I have always had wonderful animal companions who taught me a lot about life and about myself. As a child who was often sick and bed-ridden, I learned about patience and contentment from our dachshund who wanted nothing more than to cuddle in bed with me till I got better. My Arab horse taught me the joy of being curious about everything unknown that crossed our path. My spectacular cat, nicknamed “The Queen of Everything” taught me about showering those you love with undivided attention. She also demonstrates how to be totally serene in peaceful solitude. The Bolivian author, Ben Mikaelsen wrote “Animals can teach us more about ourselves than any teacher.” I have found that animals are also gifted in helping me de-code and understand the Safety Energy Locks and flows of Jin Shin Jyutsu… and I believe Mary Burmeister gave us clues, encouraging us to share the Art with the animals and look to them for deeper understanding of the work. Let me show you what I mean. In Self Help Book Two, on page 14 Mary introduces us to SEL #2. She writes that “2 came into the universe meaning Life Force for all creatures (wisdom)”. As far as I have found in all my classes and studies, this is the only time Mary uses that phrase, “for all creatures”. We know that Mary was a true wordsmith, never using a word randomly or carelessly. “For all creatures”… I meditated on this phrase over and over. I held the 2’s on myself, on human clients, on dogs, cats, horses and barnyard animals. I finally got my “Aha” one day when sharing a session with a very pregnant human client who was experiencing high blood pressure and low back pain. I realized that her 2’s were nearly pinched closed. The baby in the front was causing her back to shorten and arch. Her 2’s were being constricted in order for her belly to protrude. I was still reflecting on this later that day when I was sharing a session with my big Percheron horse. I noticed that her 2’s were expansive, relatively flat and open because she stood on 4 feet. This posture, in turn, worked with her ability to have much greater peripheral vision because of the angle of her head and the placement of her eyes. Suddenly I got goose pimples as I reflected that this may be what Mary meant by the “wisdom of all creatures”. Wisdom comes from quite literally how we look out at the world! Do you want to feel this right now? OK. Stand up, notice your natural posture and place your hands at the crest of the pelvic girdle in the back. That is your Safety Energy Lock #2. Allow yourself to receive a few deep centered breaths. Feel the exquisite “Inhale from the Abundance” come up your back. Feel the inhale press your hands away from each other as you fill up with breath. Lucious, right? Now, keeping your hands on your 2’s, allow your belly to press forward and expand… like you are suddenly very pregnant or pushing a heavy load forward using only your belly. Do you feel how the 2’s shorten and constrict? See how much more difficult it is to inhale deeply? Now, slowly and gently, allow your focus to change. Lean way forward, till your upper body is parallel to the floor. Pretend you are a Be-ing who walks on all fours. Reach back and feel the expansiveness of the area where SEL 2 lives. While enjoying this open feeling, move your head from left to right and see what a wide and different view of life you get! If you expand your JSJ practice to include the animals around you, you will find it even more FUN and rewarding, and your understanding will naturally deepen!