When our beloved pet’s health is failing and it may soon be time for them to pass on, it is heartbreaking to watch our before so energetic and joyful animal friend lose their energy and ability to do what they used to be able to do. You may have tried everything you could to help them get better, but there comes a time where the best thing you can do is to hold a sacred space of peace and love for your beloved animal companion, and attend to their needs with love and patience. You may also be in a situation where your pet has a long-term illness and you both have to get to terms with and live with their illness.
It can be easy in such a situation to forget the light that they were (and deep down still are) and only see them as they appear now: a shadow of their former self.
Knowing there is little you can do to help or change the situation, makes it even more difficult to cope.
I am writing this article now because I’m facing a similar situation in my own life: watching my beloved cat Minnie’s health declining with little chance of her getting better. We do not know if she will ever get well again or if she will still be with us tomorrow. Every day she is with us is a gift, and every time she eats is a joyful moment.
Something interesting happened one morning recently, as I was doing yoga. Minnie was lying on a chair next to me on a big teddy bear we have. [Interestingly, it is the same teddy bear that my beloved angel cat Kia loved to lie and knead on towards the end of her life.]
While doing yoga, I am playing some music I haven’t listened to in a long time, Aeoliah’s Healing Music for Reiki 3, and at some point, my focus goes to Minnie with the intention of letting the music bring healing to her. I sense the angelic music bringing healing light to her. And then, as I look at her with my mind’s eye, suddenly it is as if Minnie herself is a portal to a landscape. In the middle of a hazy, greyish darkness, a most beautiful sunrise appears. Slowly the sun rises over a vast sea, bringing light into the darkness. What was unclear becomes clear, and what was dark becomes light.
As the sun rises and the new day dawns, I find myself sitting on the beach with Minnie next to me on my right side. She is looking like her former, familiar, radiant self – beaming with joy and gratitude. As we sit there, we have no need for words. We simply sit together in this place of peace, love and healing light, watching the sea, where dolphins are playing in the water, and birds flying and singing in the clear blue sky above us.
After a while, the image fades and I give thanks as I return to my ordinary self. I look at Minnie still sleeping on the big teddy bear and now I see not only her sick, weakened body, but also her radiant spirit. Peace settles on my heart as I keep and treasure the image of the dawn and me and Minnie sitting together on the beach.
Holding that image helps me cope and be strong enough to see this period through. And the effect on Minnie of this healing meeting is twofold: not only does she benefit from our healing meeting in the light, my strengthened and positive state of mind helps her too.
If you have a very sick or dying pet, you can also try this exercise or meditation.
To do this short meditation choose a quiet time with your pet resting close to you. Put on some healing, angelic music, like “Aeoliah’s Healing Music for Reiki 3” for example (link in text above), and use the description of my experience with my cat Minnie as an inspiration.
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