An Observation

I've noticed something a little odd and quite disturbing.

I'm much more likely to forgive my cat than I am to forgive a person.

My cat bites me occasionally. She scratches. She ignores me and hates my friends, and runs away and hides everytime we have anyone around. She also has this really annoying habit of standing in her litter tray and doing her business over the edge which leads to some serious mess that needs to be cleaned up.

And yet, I can never stay mad at her for more than about 30 seconds. All she has to do is look at me with her greeny-yellow eyes and purr a bit, and I melt. She's so soft and cuddly and cute, how could anyone not just adore her?

And yet, if some of my best human friends acted in this way, would I just put up with it because they're cute? Some of them are pretty cute! But if my best friend suddenly bit me, ignored me, hated my friends and defecated in my bathroom, would I still love her? Would it take only thirty seconds to forgive her?

Sure, it's harder to understand the reasons for a person's behaviour than a cat's. But surely we shouldn't have to understand a person's motives to forgive them. Forgiveness, like love, should be unconditional, right?

So I'm thinking the way I (and, I think, many others. I just don't want to make assumptions so I've written this whole blog post like it's just about me...) forgive my kitty is almost a model of the way God forgives us. We, being human and fallible, find it hard to practice this model of perfect forgiveness in our relationships with humans. Perhaps then it is comforting that there is still something in my life over which I can exercise God's will for me, to forgive perfectly and completely with no need for explanation.

Only, it's a cat. I'm pretty sure that's not what God intended...

Of Cats

I have, more than once on this blog, professed my love for a certain small furball called Astrid.



I mean, honestly, who wouldn't?

However, I would like to point out that as much as it is nice to be wanted by said small furball, trying to scratch your way though my door all night is NOT endearing...

You know what surprises me? How I lived my whole life before last year without a proper pet. I mean, I had birds that invariably died after a year or so, in varying states of gore. I had a couple of pet rocks. But due to enormous dogs next door, or the restrictions of college or renting, I never had a furry little fuzz ball of the canine or feline variety.

How did I cope? I'm not sure. Because for the last 3 weeks I haven't had my cat around because of holidays and damn, I miss that furrball. I've never really been a cat person but since the house I'm living in isn't really big enough for a dog, I decided to get a cat to provide some company when I'm home alone.

And I fell in love. I really really really love my cat.


and honestly, who wouldn't? You'd have to be the meanest cold hearted animal hater in the universe not to love that face...