I thought it would be a good idea to get
a second golden retriever to keep my first one, Cindy, company.
That's when I saw an ad for a golden retriever rescue shelter.
And they, in turn, referred me to the Lochvier Kennels at
Midland, Virginia. At the time, I was not far from the kennel,
maybe forty-five minutes or so. And yes, there was a female
golden available. Would I like to see her? Yes! And off I
went, not realizing of course that I was entering a whole
new world, the bright and glorious world of Delphi.
I didn't pick Delphi, she picked me. She had been a show dog
but that type of life was not for her. At a year and a half
she was more than ready to do something else. The only trouble
was she had to find a way to let me know what that "something" was and how much I was to be a part of it.
It had never occurred to me that animals and people were not
all part of one family. I grew up with my springer spaniel,
Freckles, beside me. A bantam chicken by the name of Snookie
always had morning coffee with my mother. Well, Snookie sipped
cream out of the coffee cup saucer. She would hop right up
on mother's bed and wait patiently for her cream to be served.
What with cats and dogs, horses and ponies, lambs and sheep,
chickens of all shapes and sizes, fancy pigeons, parakeets,
turtles and rabbits, how was I to know that humans were supposed
to be different from animals? I didn't!
Oh, I did not start right off hearing animals talk -- at least
I don't think so. If there was any kind of language between
us to begin with, I suppose it was the language of love and
high regard for one another. We were friends.
Lately I have been aware of a sacred, silent language between
child and animal. I have watched small children visiting Delphi
and her brother Chipper. The loudest and most boisterous child
can sit with Delphi or walk beside Chipper without a word
being spoken -- yet they are speaking words, I know. Words
that I cannot hear nor understand. Watching them as they communicate
without sound, I am struck by a world many adults have eliminated
from their consciousness. It is a world of movement, of dancing
secret codes that only the childlike mind and pure animal
heart can understand. This book is really dedicated to that
world and to all of us -- young and old -- finding it.
When people ask me how to communicate with animals, I say,
"I open my heart wide and express love and respect to
them. Then I hear them." This was not a slow process
for me. It was sudden. And it can be sudden for you, too,
if you open your heart as I have done. All life is in communication.
It is just that humans have isolated themselves from "the
web of life."
To be in Delphi's presence is to be constantly amazed at her
intelligence, her gift of wisdom, her command of energy. As
far as I know, she has never been exposed to the Navajo People;
yet she sings us back into the Beauty Way, an experience that
is awesome to any and all who are fortunate to take this path
with her.
Delphi reaches out to all of us in a partnership of animals
and people. She tells us that we can heal our earth and ourselves
by remembering our connection with one another. Many books
have been written about self-growth, self-actualization, and
even self-self! Delphi says that is not the point at all.
We've missed it entirely! She says, "We're all about
love and how we can work together as partners. It is through
the heart," Delphi says, "that we can join with
all life in the coming of a bright new world."
Delphi and I share in this book a portion of the animal communication
classes we convened in Tucson, Arizona. The events and Delphi's
words are accurate. Only the names of the students attending
the classes have been changed. I believe that these classes
illustrate that when humans and animals become partners, miracles
can happen and they do.
I feel blessed to offer this book to you and I know Delphi
is joyous that you are reading it.
Patricia Jepsen
P.S. Delphi is pronounced DEL-PHEEE.
