I had a truly magical experience earlier this week.  After a long day of readings & writing, I went to bed and slept very deeply & soundly.  I don’t remember my dreams that night, except for that they were pleasant and uplifting.  I woke briefly several times during the night.  I felt so comfy and peaceful cuddled underneath my warm fleece blanket & down comforter with my husband Brian. 

            I heard a cat purring by my head each time I awoke.  I figured it was either Juno or Julius (one of our two pet cats…also known as “the brothers”) sleeping on my pillow.   A couple of times I tried to reach my arm up to pet him, but it seemed that I was too tired to reach that far because I could never quite find his furry body in the dark, even though I could hear & *sense* him there.  Even though I couldn’t pet him, I felt his purr surrounding me in a bubble of soothing unconditional love.

            Sunrise finally came and with it a blast of light streaming through the twelve windows in my bedroom (yes, it really *does* have twelve windows, plus it faces the east, where the sun rises).   I heard the beautiful “cat purr” lullaby one more time as the light roused me from sleep.   Still feeling peaceful & content, I rolled over and kissed my husband.  Apparently, he had also slept well, because he said to me, “That was some gooood sleeping”.

            I answered back, “Yes, it was so peaceful, especially with that cat purring by my head all night long.”

            He looked at me a little strange and said, “What are you talking about?  I locked the cats downstairs when I got up to go to the bathroom….there’s no cat in here.”

            That was at least four hours ago.

            “Hmmm…” I said.  “Are you sure?  I swear I could hear a cat purring by my head almost all night long…it was very loud.  I just heard it right before I woke up, too.”

            “I’m sure”, he answered.

            “Maybe I was dreaming…but it felt so real.”

            I rolled out of the bed and stood before the mirror on the dresser next to our bed, digging around for my clothes (yes, it’s true, I sleep in the nude).  I heard a small gasp come from Brian and then he said, “You have claw marks on your back”. 

            I turned around and looked at my back in the mirror.  It was true.  About half-way down my back near the right side of my spine were three or four large & deep claw marks.  They didn’t hurt at all.  In fact, I wouldn’t have even known they were there if Brian hadn’t told me about them.  It looked just as if a cat had scratched me.

             That sealed it for me.  There had been a cat with me after all (a spirit cat), and apparently he left his mark behind on me so that I would have no doubt of his presence.  As it is natural for all animals to “mark” their territory, I did not felt threatened in any way by the scratches on my back.  In fact, it was quite the opposite…I still felt peaceful & filled with the energy of unconditional love that my cat guardian left behind.    

            I know that it can be easy to “rationalize” away experiences like this.  The intellect has a convenient way of re-writing any history that does not fit its current understanding of the world. 

            Has something unusual or even *truly incredible* ever happened to you that you later found yourself “rationalizing” or “second guessing”? 

            Have you ever found yourself talked-out of a truly meaningful experience by a well-meaning friend or loved one who just can’t wrap their brains around the miraculous?

            Have you ever allowed that part of yourself that is afraid of magic (or a loved one who is afraid of magic) to take the magic from your life?

            Some people I know say there’s no such thing as magic.  Personally, I believe that magic is *everywhere* and that the miraculous is always waiting around the corner, standing there with my angels, spirit guides, totems, and of course, Spirit itself, waving at me.

            Whether you believe in magic or not, you are right.  Whatever you believe for yourself you will create, and people who don’t believe in magic don’t have many magical or miraculous experiences.  On the other hand, if you choose to believe in magic, the Universe will support that belief in your life with many unusual & magical moments, such as a magic cat sleeping by your pillow at night.

            Really, so much of it is simply about your *interpretation* of the world….when you have an experience like I just had, do you say it was “just a dream”, or do you accept that it was a magic cat angel laying on your pillow to help give you an infusion of unconditional love?  Whatever you answer, you are *right*, because what you believe becomes true for you.

            Me, I choose to believe in magic, simply because life is more fun that way.