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Creature Thoughts, January 2012

Gayze — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 16:45:09 +0000

Creature Thoughts

Keeping in touch with the animals…
…and the people who love them

January 2012: Happy New Year!

The Exchange

A conversation with an animal is rarely like a conversation with a human, at least not for me. I know that many animal communicators, when relaying the exchange with the pet, make it sound like they are simply talking back and forth. This hasn’t been my experience, personally.

For me, what comes through is like a jigsaw puzzle. Sometimes the pieces don’t even seem to go to the same puzzle. Some pieces are pure emotion; others are sensory input such as sights and sounds. Many come through as physical sensations that can include comfort levels, touch, heat or cold, or feelings of illness and pain. I receive memory flashes, some of which arrive as fully acknowledged memories, others only fragments that even the animal does not quite put together.

Once this barrage of images, feelings and sensations arrives, I then have to “translate it back to human”. Sometimes this can seem conversational, sometimes it can’t quite be assembled that way and I have to relay a more organic set of information. This often depends on the individual animal. I’ve found that pets who are more used to animal communication may relay things in a more linear, easily assembled, fashion. Contrast that with wild animals, who express pure emotion and instinct which often takes quite a big shoehorn to fit into a human perspective.

The above, once explained, is usually fairly easy to understand. The flip-side can be a bit harder: that information I send to the animal, such as questions and the owner’s concerns, has to be “translated” before it is sent. When I ask a question of an animal, I try to do so in the way that animal’s mind processes thought. If I just ask a question in word-thoughts, the meaning of the question does not always transfer. If I have just enough information to season those words with feelings, images, and sensory detail, the question is easily understood and it’s more likely that the pet will respond in a way that is helpful.

This is why, when a pet owner asks me to “just let the animal talk”, or sends me very generic questions, I will often ask for more. Usually that is not a lot “more”, just enough to make sure the question is clear in the pet’s mind. It is also why I ask people to make a list before the session. With email sessions, particularly, it’s important to include anything that needs to be shared with or asked of the animal. If an owner does not ask the question, the chance that they will get the answer is very slim.

I’ll occasionally relay the questions, and receive the answers in kind, to have an owner tell me that they’re disappointed the animal didn’t give more information. One example of this which comes up frequently is when a session for a rescued animal focuses on health, the owner then replies that they hoped the animal would share memories of their background before they were adopted.

If we don’t ask the question, we’re usually not going to get the answer.

Once in a blue moon I will meet an animal who “talks for the sake of talking”, who will share things on their heart spontaneously. The general rule is, though, that even things that are important on an animal’s heart will stay closed in that heart unless I offer the question, complete with nuances of meaning, which opens the door.

The role of an animal communicator is usually delightful, but it can sometimes border on overwhelming. We strive to get as much information as possible to help each situation. There are times that a simple question, when asked correctly, can yield a response on so many different levels that it takes a while to translate and relay back to the owner. A simple query regarding how a cat feels today, for instance, as opposed to a week ago, will receive physical sensations, emotions, memories, thoughts, energy levels, needs, responses to treatment…. The list can go on for quite a while, and the challenge is often to capture everything and try to convert it into linear form so it can be relayed in words.

The exchange between the animal and the human mind is rich and fascinating. It might take a little more work than a verbal conversation from person to person, but the depth of the information which can be shared is amazing. I learn so much from the animals who agree to enter into this exchange. One of the most important things they have taught me is that, though the human mind is a wondrous thing, we people can often be very limited in how we use that mind. Communication is an art form which can either be brief and efficient, or full and, in some cases, almost unending.

Learning to open up quietly, trust what comes through, and patiently accept and absorb all of those levels of exchange, does not just increase the understanding between people and their pets. I like to think it is a small step toward global empathy between all species, toward the goal of universal family and the spiritual connection of all that is.

Wishing you a loving exchange, on all levels, with all those you love. May we continue to grow in understanding throughout the New Year.

Happy 2012, my friends!

Newsy Stuff

Holiday Stuff: my holiday prepaid session special is still running until January 6th. Please visit my Rates and Services page for more information.

Book Stuff: Wild Wings of Danger is now available in paperback form on Amazon.com and the STOLA Store.

Other Stuff: Be sure to follow me on either Facebook or Twitter, as it’s there I post last-minute changes to schedule. As we move into the holiday season, and life tends to interrupt life on a more frequent basis, that is usually the best place to keep track of when my availability changes.

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Gayle Nastasi (of Gazehound’s Animal Communication) is a professional animal communication consultant and writer, who hopes her connection to the animal world can serve as a way to help her fellow humans enrich their relationships with their animal companions. By better knowing our non-human friends, we ensure a kinder future for our world and we learn what it means to be a unique and essential part of all that is. Permission is given to forward this article to anyone you feel might enjoy it, as long as it is understood that copyrights are held by Gayle Nastasi, and the author’s name, and links to her website(s) are left intact. If this publication has been forwarded to you and you would like to subscribe to Gazehound’s free monthly e-newsletter, “Creature Thoughts”, just visit the newsletter link below.

Creature Thoughts, December 2011

Gayze — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 14:27:45 +0000

Creature Thoughts

Keeping in touch with the animals…
…and the people who love them

December 2011

A Holiday Gift for You

For the month of December, I thought I’d do something a little different. I hope you enjoy:

A Gift For Ashley (A Gift For You)

Do you believe in magic?

Newsy Stuff

Holiday Stuff: my holiday prepaid session special is still running. Please visit my Rates and Services page for more information.

Book Stuff: We’re still waiting publisher news on Wild Wings of Danger, and I will announce to all when it’s available.

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A Gift For Ashley (A Gift For You)

Gayze — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 18:18:39 +0000

Charles settled into the giant, ornate throne, trying not to think about how hot the old Santa suit had become. Years ago, he’d handled the heavy garment better. Now that he was in his eighties, though, it had become fairly uncomfortable.

Well, he thought to himself, At this point in your life you’re always either too hot or too cold. He geared himself up for the first day of his favorite time of year. There was a bright smile beneath his bushy white beard: Let’s do it for the kids!

His favorite Elf, Lucy, who was an aide at the retirement home where Charles now lived, called out, “Merry Christmas!” and took the chain off the entrance aisle.

Charles and Lucy had been doing the Santa gig together at the local mall for over twenty years. For the past ten, the beard had even been real. The local residents said that Charles was the best Santa the mall had ever had, and he lived all year long looking forward to this event.

He looked out along the line of happy faces waiting to see him, grinned his best Santa grin, and shouted, “Ho Ho Ho!”

His third “Ho” rather fizzled out, though, because the large dark eyes peering up at him from the first child to climb the stairs were filled with tears. The little girl stood silent as the tears leaked out and ran down her already-streaked cheeks. She pulled a crumpled tissue out of her left mitten and wiped her nose before it started leaking as well.

“Well hello, young lady, what’s your name?” Santa-Charles asked, and reached out his arms to her.

“Ashley,” she said shyly, as he lifted her into his lap.

Unused to kids who arrived to see him in such a sad state, Charles wasn’t sure what to do. The child’s tears continued to fall. He glanced over at the Mom, who stood off to the side, looking worried.

The woman shrugged slightly and mouthed, “Sorry about that—“

Charles smiled through his beard, and patted the little girl’s back.

“Would you like to tell Santa what you want for Christmas, Ashley?”

She nodded. “I want my Chloe back,” she said, her little voice dipping into a whisper. She sniffled, and wiped her nose again with what was left of the tissue.

Lucy rushed over to hand the little girl a fresh Kleenex.

Charles glanced at the mom, but her eyes were closed, and she looked defeated.

“And who is Chloe?” Santa-Charles asked quietly.

“My kitty. She disappeared on my birthday and I want her back for Christmas.”

Charles had no clue what to do or say, so he asked, “And when was your birthday, honey?”

“Three days before Halloween,” Ashley said, and wiped her nose again. “Santa, can you find her and bring her home for me for Christmas?”

Now Charles started to worry he might cry, too. He caught the mom’s attention and motioned her up onto the dais.

“We thought bringing her to see you would cheer her up,” Ashley’s mommy whispered as she approached. “Finding Chloe is all she’s thought about for months. We couldn’t even get her to write a letter to San… to you, because she became upset when we explained that Santa brings toys, not lost kitties.”

“But Santa’s magic, Mommy, I keep telling you! You can do it, can’t you, Santa?”

Charles glanced toward Lucy for help, but she had her back turned to him and to the crowd, and he could hear her sniffling.

He gave the child a hug. “Honey, some things even Santa can’t promise. “

“Won’t you even try?”

“Well,” he said, choking up as the child’s tears grew larger, “Of course I’ll try, but—“

“Oh, thank you, Santa!” Ashley threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek.

All the rest of that day, despite the dozens of happy children who crossed his lap, all Charles could think of was Ashley.

When he got back to the home that evening, Charles went right to the home’s computer room. He found the local free-press paper’s website, and sure enough…for many issues back there was a running ad about a missing cat. It included a photo of a pretty shorthaired calico, and the ad said that Chloe was fourteen years old and had escaped through a door which was inadvertently left open. It had been a cold, wet Autumn, and there had been snow. The hopes of a fourteen year old cat surviving in that….

Charles didn’t want to think about it. That evening, he took a stroll out in the garden of the retirement home. There was snow drifting down, like sparkling diamonds from the heavens. Charles had not been much for praying most of his life, but he said a few prayers that night, his heart haunted by little Ashley’s giant tears.

On the way back in for bed, the wind picked up and the flakes increased. He stopped just outside the door, surrounded by such a sudden wild squall, that he was disoriented. He could see nothing but the snow, hear nothing but the wind in his ears. It whistled and whispered like voices in the white-out blindness, soft voices, high voices, like angels singing.

As his vision and his thoughts cleared, Charles shook his head and rushed through the door into the warmth and light. He was losing it in his old age—he must be! He scowled as he walked slowly to his room. He could have sworn he heard those snow-angel voices say, “Santa is magic.”

***

December Twenty-fifth. Charles sat in front of the fire in the retirement home great room, his feet cozied up in brand new wooly slippers his grand-daughter had given him. His belly was full, his heart mostly happy. Family had visited all afternoon, taken him out for a wonderful dinner, and Charles was feeling fairly content.

It had been a good Christmas…except….

For the last few weeks, a dozen times a day, the face of little Ashley had come back to Charles’ memory. He couldn’t help wondering what her Christmas morning had been like. Had her Mom and Dad bought her new dolls, a shiny bike, a video game? And had she turned away, weeping, because her beloved kitty was not under the tree?

He sighed as the clock struck seven, and returned to the book in his lap. Another Christmas gift from family, a murder mystery by his favorite author, but Charles hadn’t been able to get past the first page.

He tried to read a few lines, and gave up, closing it to stare quietly into the fire. It was bright and warm, sending soft crackling sounds to surround him like a lullaby.

“Charles?”

He started awake. Lucy was smiling down at him. She had tears in her eyes, but they sure looked like happy tears.

“Huh? What’s up, Lucy?”

“You have visitors,” she said, and stepped aside.

He looked past her, and gasped. There was the mom from the mall, and a handsome, tall man standing beside her. They had broad smiles on their faces, and Charles immediately knew why.

Before them stood Ashley, her face bright with smiles. She held in her arms a cat: an old cat, a happy, purring calico cat. The kitty wore a harness and leash, old and worn, which had obviously had a lot of use over the years. Charles had no doubt that it was the same cat whose photo had been in the newspaper ad.

“Thank you so much, Santa! But I didn’t know you lived here! I thought you lived at the North Pole!”

Charles was speechless, but Lucy giggled. “This is just a rest stop,” she said, sending Charles a wink.

“Oh! I knew you could do it, I knew you could find Chloe for me for Christmas! Mommy and Daddy kept telling me not to get my hopes up, but I told them Santa was magic!”

“Where did you find her?” Charles asked, and reached out to stroke the purring kitty. She was skin and bones, but obviously happy.

Ashley blinked, “Why…right where you left her, of course! Under the little pine tree with the lights on it, by our front porch!”

“Um, well, I—how wonderful!”

Lucy pulled chairs up and the family sat close by, where they could talk about Chloe and Ashley’s reunion.

“It really is a miracle,” Ashley’s mom said, as the little girl stroked the cat in her lap. “Ashley got a new sled for Christmas, but of course there was no Chloe under our tree—“

“Our inside tree!” the child interrupted.

“Yes, under our inside tree. It took some convincing to get Ashley to agree to go outside to try her new sled. She was trying to be happy but—“

“I thought you couldn’t find Chloe.”

The father continued, “Then, as we finally went out the front door, we heard this hoarse meow.”

“And there she was!” Ashley picked the cat up, hugged and kissed her, and settled her back into her lap.

Chloe squinted her eyes at Charles, purred, and began kneading the child’s knees.

The dad chuckled. “So, we’ve spent the rest of Christmas Day at the emergency vet. Chloe’s been pronounced in surprisingly good health, though she’s gone hungrier than she really should. The vet thinks she should be okay, though, after some recovery time. We sure wish we knew where she’s been!”

“We were going to take her right home once they were done,” Ashley’s mom said, “But Ashley insisted on stopping at the Mall to see if Santa was there. We just couldn’t dissuade her.”

The dad laughed, “The mall office told us where we could find you. When this child makes up her mind about something–”

“Yes,” Charles said, and scratched Chloe’s head. “Yes, I can see that.”

***

No, Charles really wasn’t much for praying, but that night he prayed quite a bit before he went to sleep….

…and every prayer was a Thank You.

Creature Thoughts, December 2011