LEARNING FROM CATS

The wind outside was playing blow-me-down games with the plants in my garden. But it was hot air that wafted into my living room through the open glass doors.

Our old fat cat Maffin was snoozing in his fave place in his own basket. That's just one of his many indoor fave spots, which range from the sofa, the arm-chair, the dining table, the food-cover, the top of the cupboard and the laundry basket as long as it's filled with clothes (clean or dirty doesn't matter.)  But these days even he is feeling the heat. So after a while he lifts himself out and plops         

  onto  the marble floor, falling asleep again within seconds. I am always amazed how easily and fast cats go into dreamland.

Even Pretzel (the sometimes prodigal) is the same. Pretzel is making more trips back to home base these days. Maybe he's getting tired of the other hooman (whoever it is) who feeds  him outside. Nowadays he will even stay the whole nite sometimes when he waltzes into the house for dinner, and waltzes out come morning. Fickle, that's what he is.
                      
It's a long weekend. The kids are away. My one and only son has gone off outstation with his frens whilst my no 2 is at her in-law's place, spending time with her husband who has just returned from overseas. I now understand what my neighbor across the road means when she says the house is so big and empty. She's a widow with a live-in maid; just 2 of them in a huge double-storey corner-lot house with a big garden. I always tell her she isn't alone really, coz there are angels all around her. Now I tell myself the same thing. 

Well, actually I am not quite all alone, since Maffin is around most of the time. Not that he does much apart from eating, sleeping and sleeping, eating. He meows his commands to me to feed him predictably in the morning, noon and evening. When he wants to go out after dinner, he will plonk himself by my chair. He knows very well he can squeeze out the house-gate but he refuses to. If I ignore him, he scratches the chair. Most times I oblige His Laziness, but I draw the line when he wants to come back in. It's a sort of power-game with us. So I don't bother as he sits outside waiting. After awhile he gets it that I am not going to open the gate for him, and clumsily squeezes himself through anyway. Every now and then when he's in the mood to be petted, he tries to jump onto my lap. Most times I don't indulge his antics, coz he's heavy.  But it's nice to stroke him as he dozes. He would stretch and grunt his meows, though still very much in cat-dreamland.  

Today I join Maffin on the floor. Yes, I know my mother said it's not good to lie on cold hard marble, because can get "fong sup"- the "wind" enters the body and will cause aches and pains. Well, what else is new? Old bones will get achy anyway, with or without the "fong" from the floor tiles. And it's hot, hot, hot these days.  Even for the cats. 

Yet when I observe Maffin, he's pretty cool about the heat. He just ups and moves to a more comfy spot and continues his sleep.  He carries on confident that there's always some place in this house for him to rest, where there's always someone to  feed him food and water, when he needs it. Where he is much loved, even though he doesn't do anything particularly "useful" around the house; on the contrary in fact he gets his fur (worse -fleas) all over the place.

Come to think of it, so many problems can get us all hot and bothered about life.  It takes snoozing cats to remind me actually I can choose not to stress, since I already know the God who created all things can very well take care of all things. And if He hasn't, it doesn't mean He can't. It just means He's got His ways and His time to do His (good and perfect) will.  Whatever happens or doesn't happen in my life, in this whole wide world,  I can rest secure and safe in a love that abides, no matter how "useless" or "dirty" I may be. Even Pretzel (who, to me, is just plain ungrateful) takes for granted and knows our doors are always open to him, whenever he comes back from his gallivanting all over the neighborhood.  Just so is the unmatchable love of a God who willingly opens His arms wide to every returning prodigal son or daughter anytime, every time. 

It tickles me that Maffin isn't bothered by my ignoring him sometimes. He doesn't take offense.  Unlike humans who are so easily offended not only by other humans, but by God, becoz we think He ignores us or we don't like what He does or doesn't do. We even deny His existence. Thank God He is ever patient and long-suffering with humankind. He doesn't give us what we deserve for all our sin and sinning. Repeatedly in the  Bible, we are told "His faithful love (mercy) endures forever."  So great is this love that He has done everything necessary to reconcile, release, redeem and restore us into right relationship with our Maker and with each other, through Christ Jesus. On the cross of Calvary, the work was finished. 

Methinks I should be more like the cats...and sleep easy. Hot or cold, rain or shine; becoz like the old hymn goes, whatever my lot, God has taught me to say it is well with my soul.