms of one thing or one moment relative to another. A dog’s mind is an energy circuit. What it feels is indistinguishable from where it is, its consciousness a function of its surroundings, whoever or whatever it finds therein and whether or not it feels connected to all of this. This is why dogs are compelled to smell; they’re importing the essences of things, the energy within the form, directly into their gut so it can be digested. Sensory inputs become integrated with viscera so that a dog becomes physically rather than mentally connected to its world. A dog doesn’t apprehend its “self” as separate or distinct from whatever or whomever it is attracted to.” http://onpoint.wbur.org/2011/06/02/emotions-human-dog-connection
Sit quietly and observe animals in their natural habitat. If you are quiet and still enough you can see and hear the symphony in nature.