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Author Hoge has observed life in multiple aspects, examining the purely physical and directly consequential laws affecting one's relationship with animals and their environment, interwoven with the etheric, spiritual, and God-imbued visions and alterations underpinning those laws. These sage understandings, grounded in realities both earthly and higher, are supported by Hoge's long-held intellectual studies of the realm of science, focusing on veterinary medicine and its effects on all aspects of life. These dynamic themes are introduced by an exploration of animal memories and animal consciousness. For example, Squirrels are aware of climate dangers and will return to stashes of food created for just those perils. Elephants express, through vocal sounds, their recognition of family and those with whom they have herded. Humans may block memories in response to acquired trauma, but certain incidents may nonetheless evoke reminders.
Many of Hoge's examples spring from his lengthy career as a veterinarian, while vivid accounts of his family's pioneering spirit demonstrate how higher realms of perception imbue life's occurrences with intuitive revelations. In the opening segment, Hoge, invited to give a talk on the connections between pets and their owners, hides with his dog in a bathroom, battling his past trepidation about facing an audience. Even so, smiles and energetic acceptance will restore cheerful, forward-looking realities. The plethora of detailed recollections encompassing precise descriptions of medical procedures both for animals and humans, along with enthralling OBEs (out-of-the-body experiences), clearly support the book's title and will encourage readers to gather and share their own stories. Hoge family's vignettes and the intriguing tales that accompany his conveyance of crucial, life-saving medical necessities are given to encourage readers to commit themselves to five easily grasped guidelines: treat clients as family; seek a partner who is empathic and shares spiritual beliefs; treat one's body as a temple; don't let retirement be one's only goal; and create and cherish a treasure trove of memories of animals and their natural environment as a source of continuing inspiration.
Hoge gained a master's and a doctorate degree from Purdue University, enabling him to pursue his chosen career in veterinary medicine—concentrating on small animals—for more than fifty years. Recognized for his exacting care for pets and sympathy for their owners, he is able to meld his technical and scientific knowledge with his spiritual outlook, as amply demonstrated in this saga, with its many twists and turns, familial chronicles, and an enjoyable sense of life's humors and challenges. He has honed his skills as a writer, having composed several books based on his professional perspective, deftly balanced with emotive reminiscences. With quotations from and admiration for highly regarded sources as Einstein, Oppenheimer, and Helen Keller, interwoven with sharp, relevant and often humorous words from the family members who preceded and succeeded him, Hoge's work draws from many perspectives, providing a source of wisdom ranging from the powers of nuclear fusion to the joys of daily contact with one's pets and absorption of the values of one's natural environment. The author's inspiring memoir is truly a pleasure to read.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review