Wednesday, November 4, 2009

The Bearded Dragon


“Boundless love always manages somehow to sparkle through your limited form.” ~ John Welwood


Something very strange happened to me yesterday. I had gone to the pet store near my husband’s business to pick up a can of goldfish flakes, and since I had a few minutes to spare I went to the live animal section to check out the snakes.

While I was admiring a baby water dragon, I saw something moving in the enclosure right beside it, so I looked and saw a bearded dragon. Since I’ve never found bearded dragons particularly attractive, I averted my eyes back to his more colorful water cousin, but with the corner of my eye I noticed that the bearded dragon had come right to the separating glass and was looking straight at me.

I looked again, and that’s when the bearded dragon put his tiny hands on the glass and lifted himself up, as if he wanted to be held. If that wasn’t crazy enough, I felt compelled to put my hand on the glass of the case and he leaned against it. Totally overwhelmed by the dragon’s response, I gently tapped on the glass and ran my finger over the surface as if I was petting him. When I did that, the dragon leaned against the glass even more, and closed his eyes.

I stood there for several minutes, then I pulled my hand off and the dragon immediately opened his eyes, staring directly into my own. I was smitten. Even if only for a few moments, I had connected with this tiny creature.

I reluctantly left him and went to pay for the fish food. I wanted to ask the cashier if it is normal for bearded dragons to be that sociable, and if they routinely bond with humans they’ve never seen before, but the feeling of what had just happened was so pure that I didn’t want to taint it by talking about it.

As I drove to pick up my daughter from school, I thought back about the dragon and about the incredible connections we make when we least expect them. My reality and that of this tiny lizard are worlds apart, yet a connection was undeniably there. We don’t have to be or think alike for energy to flow between us and others.

The body and the rational mind see the differences that exist among people and other living creatures. Spirit sees everything and everyone as one, only separated by our individual perceptions.

I don’t know if the little dragon will still be there tomorrow or in the days to come, but even if I never see him again, I know that for one single moment I was given an amazing gift, one which I will carry in my heart for years to come.

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