Connecting with Cookie was an absolute joy. The details that emerged were fascinating.
It began the evening I was sent her photograph. I saw Cookie’s picture but decided to wait until morning to reach out. Cookie, it seemed, had other ideas.
In the middle of the night, guess who appeared? Cookie.
Cookie didn’t waste any time saying hello in her own unique way. She immediately drew my attention to her ears, letting me know how itchy they were. She told me she wanted to scratch them! What a perfect identifier this turned out to be. Toni, Cookie’s owner, later explained that she had struggled with ear infections throughout her life. It was clear we had the right dog. I appreciated Cookie’s clear way of introducing herself.
Cookie began showing me images and physical sensations, her way of quietly revealing the condition that had led to her passing. A stroke was not something I would have expected, but in hindsight, her clues all fit together perfectly.
Then came a series of intriguing details.
Cookie’s next clue revealed a little of who she was. She announced a great fondness for her pink collar. My focus was drawn so strongly to it that it loomed larger than life in my vision! Haha. She told me she wore it with enormous pride — the pink, she said, was like a beacon of truth! She was very proud of being female. I’d say she was definitely showing it off!
Cookie lay in front of a couch with a tennis sized ball in front of her. She accidentally knocked it under the couch but had no interest in making the least effort to retrieve it. This was not a favourite toy. Once this truth was acknowledged she sat up, filled with energy, happy, excited showing me something flat in her mouth. I thought it was a pancake (that flat) but later realized it was a Frisbee! This was her favourite toy! Toni says she loved to play with her frisbee.
Cookie lay in front of a couch, a tennis-sized ball in front of her. She accidentally knocked it under the couch and made no move to retrieve it––clearly not a favourite toy. Once that truth was acknowledged, she sprang to her feet, brimming with energy, and proudly held something flat in her mouth.
At first, I thought it was a pancake…
Later I realized it was a Frisbee. This was indeed her favourite toy! Toni confirmed she had loved playing with it. How clever to show me the way she did!
Cookie showed herself going for walks along the water at the beach, it turns out. The scents there were a haven, and she loved it. Head down, sniffing everything in sight, she was in her element. In my vision, she appeared off leash, though Toni later told me that was only in her dreams. Haha. She longed to chase the birds, which Toni confirmed she paid great attention to.
Next, Cookie shows herself curling up on her favourite pink blanket with another dog, a shepherd named Dutchess, Toni’s son Andrew’s pet. She wants Toni to see that she shares her treasured blanket with Dutchess, and in turn, Dutchess offers her braided rawhide treat. Weird, right? Toni confirms that Dutchess is always generous with treats, which makes the gesture even more special.
That pink blanket is the one Cookie was buried in. She wants Toni to know how much she still loves it. She says it smells like home.
When I ask Cookie what she wants to say, she tells me this: in spirit, there is no such thing as time. All the pets connected to the family can come together, without concern for who arrived first or last. There is simply being, and they are all present.
When I inquire about these ‘other’ pets, Cookie shows herself looking up at a parakeet in a cage with a rounded top. Toni confirms that when she was younger, she had a parakeet with this exact kind of cage. I kid you not! Cookie shares that she and the bird enjoy extensive intellectual conversations. The bird is an excellent listener and is her confidant.
Next, Cookie shows a second pet she spends time with, keeping it at a little distance to show it’s not part of the immediate family. It’s Andrew’s cousin’s pet––a snake! Guess what? Toni confirms that her nephew adored snakes as a boy and used to catch all kinds in the neighbourhood. Later, the cousin had two pet snakes.
These are the kinds of unexpected details that make connections with animals in spirit so meaningful.
Thank you, Toni, for letting me meet the spirit of your beloved dog, Cookie. And thank you, Cookie, for showing all the ways you are still here with us, playful and present as ever.
With love,
Catherine ~