Dog school
This is Zaida and me - taken by my friend Eileen in a particularly happy moment. I have zero clear photos of both Zaida and me since she always got extremely wiggly whenever there was a camera involved.
Zaida was the sweetest little black lab mix, with a soul so pure it would make you weep. But Zaida was a Tale of Two Cities…the best and the worst of times.
Zaida was picked up as a stray outside a burger restaurant when she was about 6 months old. She then spent the next 2 1/2 years in an outdoor shelter. They thought they had put her on the website to be adopted, but later discovered they hadn’t when someone wondered why no one was expressing interest in her. Perhaps she was meant to come to us. I like to say that things are ‘still baking’ when the timing isn’t quite right for us to manifest our hearts’ desires.
When we first got Zaida in 2007, she was very insecure and had extreme separation anxiety. We worked with a trainer, gave her lots of exercise, and I took her to agility class, which really built her confidence. Still, she was very attached to me…VERY attached. Zaida would pancake in the middle of the street in protest if anyone tried to walk her other than myself. This was hilarious to the onlooker, but frustrating for me, and absolutely maddening for my teenage daughter who, to her credit, never gave up walking her.
They say dogs show up in our lives to teach us things, and I wholeheartedly believe in the truth of that. If we get quiet, we will know precisely what it is that our animal friends are here to show us. And in my experience, it’s the parts of ourselves that are a little rough around the edges. The parts that need attention and love. Zaida’s quirks brought out the parts of me that are impatient and self-focused. And Zaida had attachment issues and so did I. She was here to help me learn patience, compassion for others, and not being so attached to a certain outcome. Zaida crossed over peacefully in 2019, and she surely was, and always will be, my ‘heart dog.’
My current dog Reyni, is entirely different. Whereas little Zaida was sweet and submissive, tall and lanky Reyni is bursting with energy and wants to be the top dog. He is loving and sweet, but he is reactive to other dogs when he is on the leash. This is frustrating. I find myself dreading leash walks with him because of what I anticipate will go down: he’ll see (or smell) another dog, which 9 times out of 10 will trigger him to go bananas - writhing, lunging and barking as he tangles the leash around the two of us.
And once again, I find myself knowing what it is my soul wants me to experience. When I go within and get quiet, Spirit gives me answers. There is something there my soul wants me to learn, so that I can grow and be happy and free. I am shown it is patience (once again), but it also is about the value of remaining calm and peaceful.
Last Friday was a perfect summer evening, and a musician in my neighborhood was hosting live music from their driveway. Walking over with Zaida would have been a breeze, but did I dare to take Reyni? I embodied my best peaceful self and set out with Reyni on the leash and gratitude in my heart for whatever happened - even if it was just a few lovely moments of music and community with my neighbors. And it was absolutely magical! Not a single dog passed as Reyni and I sat, peacefully wrapped in music, for a good half hour. I let the experience soak into my core as my heart swelled even more with gratitude.
Lately, I’ve been noticing the value that comes from being in a peaceful state. It’s the key that unlocks everything. And we can achieve peacefulness through things like meditation, sound healing, and grounding (touching bare skin to the earth). But we can also achieve peacefulness by simply being present and just being. Not doing…just being. And loving ourselves complete with all our rough bits - like impatience and attachment to things being a certain way.
This is shadow work when we uncover and shine the light of love on all the aspects of ourselves - even the ones that we hide away in the dark. We sometimes don’t want to look at these parts, but the only way to heal them and to free ourselves from pain and suffering is to bravely shine a light of exploration on them. And then heap love and compassion on them. And say, “yep, this rough bit is part of me, but it’s not all of me…it does not define me.” And I do have great tenderness and love for the human part of me who is doing the best she can 💛.
So if we are very quiet and very brave, we will know the lessons we’re meant to learn in this lifetime. And sometimes our teachers will show up with four paws and a waggy tail 🐾.
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