The Embodiment of Joy & The Mindfulness of Pets

I think there is a lot that we can learn from animals, but not just animals in general - pets in particular. Animals have lived along & beside us on this planet for millennia, but it is interesting the ones that we have been able to domesticate and to what degree and even then what changed about them over time. I wonder if my Chihuahuas would be different if they lived years and years ago before they would have been domesticated, I am assuming somewhere in South America. We have changed them, for better or worse; we intervened as we so often do and will continue to so long as we have the mentality that everything on this planet is disconnected. I always had a pet growing up, a small family dog. When I was young there was a small black dog I think, I only really have one memory of him - watching The Little Mermaid spread out on the white quilt in front of the television with him nuzzled up next to me. Then there was Nicki who stayed with us for the rest of his life, he was a little mix of Yorkie & some other breeds. He was small, but not tiny small. My brother and I would help take care of him. We had our first big dog Jake when I was in high school, and he just recently passed away at my parent's house in Tennessee. Losing a pet is hard because we become so attached to them. We may cry when our favorite figurine or figure breaks but it stops after a minute or two. Losing a pet is like losing someone in your family, your pain stays forever and hurts like knives of steel. It's because, unlike those figures, that pet loved you back.
You can see it in their eyes, especially when you come home from anywhere. Dogs, up to an extent, forgive their owners for almost anything. Even when you mess up they come around and come back to you because they love you and want to be by your side. If you don't believe me see how protective they get when someone else comes around, even if they aren't loud about it. Or watch when he or she gets scared or nervous in public or in large groups and where they turn to. To you. At one time my therapist wrote me a Rx for an Emotional Support Therapy Dog. She got registered and all, but when it comes down to it she isn't like a blind-assistance dog. For me though, she kind of is. We share the same birthday, a fact we didn't know until about 8 months after rescuing her. How odd is that, the same day in June? Maybe thats what explains the connection between us. She looks at me and she always knows what I'm thinking. She can tell in a moment if I am becoming insecure or upset or unhappy or nervous and she will come next to me and won't leave. We calm each other down and always know when one of us needs the other. It was funny the other day when she got frustrated with me, on the bed she nudged my hand an inch in one direction. I looked at her and she did it again, and again, and again and then my hand hit a pillow. She wanted me to pick the pillow up and cover her up. So as soon as I picked it up she curled back up and I covered her with the pillow as she passed out like a light. I know they do not compare to having a child, but dogs are complex emotional beings who live with you and become a real dynamic and part of your family and your heart. My other chihuahua is still a puppy and so rambunctious it drives us crazy most of the time. She is never still, from the moment she wakes up until the moment she passes out. The only break is either work or unleashing her at the dog park. She is sweet though, and so loving and trusting. She falls asleep curled up right next to me when I am sitting in or on the side of the bed working. It's like she melts into you, sometimes you can't even tell at first. She will even fall asleep with her head resting on my hand. The trust in that moment alone brought me so much Joy it's indescribable. Having a dog like my little Dany though, who knows me just as much as myself and is in tune with my every flaring emotion, is the best thing in the world. When I get anxious she starts trembling for no apparent reason. When I am normal and relaxed she is calm and stable. We keep each other going, we are each others Joy. She is just as much a part of my family as my loving husband.It's also funny to note how pet's have no concept of the future beyond where will they get their next meal and some attention. They also do not live in the past or dwell on memories. They react, they act, they live in the now. They live in this moment because it's what they are thinking of. We could learn a thing or two about that. When you take your dog for a walk in the afternoon and his tongue is hanging out and he looks like he's smiling as he walks all cool like down the street notice him or her and what they are doing. They aren't worrying about the bills, they are looking at the tree next to them and how tall it is. What about those huge flowers over there covering that wall? They look at the sidewalk and the grass, the fenceposts and signposts. They enjoy taking in each part of the walk and savoring it as if each step were through a different universe, each step needing to be enjoyed. Dogs, or most dogs, have mastered the art of mindfulness. If you have a pet, lie down and chill with him or her. Turn on some music or soft tv or whatever you want. Play with each other for a few minutes, even just 5, and see if after that you aren't thinking more mindfully. Like how his fur felt on your hand, or how her tongue felt on your fingertips or how his nose wet the tip of your nose. Enjoy your pet and learn a lesson, a lesson of mindfulness and Joy.

Run, Slide, Dive, Swim & Play - An Otter Start To The Week

One of my new favorite animals to watch at the zoo is the Otter. The LA Zoo has a new Rainforest of the America's Permanent Exhibit with Otters from South America and they are huge. I have never seen otters this big before. They are magnificent to watch, especially because they are so playful and fun. They love to run and swim and jump in and out of the water for hours at a time. The good things is that they have a great exhibit with so much room that is catered to their needs. There are places people can watch from above or at eye level, and then the best - underwater views that allow visitors the opportunity to watch them twirl and dance underwater as they effortlessly move with the most agile speed. And the sound they make, like a barking cat almost is so cute to hear, especially because when they all get going and form a chorus of clicking the sound is magical. There are times you can literally watch from above as they run from one end of the exhibit to the other and back again over and over seeming to never tire. There were a couple of really young ones there too. For the most part they are very social creatures, as far as interacting with the human crowds around them. Amongst themselves they couldn't get any more social. We as a species could learn a lot from them. They live together and work together, but more than that cooperate and play together. It is an amazing thing to watch and I could do so for hours. 

This first picture I keep as the background on my iPhone's lock screen - the picture of the otter sticking it's little head timidly over the top of the waterfall to see over the edge of the rocks. Besides being cute it reminds me when I look at it to always have caution but to not let it hold me back. Eventually I have to jump, we all do. If not at this one then at the next, but eventually action is necessary. That's why Mr. Otter comes over the edge to look out and eventually jump over the edge to gracefully side into the water in front of everyone. It challenges me to let go of things I am holding on to and try new things and live life more. I watched him circle around and around for about five minutes before he finally decided to go in. He would circle around and dart a glance out before sliding back into his little pool of water up above and circling around again. Once he got down below he went to play and had a great time for the next little bit running, sliding, diving, swimming and having a joyful time; all of this after hesitating and learning how to get over the fear of something new and unexpected - in his case all these crazy new strangers looking at his every movement and yelling and screaming while banging on the glass and waving hands in the air. He had a blast and loved every moment after he got over his initial fear. Don't let things hold you back and keep you from all the running, sliding, diving, swimming and playing out there ready for just you. You and just you. You have your own personal Joy out there waiting for you, waiting for only you to come find it and tap into the limitless strength it has in order to make your life better and more joyful. No one else has access to that joy, only you do. So if you don't use it then it truly does go to waste in the Universe. Think about that the next time you hesitate about something, take a moment to say yes to something new today. Give it a shot. Try something you've never tried before and open yourself up to the Joy that's waiting there for you. Remember that otter and swim free, let go and have the time of your life - that's what it's for after all. 

Why Do We Keep Animals In Cages? Better Yet, Why Do We Pay To Go To The Zoo To Stand, Stare & Watch?

Happy Monday & welcome to another day, here we go again. Another start to another week, like a never ending cycle. When we look at it like that life is meaningless and bleak; we have to move past that and beyond the monotony that we have gotten so used to seeing. This past weekend my husband and I went to the Los Angeles Zoo, twice actually. We got our Membership to the Zoo passes and they have already paid themselves off; I have to say I am pretty excited. I have always loved the Zoo, ever since I was a little kid. I could watch the animals for hours upon hours. While there is that part of me that hates seeing any living creature in captivity I know that the zoo has a lot of conservation efforts and really does a lot to try to protect these animals. You can see the effort and care throughout the park and it truly makes it a great experience.

It got me wondering though, while we were walking among the cages, why do we do this? Why do we put these animals on display and keep them in these cages that are so small and confined compared to their outside world? Why do we rope off and enclose those foreign and alien to us? Why do we take the things we can't understand or we can't control and put them in a box to study? Why? Because we want to understand. It is the same reason we have become obsessed with Reality TV and Vlogging online, as a culture we have become consumed with understanding. In and of itself this isn't a bad thing, as our means of communication have continued to progress it has propelled us into an unprecedented era of human evolution. Some things have never changed though - like the fact that we want so badly to understand our own place in the world that we look at the environment around us in order to place ourselves in a context we can comprehend. We like going to the zoo because we like being able to see and study those things that we can't directly understand. We see ourselves in those wild eyes and we seek some kind of understanding there. Some kind of hope, not just for them but for us as well. 

Cages are designed by humans, we are the ones who build the contraptions of our own captivity and who trap those unwilling creatures we wish to watch and study and learn from. In the course of protecting the world around us and saving the things we ourselves place in danger we must remember that cages are nothing more than unnatural boundaries between us that serve only to keep us apart and keep from bringing us together. Of course at the zoo we need them to help keep the animals safe and separated, to keep them out of harms way and to keep them healthy. These cages, these limits, these boundaries all serve to protect these beautiful animals and conserve their way of life for generations to see and witness. Yet, look into the eyes of these animals as you watch them and see if you can truly tell what that look is trying to tell you. We are all living species on this planet and we are all a part of something much bigger than ourselves. We share this world with each other, human and animals alike. We go to the zoo to be transported around the globe to the most remote locations and get a glimpse into the most wild and exotic locations. These animals provide us a glimpse into the wild humanity that we have evolved from. We pay to go watch them so that we can get a better understanding of who we are, where we have come from and where we have yet to go. Our friends in the animal kingdom show us the warnings nature throws our way, the subtle roadblocks or speed bumps along the way to slow us down or cause us to take heed. We go to the zoo so that we can immerse ourself in a world we can only see in books and on television. In a world that we know to be true, but that seems to elude us at almost every point. 

Those gates and fences though are dangerous, they are there for a reason in the zoo - so we can safely watch the animals in their enclosures and learn about the different creatures of this planet. We have to learn though how to see through these fences as the nothing that they are. They are no more than man made boundaries and we must learn to make our own fences in life that protect without isolating. There are many times in life that we build fences around ourselves, whether from the outside world or from someone in particular living in it. What we have to learn is that these fences only tend to isolate us and cut us off from the rest of the world. So often, so many times, when we think we are acting in self-defense we are actually acting in fear. Next time you visit the zoo watch the animals living there, like this beautifu orangutan mother and her baby who wouldn't stop looking right at me. In that moment, than instant, that connection - I knew why. I knew what that caged animal was saying to me - "Look, we're not so different you and me. Look, we're just the same."