In the first half hour of the day, I spend time with nine doves, seven cats, four kittens, a small dog, and five chickens. I’ll spend the rest of my morning with the same friends plus six children, two rats, a skink, a hamster, and two goldfish. Oh… and Hermie, the hermit crab.

My animal friends remind me of what really matters:

• The dog reminds me of the joy of serving.
• The cats remind me of the pleasure of luxury.
• The doves and skink remind me of the peace of present living.
• The goldfish are always seeking and remind me to do the same.
• From the hamster and rats I learn to prepare.
• The chickens remind me to let go and have fun!

And Hermie?… well, Hermie reminds to continue with diligence. I don’t know where he is going or what he is up to, but when that crab is awake, he always seems to be on a mission!

Then there are the children, who teach me so much! They remind me to think outside of the box, for example. Children have no boxes! They remind me to move and jump and laugh and discover and sing and dance and enjoy every moment of life. Even the boo-boos of life don’t hurt as much for children before they’ve begun to collect scars.

I laughed and then cried the first time one of my three year old friends came in and told me, “Today is a bad day.” Children, before they are taught, don’t experience bad days. They are like my animal friends. They are alive! I laughed because it was so out of character. I felt sadness because I knew that little Johnny had created a pathway in his mind for this point of view. His innocence had been written upon.

The scars we collect change our world. They give us perspective; a point of view. They divide us from that, them, and those; and they give us something to fear and protect ourselves from.

As we practice awareness, we are getting back to who we truly are, without our scars. When we are too busy observing the changes of life to remember the fears we’ve stored, we are our truest selves: We are Love.