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Animals, Healing, and Spirituality A friend recently did an e-mail share about a touching story about a man who healed an injured eagle, which in turn, ended up helping to heal him. The story was originally shared via the internet by Jeff Guidry from the Sarvey Wildlife Center (www.sarveywildlife.org) in Arlington, Washington. The story is called “Freedom and Jeff.” Freedom and Jeff have been together since 1998. Here is their story:
Freedom and Jeff When Freedom came in she could not stand. Both wings were broken, her left wing in four places. She was emaciated and covered in lice. We made the decision to give her a chance at life, so I took her to the vet’s office. From then on, I was always around her. We had her in a huge dog carrier with the top off, and it was loaded up with shredded newspaper for her to lay in. I used to sit and talk to her, urging her to live, to fight; and she would lay there looking at me with those big brown eyes. We also had to tube feed her for weeks. This went on for 4-6 weeks, and by then she still couldn’t stand. It got to the point where the decision was made to euthanize her if she couldn’t stand in a week. You know you don’t want to cross that line between torture and rehab, and it looked like death was winning. She was going to be put down that Friday, and I was supposed to come in on that Thursday afternoon. I didn’t want to go to the center that Thursday, because I couldn’t bear the thought of her being euthanized; but I went anyway, and when I walked in everyone was grinning from ear to ear. I went immediately back to her dowel cage; and there she was, standing on her own, a big beautiful eagle. She was ready to live. I was just about in tears by then. That was a very good day. We knew she could never fly, so the director asked me to glove train her. I got her used to the glove, and then to jesses, and we started doing education programs for schools in western Washington. We wound up in the newspapers, radio (believe it or not) and some TV. Miracle Pets even did a show about us. In the spring of 2000, I was diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphoma. I had stage three, which is not good (one major organ plus everywhere), so I wound up doing eight months of chemo. Lost the hair—the whole bit. I missed a lot of work. When I felt good enough, I would go to Sarvey and take Freedom out for walks. Freedom would also come to me in my dreams and help me fight the cancer. This happened time and time again. Fast forward to November, 2000. The day after Thanksgiving, I went in for my last checkup. I was told that if the cancer was not all gone after eight rounds of chemo, then my last option was a stem cell transplant. Anyway, they did the tests; and I had to come back Monday for the results. I went in Monday, and I was told that all the cancer was gone. Yahoo! So the first thing I did was get up to Sarvey and take the big girl out for a walk. It was misty and cold. I went to her flight and jessed her up, and we went out front to the top of the hill. I hadn’t said a word to Freedom, but somehow she knew. She looked at me and wrapped both her wings around me to where I could feel them pressing in on my back (I was engulfed in eagle wings), and she touched my nose with her beak and stared into my eyes, and we just stood there like that for I don’t know how long. That was a magic moment. We have been soul mates ever since she came in. This is a very special bird. On a side note: I have had people who were sick come up to us when we are out, and Freedom has some kind of hold on them. I once had a guy who was terminal come up to us and I let him hold her. His knees just about buckled and he swore he could feel her power coarse through his body. I have so many stories like that. I never forget the honor I have of being so close to such a magnificent spirit as Freedom’s.
Other stories There are many websites that feature stories about animals, healing, and spirituality. Here are just a few of them: Susan Chernak Mcelroy (www.susanchernakmcelroy.com): Mcelroy’s popular books include All My Relations: Living with Animals as Teachers and Healers, and Animals as Teachers and Healers, and Animals as Guides for the Soul. She is another who has experienced support and healing during cancer. She states: “Animals and Nature have been my best mentors along the way. The self-possession, authenticity, and guilelessness of Nature and her Others serve as my most untainted reflections of how to live a more fully human life. The other major influence on my life was a diagnosis of ‘terminal’ cancer many years ago. There are no words for the kinds of lasting changes such a prognosis bestows upon a person: no area of my heart, soul, or psyche remained untouched. Nature and her kin supported me through my cancer odyssey in a way no human could. And cancer supported me in my continuing quest for self-awareness and meaning as nothing else could.” Go to her site and sign up for her free newsletter. Soulful Living.com/March2003 (www.soulfulliving.com/mar03features.htm): This section of the Soulful Living site contains an excellent collection of articles on animals and spirituality. Titles include: “What Animals Teach Me About Forgiveness” by Deborah Straw, “The Forgotten Angels” by Sharon Callahan, and “Blessing the Bridge: What Animals Teach Us About Death, Dying, and Beyond” by Rita M. Reynolds. Reynolds’ article addresses the inevitability of death and how animals can help us heal our grief. The founder of Howling Success, an animal sanctuary located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains near Charlottesville, Virginia, Reynolds tells the story of her beloved dog Oliver who died of cancer. She states: “The day before Oliver died, he laid his head on my foot as I wrote down my thoughts about him. He communicated to me, Don’t begin missing me yet. Share this moment with me, everything is as it is meant to be. And if you let me, I will guide you for all the moments to come... Through his living and dying, he taught me there is no such thing as life versus death, or success versus failure. Love given and received, moment by moment, is all that really matters.” Best Friends Animal Sanctuary (www.bestfriends.org): No column about animals would be complete without mentioning this excellent organization and their website. Best Friends reaches across the nation, helping humane groups, individual people, and entire communities to set up spay/neuter, shelter, foster, and adoption programs in their own neighborhoods, cities, and states. The mission of Best Friends is driven by the simple philosophy that kindness to animals helps build a better world for all of us. The site—and their magazine—are full of inspiring stories about animals. For example, when I visited the site, the home page contained a story entitled, “The language of love,” a tale about rescued dogs who are reunited after eighteen months and it’s like they were never apart. Key in the words “animals and spirituality” in the search box and you get to read articles like “Animal Communication and Healing” and “Energy Healing for Animals & Their People.” My advice: Read the wonderful stories and by all means visit the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary site and become a member—like me.
Mary Montgomery is a certified web author and developer. Her company, |
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