Help From The Other Side

Last week we finally got a big dose of much needed rain and with it, Kino and I got to experience another "first" . . . the ritual of wiping off muddy/wet paws after being outside.  We had been out in the rain playing ball in the backyard for a while and when I decided we were soggy enough and he was tired enough, I headed to the back door.  As I opened the door, I asked Kino to lay down on the towel that was covering the carpet right inside the door.

He laid down long enough for me to start trying to dry him off (approx. 3 seconds) and then he freaked out.  He started running around the dining room, barking at me, spinning in circles.  I tried explaining to him that this was just something we had to do on rainy days, I assured him that wiping water and mud off his feet was not going to hurt but it didn't make any difference.  He kept barking at me, so in a firm voice I said "Kino, come back here and lay down" while pointing at the towel on the ground and he actually did lay down (which shocked me a bit) but this time when I touched his muddy paw with the towel, he growled at me in a very menacing way and then jumped up and resumed the barking and running wildly around the room again.

As I sat there on the floor, taking deep breaths and trying to figure out what to do next, two thoughts came into my mind . . . 1) I can't believe he just growled at me, I thought we were over that and 2) What in the heck is my carpet going to look like by the end of spring if I can't wipe off his feet?  I thought about Lucky and how this was never an issue with her.  In fact, she loved to be "toweled-off" so much, I think she got wet just so she could experience the drying her off part.  In that moment, I was really missing her.

While I was processing all of that and trying to determine what I could possibly do to deal with the water and mud all over him, I noticed that Kino had come back over near me and was sitting down . . . . very calmly staring at the wall.  It struck me as odd because his glance "at the wall" was very respectful, his posture was very respectful so I knew someone from the other side must be talking to him.  I sat there, watching in awe of what I was sure was some assistance from the other side.  When Kino finally looked over at me, I assumed the conversation was done, so I said "OK, are you ready to have your feet dried off now?" and much to my amazement, he laid on the towel and allowed me to dry off all four of his feet and his tail without so much as a peep.

I couldn't believe how cooperative he was, after how he had been acting just a few minutes earlier and I smiled to myself as I thought about how fabulous it was to have this kind of help from the other side.  My first thought was that it must have been Lucky, but then my mom flashed into my mind and I wondered if it was her, and then the little girl spirit that had been in my house all these years popped into my mind.  I didn't know which one of them it was, I was just grateful to have some help.

A couple days later, when I was telling one of my friends this story, her first thought was that it had to be Lucky but then a minute later, she said "oh, or maybe it was the little girl." The fact that she came up with 2 of the 3 names I came up with makes me wonder if it wasn't both Lucky AND the little girl helping me out.  :-)

We were expecting tons more rain over the weekend, but it didn't end up happening, so we didn't have to do anymore "toweling-of-the-feet" - and consequently, I don't know if that one conversation from my supporters on the other side was enough to convince Kino to always be well behaved when he is getting his feet wiped off.  I guess only time will tell, but it certainly is comforting to know that when I am feeling ill equipped to be Kino's guardian, that I have some assistance from the spirit world.