ENCOUNTER WITH AN ANIMAL MEDIUM

Sonia Ong suspends her disbelief to reach out to her deceased guinea pig in a short session with an animal medium.

My guinea pig of undetermined age had passed on only after 4 months with me. I had seen Toby on and off over a few months in the pet shop below the yoga studio I had started joining. He had warm innocent eyes, long flowing fur and 4 cute little socks. It had been love at first sight and having never owned a guinea pig before, had taken months to muster the expense and determination to bring him home.

I had a tough time subsequently. He had strange moods and kept to himself and I changed so many things to try to please him. About 4 months later he showed signs of warming to me, next morning, he had a heart attack and died.

It was a traumatic experience for me and being the first day of the Chinese New Year, a horrible start to the year of the snake.

His death had been the catalyst of a massive effort at home subsequently to make sure I was not jinxed with such sad stories. A funny result of this effort (and an entirely different story) was that we ended up with four guinea pigs at home a year after Toby's death.

Toby's death hung like a heavy cloud  over my head and I always did wonder why he died. Was he too old when I got him? I find pet shops very bad at sharing accurate age information. Toby was a big guinea pig when I got him and he was always '4 months old' in the three months i visited him. Then there was the question. Did I fall short in my care of him? What was it at the end of the day that killed him? The wrong brand of food? Bedding? Inadequate sleeping quarters? I had unfinished business with Toby and it was intriguing to meet Oribel Divine, an animal communicator, at a holistic fair, who proposed to cross our language and now the life-death chasm to speak to Toby on my behalf.

Oribel talks to animals dead or alive. The funny thing i discovered from her is that it is easier to communicate to a dead animal (it's always there) than to a live animal (you cannot reach a live animal if it is sleeping or eating or otherwise in survival mode-escaping predators and such).

She can help you to understand why your pet behaves a certain way, what is the problem, what is the change in the households that is discomforting for them. Oribel says that animals reflect you and can sometimes mirror or even absorb your illnesses. She tells of a happy hamster that used to sleep with her owner at a corner of her pillow next to her head. One day the hamster started to lose its usual vivacity. She brought the hamster to Oribel and it turned out that the hamster had absorbed some of the owner's negativity in relation to certain matters. In this case, affirmation of her love and desire for her hamster to live on with her and the owner's vow to take back her own responsibilities miraculously brought the hamster back to its usual self immediately.

A typical consultation with Oribel feels like a visit with a friend. You bring a photo and your questions. I brought a picture of Toby's face (above).  There is no hocus-pocus, no candlelight, no chicken blood, no dark arts or sorcery. It all feels like she is making a telephone call to Toby, without a phone. Her consultation includes the query and a 20-minute meditative connection with your pet/animal. She may or may not clarify things with you in this span of time. Any longer and you should be sceptical. Animal attention spans are short by nature. She usually follows it up with a recording and an extensive written report with lots of supporting reading material.

My session with Oribel was a short teaser but she pretty much answered all the direct questions I wanted to know about Toby's death.
It was a heart murmur that killed him. He was happy while he was staying with me. What really struck me most though was an insight into a very different perspective from an animal's soul. We like to argue that pets have no freedom, we lock and cage them up and treat them badly and selfishly. Unless something  shifts, pets remain a distinct reality. Oribel taught me that animals choose these realities to take birth and to learn certain lessons. In Toby's case, he wanted to know what it was like to inhabit a small body and to have all his needs taken care of by another, for a short time.
I had never ever thought of pets choosing their lives this way. It was consoling to hear subsequently that Toby had moved on and now inhabits a bigger animal body.

Pets teach us so much about love, selflessness and responsibility and our choice to keep them and particularly what we choose to do when their lives are at stake make many truths about ourselves surface for examination. Even as pets may choose to live their lives in cages, as their caretakers, we still need to think twice before owning a pet and the responsibilities that come with it.

Oribel ended the session with glowing drops in her eyes. The session for her had been as if Toby was standing right in front of her on the table, talking to her. I was personally impressed that without my saying, she got Toby's size right when she cupped her hands to gesture Toby's location and size. I say so only because she wasn't clear in the beginning what a guinea pig was exactly. That doesn't matter, nor does the size, or your relationship with the animal. She can talk to any wild animal on your behalf if you have a photo of it for her. She explained that animals have a very pure energy and that always moves her. They also have a distinct voice so they cannot be confused with her own thoughts.

It was a very soulful and healing session with unique insights into the natural world. I highly recommend it whether you believe it or not.

Sonia Ong has kept white mice, birds, fish, hamsters and dogs in her life. She currently lives with three Guinea pigs, a frisky schnauzer and her human family. She is the Editor of Evolve Asia Magazine.

Oribel Divine, the animal communicator, is an international award winning film editor.  She is a visionary of peace and a communication expert.  Since 2010 she has helped many to communicate with their pets, animals and nature using their intuition.  Many who studied under her have learnt to trust themselves and their ability to create deep and lasting relationship with their pets and the natural world. In October 2014, Oribel is a conducting a Pet Communication Workshop. 
Saturday & Sunday, October 11th to 12th,1.00pm - 6.00pm, Singapore
More information about upcoming and future classes can be found at www.oribeldivine.com