The Art of Belly Rubs and Other Life Lessons from Your Dog with artist and writer G.G. Silverman

“She’s more than just a dog, she’s an amazing parallel universe..” Thank you for joining me today! And if you are listening to this around the time it is released, Happy New Year! As we wind up one year and begin a new one, I thought it was the perfect time to release the first episode of the Mystic Dog Mama Spotlight Series, where I shine the spotlight on other mystic dog mamas and their stories with their dogs. My very first guest in this series is such a beautiful and amazing soul, and I’m so excited to introduce you to her, and her former paraplegic rescue dog, Edie. G.G. Silverman is an award-winning author of fiction and poetry, as well as a visual artist, educator, and writing coach. Her writing has recently been shortlisted for the 2023 Dzanc Short Story Collection Prize, and her manuscript, The Blood Year Daughter, was recently named a finalist for the 2023 St Lawrence Book Awards. GG also describes herself as disabled, neurodivergent, and the daughter of immigrants, all of which have informed her path. When not obsessing over her writing, art, or her dog, G.G. enjoys yoga, gardening, cooking, and traipsing through the evergreen forests of the Pacific Northwest, searching for magic and medicine. In this conversation, GG and I talk about the role of everyday creativity in the spiritual paths we are walking with our dogs. We also explore the ways in which our dogs invite us to let in more magic into the everyday, and ask us how we can become even better versions of ourselves. GG and I share a love of the mystical, and have both embraced the path of the hedgewitch - a path which seeks the magic and medicine in everything we encounter, including belly rubs. GG talks about finding love notes from the universe, and it is my hope that as we enter this new year, that this conversation is one such love note for you, reminding you that magic is, indeed, everywhere, and your dog is right by your side, helping sniff it out! Want to share your story in the spotlight series, or have suggestions for another incredible mystic dog mama that you’d like me to feature? Message me on Instagram @mysticdogmama! Please subscribe to the podcast, and let me know what other topics you’d like me to cover to help you live your best Mystic Dog Mama (or Papa!) life with your own pup! Finally, as we close out 2023, I hope you take GG’s word of the year, “Shine,” and carry it forward  into 2024 in your corner of the world! We can never have too much light.  Wishing you a wonderful and happy new year, filled with loads of reasons to celebrate! Until next time! To connect with G.G. please visit https://www.ggsilverman.com. Tarot deck I mentioned: Tarot of Mystical Moments by Catrin Welz-Stein Oracle cards I mentioned: The Wild Unknown Animal Spirit Deck by Kim Krans TIMESTAMPS 0:22 Intro 03:40 Introducing The Mystic Dog Mama Spotlight Series 06:10 Meet G.G. and her rescue pup, Edie the Frenchie 13:26 Navigating IVDD and auto-immune disease with Edie 17:37 Dogs are sent to us: one heart-centered being to another 24:00 Tarot and Oracle guidance 27:17 Clarissa Pinkola Estes (Women Who Run with the Wolves) and the healing power of archetypes 29:43 The mystery of the mystical, and the edges of the hedges 30:40 Reconnecting with the wonder of the everyday 33:15 Permaculture as a worldview: from problems to parameters 41:00 Our dogs are empowering us to make positive change 43:20 G.G.’s word of the year: SHINE 44:45 Connecting with our ancestors, and the mystical practice of swallowing the sun 47:35 What is the medicine here, in this moment, in a holographic universe? 59:00 Lessons from the matsutake mushroom - embrace the edges 1:02:00 Our dogs teach us about getting back to the wildness of our original body 1:04:00 We are just vessels to serve our microbiome 1:10:00 When the universe sends you love notes when you’re just about to give up DISCLAIMER: This is not a substitute for medical advice or other relevant professional advice.