Popcorn

September 30, 2013

I taught a How to Communicate with Animals workshop this past weekend in Sarasota. We had a great time and three wonderful dogs attended that we worked with on perceiving their physical, emotional, mental and spiritual qualities. We also asked them to show or tell us about their lives.

One sweet little Japanese Chin told a woman that he likes popcorn. When she shared that with the

dog’s mom, she was puzzled, because she doesn’t eat popcorn. It didn’t make sense to her. The same dog showed someone else that he likes lying on the back of the couch and looking at the pool outside the windows. Again, she didn’t understand because they don’t have a pool.

The next day, I got an email from the dog’s mom. That evening she was munching on some rice crackers and noticed that the dog was eagerly waiting for any crumbs that might fall. 

POPCORN – it hit her like a ton of bricks. Rice cracker pieces could easily look/feel/seem like popcorn. She now understood what he had shown the woman in class.

That made her think about the pool image he had given someone else. Of course – it was at her son’s house! He loves to hang out on the back of the couch and look out the windows when they visit there.

I encouraged her to contact the women in the class to validate that what they heard/saw/felt was indeed correct. This is a very common occurrence in a class. The humans have a hard time remembering things that their animal friends show us, but later it all becomes clear. I’m just so pleased that the popcorn mystery was solved.

Walking meditation

September 22, 2013

There was a time in my life when I had a meditation practice. I would sit down every morning with my eyes closed for 30 minutes. Silencing the mind was not an easy thing for me, but I recognized the value of creating as much inner peace as possible, so I sat.

Today I find that the best type of meditation for me is walking in nature. It’s not the mindfulness walking meditation that Thich Nhat Hahn advocates where you move very slowly and focus on each footstep. I’ve done that, and I love it, but it’s not me at the moment.

Gumbo Limbo

When I walk, I move briskly and always say ‘Good Morning’ to the people and dogs I meet. I smile and radiate as much love as I can muster in the intense sunshine. There are also a few trees that I call out to on my route, ‘Hello Gumbo Limbo’ and a little further down, ‘Hello Lovers’. The lovers are two trees entwined – a ficus, or strangler fig,

that holds onto and has wrapped itself around a palm. I love these trees and it’s such fun to shout my greeting as I walk by. Some day I will stop and talk to them.

During my walking meditation, I don’t think about what I need to do, or what I should say to someone, or reviewing things that are bothering me. I also do my best to not latch onto thoughts or problems and I even try to avoid labeling or naming things (Hey, there’s a glossy ibis!) Other than my ‘Hellos’ I spend this time in silence.

The Lovers

My new walking meditation brings me great peace. I use a soft focus with my eyes and if something draws my attention I look at it and observe, but I don’t usually try to figure it out. I just notice it and keep walking. Before long I feel like I’m part of the environment – not a person out in nature, rather an individual piece of the whole that exists only in that moment. I am one with the crabs, birds, spiders and fish, geckos, lizards, bunnies and snakes, trees, flowers, grasses and mangroves. I leave the park feeling peaceful, content and happy.

When I lived on Orcas Island, my favorite walk was around Mountain Lake in Moran State Park. I found that no matter how sad, depressed or frustrated I was, spending an hour with the firs, cedars and hemlocks would transform me. They were able to change my energy – for the better.

Students often tell me they have a hard time quieting their minds. Try this walking meditation and you’ll find that just being in the moment and observing things around you quiets the mind without any effort. It will also bring a smile to your face.

Is it time?

September 15, 2013

Every week I have at least one consultation with an elderly animal where their person is trying to determine if it is time for them to go. Whether it’s a dog, cat, horse, or something else, I never know what to expect in these conversations. I meet each animal from a neutral place and put aside any left-brain ideas about what should happen. I have been surprised so many times that I know better than to have a personal opinion.

As animals age, they go through a process similar to humans – they have good days and bad days. I often caution clients that if we talk to their pet on a bad day, it may want help to leave its body. If we talk to the same animal on a good day, they may say that everything is fine. So, it’s a delicate balance of understanding how the animal feels both physically and emotionally and then asking for a clear sign from them if and when they want help from the vet.

Last week I talked to a horse that is losing weight and going downhill at 29. The vet was recommending that he be put down before he gets too bad, but he wasn’t ready yet. He said that he was still content and enjoying his days looking at the scenery and that he would trust his caretakers to know when it was REALLY time for him to go.

A few days ago, I spoke to an elderly dog that has pretty severe episodes of breathing difficulties. There is nothing else that the vets can do, so when it happened again, the dog’s person wondered if he’d had enough. The old guy said that he didn’t feel this was it and that he was going to come through this one too, and that’s exactly what he did.

I recently had a consultation with a very old rottweiler that was having trouble getting up. This sweet old guy said that his body was painful and that life just wasn’t worth living anymore. He hated to leave his people, but he had done and experienced all he wanted to do in this life and wanted help leaving his failing body.

Each animal is a unique individual. Only they can determine their quality of life, pain level, purpose and timing. We always want what’s best for our pets, and usually what’s best is asking them what they want.

Seals

September 10, 2013

You may have seen this photo of me
holding a baby harbor seal  and wondered, ‘what’s that about?’ I’d love to share this part of my story with you.

All my life I wanted to work with animals, but until I was in my mid-thirties I never pursued it. I think I was too afraid to try, and having that ‘someday’ dream was better than failing. Then in 1987, when I was living in Marin County just north of San Francisco, I had a temp job, phoning clients about their software. I had to call the director of the California Marine Mammal Center, a hospital for seals and sea lions, and even though my heart was pounding so loud I could barely speak, I managed to ask her about volunteer opportunities. She informed me that they had an animal care training the next week and that I was welcome to attend.

That one phone call changed by life. Within a month I was deeply in love with seals and sea lions and dedicated to the center. I did rescues, releases, was the Wednesday night crew leader, a harbor seal pup crew leader and a docent at Pier 39 when the sea lions took it over. For over three years, I spent every spare minute at or doing something for the center. I even got to do night duty with several stranded cetaceans that we had rescued and brought to Marine World.

It was the seals and sea lions that led me to take my first Animal Communication class with Penelope Smith in 1988. I figured if I could find out what was wrong or where it hurt, we could enhance their treatment. But it wasn’t that easy. Telepathy wasn’t as accepted then as it is now so the medical staff didn’t believe me. Even though I couldn’t help the seals and sea lions with my new ability, it started me on a whole new path that has brought me to where I am today.

I love marine mammals, whether they have flippers or flukes. I am quite certain that I have had many lives in the sea. For sure I’ve been a seal and a dolphin, and perhaps even a selkie. I absolutely cannot resist the smell of a baby harbor seal or the gutteral bellow of an elephant seal, and the bleat of a sea lion pup melts my heart.

Now I find myself in Florida, with no seals or sea lions in sight. I miss those guys. It is such a shame that the Caribbean monk seal is extinct. Recently I heard that the seals in the northeast are slowly expanding their territory south. Even if they get to Florida in my lifetime, they won’t be on the Gulf coast. Please say Hi for me the next time you see one, okay? 

Dog Friends

September 4, 2013

Doesn’t every dog love having a friend that he can play with all the time? Noooooooo, not every dog. Some are quite anti-social and others are too jealous to share their home with another canine.

Sad Ranger

I had a consultation about this very subject this week. Ranger’s mom thought that he would like a buddy and got a foster dog. The first day, Ranger was playful and happy, but by the second day he was avoiding his new friend. On the third day, he was lying sadly on the couch and not engaging with anyone - quite a switch for this happy, bouncy guy.

When I talked to Ranger, he said that the new dog was trying to take over. He was feeling pushed around and that Bobby, the foster, was competing for attention. While he likes playing with dogs, Ranger said he prefers to have his people to himself.

Bobby

Bobby’s person had died recently. He was sad and quite needy and wanted to be in a home where he could be the center of attention. He likes playing with dogs, but has a strong need to be in charge.

Every animal that comes to us is not meant to be with us forever. Sometimes we are just the middle-man to get that dog, cat, horse or bunny to the right home. If things aren’t working out with a new addition, our first responsibility is to the original members of the household.

I suggested that they find someone else to foster Bobby and to hold the vision that the perfect home comes along for him. It was so nice that these people were willing to take Bobby in, but it was also great that when they realized that the arrangement wasn’t working well for either dog, they were willing to make it right.

Good luck Bobby, and welcome back happy bouncy Ranger!

Welcome to my Blog

September 1, 2013

Over the years, so many clients and students have asked me to share stories and wisdom that I’ve accumulated in my decades of communicating with animals. Now seems to be the time and there are many things bubbling around in my consciousness that I would like to share.

I don’t know exactly what this weekly blog will entail or where it might go, but I intend to share

• stories about animal clients
• things that happen in workshops
• messages and tales from dolphins and whales
• educational information
• conservation issues
• ways to practice and deepen your communication skills
• other fun stuff.

If there are subjects that you would like me to address, please feel free to write me at mg@rockisland.com.

You can sign up here to get these blogs delivered directly to your email, you can read them here, or on my website, www.MaryGetten.com

Enjoy!