This has happened to all of us; at least once in our life. We were not liked by an animal and built a belief around this episode.
So what! It doesn’t say anything about me. I don’t like them anyway!
Actually, it does. It is telling a lot about two details:
We are probably too left-brained. That is we are being scripted deeply in logical and verbal thinking, which turns to be totally inadequate in solving problems requiring a great deal of creativity.
We are insecure. We are afraid. All our life choices, decisions or lack of them are driven by fear of:
The unknown; failures; others’ perception and judgment; being rejected, humiliated, disappointed, hurt, betrayed; showing vulnerability and being considered as a weak person or, even worse, being taken advantage of; not being heard or understood; not being worthy of respect, love, appreciation, belonging, and the list goes on…
There could be another explanation, as well, but I prefer limiting this article to non-psychopaths if you don’t mind; or at least the nonviolent of them! This is to say, it’s not that animals don’t like you guys; they rather don’t like your fear. They don’t like you never getting out of your anxious mind and reaching to your amazing heart.
They don’t like you not giving yourself the permission to feel, be truly present and get amazed!
How do I know this? I was in this place before. I know exactly how it feels and I used to hate it. This was the “before the self-development journey era”.
Why am I sharing this with you? Simply because becoming friends with animals is one of the sweetest things worth living!
Here is a small collection of those unique simple and pure connections:
The ladybug
I was reading a book when this small creature showed up and landed on my hand. I welcomed it with a smile saying “Wanna play a game sweety? It’s quite simple: I will allow you to walk on all my body except for my left knee. You win if you succeed to reach it!” Yeah… too silly I know! So, each time it was approaching my knee, I was gently blocking it. The ladybug tried from above, from below, kept trying for at least 7 times. Then, it flew. I thought it finally gave up, and guess what? It landed back on my knee. I could barely believe my eyes…
Well, guess you win brilliant ladybug!
The licking cat
I reach my habitual coworking space. I sit and start preparing my space. A cat is laying on the floor. It turns to look at me as if someone called it. I wave and say “hey buddy” with a smile. It comes to my direction, sits on my thighs. I pet it. It starts licking my arms and purring. The sensation was so weird & delicious at the same time… In parallel, it presses a bit with its fingers on my arms; and, since I have some kind of allergy against pressure, it leaves some 3D prints.
Its owner (the coworking space owner and a friend of mine) sees them a while after and asks “what’s going on with your arms?” I explain to him. He feels bad, apologizes and promises he will watch his cat next time to which I answer:
Oh no please don’t; it was one of the sweetest, most pleasant and fulfilling moments ever!
The dogs on the beach
I was on the beach, sitting in front of the sea and looking at the waves when three dogs ran to my direction. In the beginning, it was awkward since they were swimming and still wet! They were playing in turn on my back and neck, and I was laughing and saying “I don’t have food for you guys, I swear!”. Their owner, first hastening to my direction, suddenly stopped, was looking at the scene with this “confused” face before adding: “guess you can keep them; they seem to really like you!
Conclusion:
We are the ones responsible for creating magic in our life by progressively killing our insecurities and reconnecting with your inner world. It might seem impossible in the beginning; it might seem unbearable; it might even seem nonsense. But the outcomes are worth the effort and the accompanying pain, I promise!
The equation is quite simple: Are we willing to continue living in our anxious mind, operating from an auto-pilot mode and stealing some short moments of joy or do we prefer reaching to our core part (The Universal Correct Principles), set our inner kid-free, discover the meaning of inner-peace and create heaven on earth after paying the price?
The choice is yours! Choose wisely and your future self will be so grateful to your current one.
I enjoyed this reminder to make peace, make friends with all kinds of God’s creatures including the ladybug, Myriam. I’ve learned to be gentle and incredibly loving with all the younger scared versions of myself as they sometimes show up when life right now appears chaotic, unpredictable, and unsafe. It’s taken almost a lifetime of work to feel safe inside the home of my soul like I have always felt utterly safe with animals and the natural world. The work to feel safe with other members of the human family has also taken a lifetime of self-discovery, healing, and transformation.
I’m forever grateful to our first family dog, Liesel, because she taught me what unconditional love looks and feels like. I became that unconditionally loving being for her in return and learned that I can be that being anytime and anywhere and with anyone-and sometimes must do this from a distance. What an enduring legacy she left behind as her love still remains in my heart for always.
Thank you for this reminder to love ourselves fully. The melodrama of the mind quiets down once we process through the unresolved past pains in our hearts. Experiencing all the past (seemingly stuck) emotions that may have lodged themselves in the heart continues to be a powerful practice for healing and transformation. This liberates the soul to create magic and express unleashed possibilities.
There is definitely no point from adding anything to this mesmerizing message of yours dear Laura! I will only say thank you for being a blessing! Thank you for having been stronger and more perseverent than your unhealthy ego💙
Myriam thank you for sharing. Being that i have always been surrounded by Dogs and Cats maybe that is why I am calm. My Daddy was a very quiet and calm man and he taught be to greet life without expectations and enjoy the journey.
Awww what a beautiful share dear Larry! Thanks for stopping by and for adding value to the discussion my new friend! 🙏🌞💙
I’m anything but calm 😂 I’m really energetic; sometimes even too much for the taste of some! I’m talking, laughing, singing, dancing with tons of passion! I’m only calm when I need to: In a really serious situation requiring a quick decision; in front of some anxious person I’m trying to calm and make them feel secure with empathy; when I’m actively listening; when I’m enjoying some beautiful talent show or nature; etc…
This being said, I’ve been blessed the last 2 years with some unconditional love and a special connection wih all dogs I’m meeting! Their kisses are the best! I’m always giggling like a 5-year-old whenever pure stranger dogs start kissing me! It’s just priceless and I hope everybody could experience it at least once in a lifetime 💙
Oh Myriam, as usual, not only do you encourage magic, but you spin magic with your lovely writing. All creatures are God’s, and being an animal lover, you make me smile. Years ago, I heard the research showed that when you pet a dog, not only does your blood pressure decrease, but they discovered the blood pressure of your dog also does. How about that as medication for a reduction in anxiety. Thank you for this.💖
Oh gosh what a wonderful information my lovely Darlene! Thank you so much for how special you make me feel everytime you open your mouth (okay… type on your keyboard 🤭😁🙃🙈)! You make my day every single time and for this I will never be grateful enough!
I have been so blessed with dogs’ love — so pure and so nurturing — even the street’s ones! During my stay in India lately where I gave the speech about the Emotional Intelligence, I went out one night with an indian friend after the conferences.
There was a dog. He was dirty, but his eyes were calling me in a way I couldn’t resist 🤩 I went to his direction. My friend wasn’t believing it! 😱 He was so skeptical and tried to convince me not to saying he could be dangerous, to which I answered “Calm down buddy; he’s anything but dangerous! He’s just tired; I can feel his energy 😍”.
What happened afterwards left my friend shocked 😂 Everytime we have an opportunity to talk, he repeats asking the same question “What the hell did you do to that dog; I’m still wondering?!”
Yesterday, I decided to give him an answer: “I just showed him love and he felt it 🧚♀️”
Thank you for sharing this beautiful story, Myriam! Your article inspired me about what to write next, which I was going to do at a later date. Most appreciated!💖
That’s such an honor 💙