Skiff - The divinity of dogs

Thank you for purchasing this Atria Books eBook.

Join our mailing list and get updates on new releases, deals, bonus content and other great books from Atria Books and Simon & Schuster.

C LICK H ERE T O S IGN U P

or visit us online to sign up at
eBookNews.SimonandSchuster.com

Contents

For Jon ,

CousCous, and ChickPea

my happy family

For engulfing me in a warm

blanket of love for sixteen years

and for teaching me about

joy, courage, and humanity

I could not love you more.

Introduction

Divine (di.vine) 1. Relating to or being directly from God 2. Having godlike nature 3. Lovely

T his was a difficult book to write. Its a memoir and a book of other peoples experiences. Documenting the trials of people and how dogs have helped them through those trials has been a privilege. But reliving my own difficulties was humbling, at times disturbing, and often sad as I forced myself to remember the times so many beautiful souls have helped me through the challenges of my life. Ive shed many tears while writing this book.

I believe life is a journey and that were here to learn and grow spiritually. I also believe dogs are a gift from the Divine sent here to help us on our way. The Divinity of Dogs is about peoples moments of enlightenment with dogs. It includes stories in which love, tolerance, comfort, compassion, loyalty, joyfulness, and even death have provided inspirational lessons about life from experiences with dogs.

Whether you believe dogs are divine or a gift from the Divine, The Divinity of Dogs gives you permission to accept what you know: dogs provide us with a clear example of all that is good. They are healers, educators, protectors, and tangible examples of divine love. For those of you who agree with this philosophy, this book confirms all we know and puts an exclamation point on it!

It wasnt until I edited my first book, God Stories , and received thousands of stories about peoples connection with the Divine, that I realized my personal experience with dogs was shared with countless others. People wrote and told me about the private moments that changed their lives. Their stories were profound and amazingthe type that warm your heart and make you cry out loud. They catapulted me into other peoples trials, leaving me with a sense of appreciation for all I have. I decided these were stories that needed to be told, to document the divinity of dogs and to give us a library of inspiring life lessons. Writing The Divinity of Dogs , for me, was also very personal.

My dogs have gently guided me through life. As a child, when I was fearful and sad, my Golden Retriever, Sally, was my strength and savior. Later in life, when I was recovering from a tumor in my bone marrow, Philophal, a mix of Terrier and Poodle, and Nicky, a Basenji-Lab cross, would jump on me until I got out of bed each day. Nickys separation anxiety, and the destructive behavior that came with it, gave me a lesson in patience, while Mary the Spitz calmed my storms and taught me how to love. Clara the Boxer was my first friend, and Clemmie the Cockapoo my first rescue. Chickpea, my one-eyed Shih Tzu, has been the child I never had, while CousCous the Maltese-Pomeranian has licked me awake with love and questionable breath every morning. When at times I didnt want to go on any longer, my love for dogs kept me here.

My dogs have been the reason I have woken up every single day of my life with a smile on my face. They have protected me from mean people and have given me insight into potential partners. They have been my children and my parents. They have loved me the most. I am among the ranks of millions of people who appreciate the souls of dogs and know they are a gift of pure love and an example of all that is good. More than anything, they have taught me how to be a better person. Im not alone. The world is filled with people who have reached the same conclusion and are happy to share why.

Scott Thornsley thought his life was over. He lost his job of nineteen years, and his wife left him. He felt no one loved or wanted him. He decided to kill himself. At the very moment he chose to act on his decision, his Rottweiler, Emma, ran into the room, grabbed his hand ferociously, and pulled him to the front door. What happened next, in the darkest moment of his life, saved him.

Joy Peterkin lost her home and belongings in Hurricane Katrinabut she still had her Chihuahua, Little Bit. Just as Joy was finding some normalcy in her life, Little Bit began persistently nudging a spot on her breast. In this book, we find out what Little Bit knew that doctors didnt.

Mazie the Lab was on death row at a shelter. She was rescued by a prison canine-training program and then by a service-dog charity. Freda Powell was in her own battle with life. She was a deaf parent with autistic twin boys and was trying to survive the loss of her oldest son in a heartbreaking tragedy. The last thing Freda wanted was a dog, until Mazie came and rescued her entire family.

Alyssa Denis was in her early twenties when she was diagnosed with severe systemic lupus. She was a shut-in, confined to her bed, in pain and living alone. Doctors told her she wouldnt live past the age of twenty-five. Thats when she applied for a service dog. In this book, you learn how Luna the Labrador gave Alyssa a reason to get up and live the life she was told shed never have.

In 1956 and 1957, a number of teenagers in Chicago were brutally murdered by a suspected serial killer. Gloria Wardrum was nineteen and worked during the day. The only time she could walk her always-friendly Airedale Terrier, Ginger, was in the evening. One afternoon, at dusk, while playing with Ginger in a park, Gloria fell asleep against a tree. She abruptly awoke to Gingers fierce growls as the dog tugged at her leash, trying to get to a man who was approaching. The man was twisting a rope between his hands as he got closer. What happened next proved to Gloria the divinity of dogs.

Miracles associated with dogs have been documented throughout history and are one of the reasons people have always felt a heavenly connection to them. Thousands of years ago, in Mesopotamia, a land that is now Iraq, followers of Gula, the Goddess of Healing, actually called the dog The Divinity. Egyptians had dog-gods and were often buried with dogs to guide and protect them in the afterlife. Aboriginal people on every continent have connected dogs to holy places. Tribes, religions, and societies throughout time have considered the dog a god. Whats amazing is that before there were easy means of long-distance communication, people in separate parts of the world felt the same way about dogs.

Jesus Christ, one of the most influential people in history, asked people to strive for certain character qualities for which dogs are well known: joyfulness, generosity, love, sensitivity, compassion, tolerance, contentment, forgiveness, loyalty, patience, gratefulness, enthusiasm, and dependability. Who do you know in your house who possesses these qualities at all times? In my house (its hard to admit, but its true), the only selfless love comes from the dogs. Recently, torn between being with my husband in Australia and rushing to the side of my dying dog CousCous in the United States, things got heated. I turned to my husband and said, I love her more than I love you. Shes my baby. Your love has conditions. Hers doesnt. He smiled and then laughed. What a great guy! I got on the next plane. CousCous lived!