By Mark Brooks, California

Our beloved Fluffy came into our lives as a stray kitten. She was a beautiful calico tabby with piercing yellow-green eyes and a tiny splotch of orange on the top of her head. She simply showed up one day in our backyard in the late summer and never left! (She chose us!)

Fluffy’s love for my wife, Carol, and I was a blessing, and we gave her our hearts. We were privileged to share our lives with her for sixteen years until she passed from surgery for a kidney disorder this year.

We loved Fluffy so much that when she was still with us we decided to enlarge our family with two Maine coon kittens—Belle, who grew to seventeen pounds, and her half brother Ben (Big Ben), who grew to twenty-two pounds. Fluffy loved them from the time they were little kittens. Although they grew to be much larger than her, she was a mother to them and showed them the ropes of family living.

Recently I had a remarkable dream in which I received a letter from this dear Soul. In it, she shared that she had had some kidney pain and that Carol and I had made the right decision to schedule her surgery. Fluffy went on to write that she loved us very much and was grateful for the love and life we shared. She was now free of pain and felt that she might come into our lives again. Her paw print was at the bottom of the letter. At this point in the dream, I said to Fluffy that “Mommy and Daddy” would always love her and I was glad she was free of the pain. I told her to find love and happiness and said I was so very glad to hear from her.

Next, I received a very great gift: Fluffy appeared to me and touched my nose with her nose—an act of love and affection we shared many times together when she was with us. It was her way of saying, “I love you!”

In the morning, when I told Carol my dream, we felt a sense of happiness. We knew we were truly blessed to experience Fluffy’s love again and that love is eternal.

Photo by Mark Brooks

A Contemplation Seed

You are invited to reflect on the spiritual messages in this story by contemplating on this passage from Animals Are Souls Too!, by Sri Harold Klemp:

Whether or not your philosophy or religion accepts Souls in forms other than the human is unimportant. If you can accept reincarnation and the fact that Soul takes on many different bodies—and some of these Souls are better vehicles for love than some people—you will find much joy and happiness in your own life. You’ll also find a greater understanding of God’s creation.