Trusting the Poodle

This past week I had my first, undeniable, visual psychic experience.

I was seated on a plane, attempting to drown out the relentless whining of the little girl behind me by turning up my ipod and jamming the earplugs even deeper into my ears. Finally I couldn’t take the ear pressure pain anymore, and resignedly turned off the music and leaned against the window.

My mind was wandering when suddenly I had a vivid mental image of the noisy child behind me standing next to a Standard French Poodle. Not any old dog, mind you – not a golden retriever or a chocolate lab or a cairn terrier. It was definitely a standard poodle.

”What in the world does that mean?” I wondered. Maybe the poodle was her dog at home, and I had somehow tuned into her thoughts. I considered turning around and asking her mother if they owned a poodle, but I thought that might seem a bit too weird. So I just sat back in my seat and focused on the sit-com that was playing on the tiny TV screen.

At the end of the flight, we all got off the plane and filed through the airport. I took a minute to use the ladies’ room and then my husband and I continued walking down the corridor. We turned the corner towards the escalator leading to Baggage Claim and there, at the bottom of the escalator was a woman holding a leash connected to a standard poodle. And next to the poodle, petting him excitedly, was the girl who was behind me on the plane.

I stopped, completely dumbstruck. There, in front of me, was my vision.

Now, I do have a lot of respect for our 6th sense. I know individuals who see dead people, and those who see future events. But *poodles*? Who sees poodles?

I’ve spent the week, in part, puzzling out the significance of this vision, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it really wasn’t about the poodle. At least not in terms of the dog breed itself. What the experience showed me, is that I’m capable of intuiting specifics, and that I should pay attention to this ability. Not in terms of hanging out a “Psychic Readings Here” shingle, but as far as accepting the power of my own intuition.

We all have this ability to various degrees, but how many of us really trust it (i.e., how often do you recognize that you’re having a strong gut feeling, but then go ahead and discredit it with your rational mind)?

It’s essential to Trust the Poodle – to pay attention to feelings, and images and nudges that encourage you to move in one direction or the other. The “Poodle” experiences are not the same as getting swept away by emotion -- emotions can lead us in the wrong direction when we’re not grounded. Poodle experiences, on the other hand, feel calm and clear and “quiet”.

I reached my conclusion by staying aware of what else was happening to me, and I became conscious of the fact that my intuition was operating almost non-stop. Out of habit, however, I either questioned what it was communicating, or dismissed its whispers out-of-hand. In other words, even if my intuition was continually showing me the best way to proceed, its advice was suspect.

Why is that? Why do we automatically favor the rational over the intuitive? What makes the rational more “right”? Is it that reason can be more objectively proven?

In my experience, I’m finding exactly the opposite. Yes, the right and left halves of the brain function best when they’re in balance; that’s why we have two halves. But the development of our intuitive mind is generally not encouraged in this society, and as a result I think we’re missing out on a huge source of guidance and support.

I’m now relying on my inner Poodle to make decisions about everything in my life from what office furniture to select, to where to look for something I’ve lost; from which movie to watch, to when to plan a shopping trip. I’ve always looked inward when working with clients, and making large decisions. But now I’m using this constant ‘knowing” for even the smallest of choices. It simply flows.

I have a fountain in my office and its constant burbling is soothing. I’ve come to think of my intuition the same way. It doesn’t start and then stop. It’s always moving, always telling me what’s best for me at this particular moment in time.

Trust it. Trust that there’s a source of wisdom that wants to help you. That answers come – that they always will come – even if sometimes they’re as simple and surprising as a large black poodle.

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"Keep your eyes on the road. You're going to see some amazing things."

-- Chuck Sigars