The Eve of Inspiration

“Child, if you only knew!”

I know I heard that. That was a woman. I know it was. I frantically looked all around my house, but no one was there. At this point, I try to forget about the voice that I know I just heard and go on with my day. About an hour goes by and my dog comes up to me and starts nudging my arm with her nose. She always does this when she wants attention, so I start petting her. Eventually, I say, “Do you want to go outside, Eve?”.

The next thing that happened, I will never forget. Eve, my black lab, terrier, pitbull mix of a dog, looked me dead in the eye and spoke. Words. Not just howling that sounded like English, but actual words. She looked up at me and said, “It’s about time, girl. You really wouldn’t have liked what was about to happen if you didn’t ask.”.

I couldn’t believe what was happening! This had to be a dream. There was no way that this was real life and my dog was actually communicating with me. In the seven years that Eve has been a part of my family, I have never heard her speak like this before. Maybe she isn’t speaking and I’m just losing my mind. There has to be a logical explanation for all of this.

Apparently, Eve sensed my sheer and utter disbelief as to what was actually occurring here and decided to help me out a bit. “You ain’t going crazy, ma. Besides, you can’t go where you already are. Isn’t that what you’re always saying?”, Eve said to me as if this was a normal, everyday occurrence. “You get that dogs aren’t supposed to be able to communicate with humans, right?”, I reply. What am I doing?! Why am I asking my dog what she understands expecting an answer? I assure myself this is it, I’ve finally cracked. I am seriously about to admit myself for a psychological evaluation at the local mental hospital.

“Come here, baby.”, Eve said to me as I was clearly in a state of panic, “You don’t need to go anywhere. This is real life, girl. I could always communicate, but I didn’t think that humans were ready for this knowledge. How do you think we were able to understand the things you would say to us? I just got tired of keeping my mouth shut and figured you were the one who would be the most accepting of it, so I spoke up. Besides, girl, you need me. You need my advice. I couldn't sit back and watch anymore.”

I thought about it for a bit, trying to be more accepting of this so-called truth about our “pets”. We all know that they’re family, really. Why me? Why would Eve need to give me advice now? I understand there is a lot happening in my life and I would never turn down guidance from anyone, but from a dog?! I guess I shouldn’t question it. I should just see what advice my dog could offer me. Yes, it sounds absurd. You may agree that I should have sought out psychiatric help instead of believing in my talking dog, but you would be wrong.

About seven years ago, I adopted Eve from an animal shelter. I was told she was found on Christmas Eve looking for food along a bad street in North Philadelphia. She had a severe upper respiratory infection and was so malnourished that you could see her bones protruding through her skin. It was such a sad sight to see. She chose me, however. She walked across the room and she laid her head on my lap and looked up at me with her big, sad eyes, while wheezing during each breath. Eve confirmed for me that she did, in fact, choose me. She was drawn to me. I wasn’t even there to adopt an animal, my friend was.

Eve filled me in on how she felt we could help each other. I’ve helped her out all this time and, now, it was her turn to return the favor. She told me stories upon stories of her life before being picked up on Christmas Eve. The things that this dog has experienced was down right mind blowing, but you know what she gained from all of it? Wisdom. Because of everything this dog had gone through leading up to moving in, permanently, with me, she had so much wisdom. She was time-stamped for fifteen minutes when I met her. That meant she was about to meet her maker, until I showed up.

Eve had apparently watched me struggle throughout our time together. She explained that it was time for her to intervene and tell her stories. Her thoughts were that I could only benefit from her advice; as long as I didn’t think I was insane and have myself admitted. Eve saw the struggle my whole family had been through, especially since my dad passed. She reminded me that there was power inside of all of us, but we just have to believe in this power we behold. Once we believe it, we can achieve whatever goals we have in place for ourselves. My dog was sitting next to me, giving me some of the best advice I had ever received. An animal was bestowing upon me some of the greatest knowledge I had ever received in my life. I had to be crazy, but it made sense. The stories Eve had told me of her past were inspiring. This mere animal had been through so much. I never knew.

Who gets guidance from a dog? Apparently, I do. Eve is brilliant. We definitely needed each other. It’s funny how we can find strength in the oddest of places. I would have never expected my dog to be the one who inspired me to be my true self. We now have daily check-ins and I’ve made her a “silent” partner in the business I’ve built. After Eve revealed her secret to me, she inspired me to show the world my talents. She helped me to remember that the power was always there, but the only way to get full use of it was to be me. I just had to shine that light a little brighter and once I did, it was like the world was mine.

This is the first time I’ve shared Eve’s secret with the world. Some may believe me; others, not so much. I realized that you don’t have to believe our story for it to be real. Validation in your life shouldn’t come from outside sources. Somewhere along the way, we tend to lose sight of this. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever imagined my dog to be the one to help me the most at my lowest, but I guess it makes sense. She’s been there every step of the way. Man’s best friend is probably an understatement. Besides, who knows you better than your pet?