The Magic of Connecting in the Moment

I saw a clip last week of Drew Barrymore’s TV show where she interviewed the actress Olivia Munn. Olivia spoke about her experience with postpartum anxiety, describing the deepest fear she felt during that time in her life. Drew responded with compassion and shared that she’s experienced that same anxiety non-stop since becoming a mother. As soon as Drew expressed that, her dog Douglas appeared out of nowhere and put his head on her lap. (And the audience melted.)

I love that Douglas is free to roam and do as he pleases on Drew’s set. To see him on national television demonstrating how connected he is to Drew’s energy (despite a room full of audience, crew, and cameras) made my heart sing. He recognized the energy Drew and Olivia held, the message they discussed, and his spontaneous cuddle at the perfect moment said, “You really don’t have to worry about anything. I’m here.” He then jumped onto the couch and snuggled with Olivia.

What a gift when our animals hone in and really read our energy in the moment. Soon after my close friend Diana passed away and I found it difficult to get out of bed in the morning, my two cats stuck to me like glue in the covers, nuzzling with me as late as I wanted in the a.m. Even though they never tolerated each other being on the bed at the same time and were never ok with a late breakfast, they showed up loving and patient and gave me everything I needed during that time.

Years ago, my cat Willow jumped over my body in the bed one morning to get closer to the window. As she soared over me, one of her hind claws scratched the bare skin on my waist because my pajama top had ridden up a little. Immediately upon landing, Willow turned around and licked the exact spot on my skin that was scratched. That scratch definitely didn’t feel good, but I hadn’t said “ouch” or given a physical cue that it hurt. Willow knew from the energy of it all that I could use some soothing. Again, I felt so taken care of in the moment.

On my first trip to Costa Rica for a horse workshop, our teacher had me stand blindfolded across the arena from a stallion named Juano. She turned me around a few times so I couldn’t tell which way I was facing and guided Juano to a different spot as well. She then asked me to feel where Juano was standing and walk toward him.

My brain had no clue where I stood in relation to the horse (he was great at being completely silent, too), but soon I sensed him encouraging me to drop into my heart space and just feel. I slowly stepped out into a direction that felt right. The more I let go of logical thinking or guessing, the more I was innately drawn to adjust my path slightly here and there. I kept stepping forward into what felt like more of Juano’s energy. Finally, the teacher asked me to stop and remove my blindfold. I was standing right in front of Juano, up close and personal, totally blown away.

We can feel into our animal’s energy, just like they can with us. The other day I was rushing around doing chores at home and realized I didn’t know where my cat Faro was. He doesn’t typically hide, so that felt weird. I stopped, took a breath, dropped into my heart, and let myself just feel. Soon I was drawn to look under the bed, and there he was, his huge eyes staring back at me. I suddenly realized that I was rushing to get stuff done because I was running late to leave for the evening. If I’m a little anxious before I leave, that energy can feel like I’m about to take Faro to the vet, and he responded in kind.

For an interesting exercise, if you’re in one room and your animal is elsewhere in the house, take deep belly breaths, drop into your heart, and set the intention to connect with their energy. Allow yourself to feel the radar that draws you to where they are. Also, see if you receive any information through feeling, hearing, seeing, knowing…are they sleepy, playful, hungry right now? The more you practice it, the more the connection flows.

A few months ago I taught an Intro to Animal Communication Workshop on Zoom. After some instruction, I gave the students the names of real animals to connect with, and they shared the information they received from them. One student in the class was caring for an ailing loved one at the time. Despite that stress in her life, she consistently received accurate info with each connection. At one point though, she expressed genuine doubt and said, “I really don’t know if I’m actually doing this, but here’s what I got from the animal..” Immediately I saw a dog jump into the frame and affectionately lick her face. The message was loud and clear: “Mom, you’re really doing it! Trust yourself and enjoy the magic that’s happening right now!”

That student had her own Douglas, appearing out of nowhere just at the right time.

On the show after Douglas comforted Drew, she said, “He knows. He knows.” The more we connect with how much our animals know, the more we open up to their support and loving feedback, the more they teach us to be present and connect in a deeper way right back. That’s a channel I’m tuning into any day. 💜