As we enter our 3rd week of shelter in place, here in Marin County, I am figuring out a new routine as I adjust to our new “normal.” As life has gotten quieter, I noticed this week that it strangely felt familiar to me. As I reflected on this I realized that there was one other time in my life when I had to slow way down and stay indoors quite a bit. And when I wasn’t up to visiting with people or going out to eat and so on. This was when I was recovering from breast cancer. There’s nothing like intense uncertainty to put things in perspective! Three experiences really stand out for me about how my Animal Reiki meditation practice helped me get through that time:
1) Taking the time to meditate every day really helped me stay positive.
These meditation sessions don’t have to be long or arduous, just sit with your animals as long as you like and focus your mind and heart in a positive way. This week, I’ve created a special meditation for all of you (and shared with my dog, Vincent) to do just that. CLICK HERE for my “Embrace the World with a Compassionate Heart” meditation. Try practicing this meditation every day this week and see how it makes your heart feel. I hope it is helpful!
2) Finding ways to support others through meditation really helped my fear.
My Animal Reiki practice was instrumental in giving me the strength to get through my battle with breast cancer. Metta was an organic and integral part of that practice. I wrote a deeply personal article about that time in my life called, “Healing Power in the Radiation Suite.” In this article, I wrote,
“As I reflect on my experience of metta in the radiation suite, I realize how important it is that we continue to practice loving-kindness, even when it is difficult to do so. In fact, perhaps difficult times are the most important times for us to do it. Practicing metta can bring us out of our self-centeredness and help us to feel a strong purpose in helping others through compassion. It can bring meaning to a situation that might otherwise be filled with negativity or confusion. And most importantly, it can help us to let go of fear. Fear makes difficult situations much worse and it can poison our ability to find peace and gratitude in the present moment.”
CLICK HERE to read more of this article, which I hope will bring encouragement and empowerment to each of you reading this, even if you are ill. CLICK HERE for a free hour-long class, “Healing Illness with the Help of Your Animals.”
3) Having my animals with me was so healing to my soul, whether they were in the physical or in spirit.
[bctt tweet=”We all have our cages, but we’re all free in this moment if we just look deeply enough!” username=”ARS_animalreiki”]
I’m so grateful to have my animals by my side in good and in tough times. However some of the most incredible support I’ve received from animals has been when they were physically very far away. Once, during a meditation I found myself having a vision of Makoto, a black leopard who lived at the CARE Foundation. At that time, because of painful surgeries, I felt trapped in my body and not strong like I was used to being. In my mind I saw us running free together, fast and strong and light. My heart said to him, “I wish you could run free, just like that. I’m sorry you are in a cage.” His heart said to me, “We all have our cages, but don’t you know, we’re all free in this moment if we just look deeply enough!” He then showed me that my painful body was my “cage” just as his captive situation was his. And yet, just as we had just run so freely together, like the wind, no one could ever cage our spirits! In that moment I realized we have to only look deeply enough to see that we are always truly free and All is Well. CLICK HERE to read more of this article. I hope it helps remind you that even though we are in our homes, our spirits are always free and expansive and light! And remember, you can look to animals (in the physical and in spirit) for the teachings that your soul needs at this time. Want to try meditating with power animals? CLICK HERE for my guided audio course, “Five Power Animal Meditations.”
I guess it’s a blessing from my cancer experience that I feel I have so much trust in my Animal Reiki practice getting me through something that’s so uncertain and scary. I know your practice can do the same for you!
Stay safe and be well!
