Our oldest cat, Tiggy, has reached the grand age of 21 and is the oldest cat on our vet’s books. We think she’s amazing, but Tiggy doesn’t have an opinion on how long she’s lived here on the earth plane or how long she might remain here.
Animals don’t hold a view on things like that. They just are. They just exist. It’s so wonderful to watch a dog at play or at rest because it has no opinion about itself or anything else. It just is. It lives in the present moment.
For reasons best known to ourselves some of us have, on occasion, lied about our ages, shedding a few years. In the past, in some societies, those who lived to great ages commanded respect and obedience. So much respect was given to the elderly that those who lied about their ages would pretend to be older than they were.
We may want to live long lives but worry about ageing. We fear getting aches, pains and other ailments. There’s also the fear of the loss of of our own physical existence.
But so called death isn’t our enemy. It’s merely the process by which the spirit is released to carry on elsewhere. Many religions promote a belief in an after-life but Spiritualism actually proves it. We are all spirit and, regardless of nationality, belief, or race, we all survive death.
The knowledge that the spirit is inexhaustible helps us to cope with the fact that one day we will discard our physical bodies. This knowledge also helps us with bereavement. When loved ones pass over we know that they’re not leaving us but are merely going on before us.
Proof that life continues after physical death gives us reassurance but I’m not implying that we shouldn’t grieve when our loved ones depart this earthly plane. Our youngest cat, Heidi, has stage three kidney disease. She has the sweetest of natures, the most beautiful spirit. When she passes to Spirit I will be distraught. But knowing Heidi will live on in another realm will give me comfort.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, dedicated himself to the cause of Spiritualism in later life. He embraced the knowledge that life is eternal.
A few days before he passed over, aware that his time on the earth plane was running out, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote two simple sentences. He wrote:
“ I have had many adventures. The greatest and most glorious awaits me now.”
