Thursday, June 5, 2014

One of Life's Great Blessings


Hello All on a sunny day here in western Missouri where we’ve had rain several times this past week and where grass grows sweetly. This is going to be a rather short posting as the week and day got away from me with doctor appointments and the day-li-ness of living and preparing for a visit from Minnesota friends.

I just want to share with you something that just happened to me.

A few minutes ago, I woke from a nap to find Matthew, the tiger feline, sleeping in the brown, corduroy-upholstered, easy chair across the room from me.


 In another easy chair lay Ellie, brindle clad, paws against her face.


And next to me on the couch stretched Maggie, the longhaired calico cat, who hasn’t told me—because she’d of course have to kill me—that she once worked as a spy for the CIA.


 I woke then to gratitude for my life and for all that cats have meant and been for me since I first began living with Dulcy back in April 1972. She taught me many things, one of which I’m sharing with you today: to look beyond myself.



 You may know that being single and without children and with no partner can lead a person to become selfish, self-centered, and self-absorbed. I’ve managed, due to the upbringing Mom and Dad gave me, to mostly avoid the first two of this stultifying trio. But often enough I have become self-absorbed.

And when that’s happened it’s often the cats who help me become aware that I’m not thinking beyond my own needs or beyond the thoughts I’ve been pondering so assiduously.

When I enter the world of analyzing all my feelings and thoughts, I move into self-absorption. That may last for a few days or even more, but ultimately the cats demand that I leave that land of blindness and respond to their needs. Now.

Since February my home has been an armed camp. Only one combatant boasted razor-sharp claws—Matthew. The other, Ellie, had been declawed before we met at the Humane Shelter. Maggie and I became the befuddled witnesses to Matthew’s siege and to his forays into his chosen enemy’s camp.

Daily—and nightly—Maggie and I cowered before the din of battles pierced by horrifying yowls. The flash of gleaming claws. The intimidation by the bully who, in better days, had been known as Matthew “the shy one.” For some unknown reason, after four years of living peaceably together, he decided to oust Ellie from harmony and isolate her to the darkness of the garage.

For four months this went on—four months of trying to protect Ellie and wringing my hands, wondering what to do. Then, in the past two weeks, when I kept Ellie inside the house, out of the garage, all this changed.

And so today, when I woke to the three of them napping with me in the living room, I felt an overwhelming gratitude for their working it out between them and for all they have done to help remind me that I can’t go off into a mirrored room where only Dee Ready and her reflection live.

I must take care of these three felines who have entrusted their lives to me and in doing that I learn to respond to others as well.

Cats have always been a blessing in my life. Peace.

43 comments:

  1. I'm glad they are happy. I received a thank you note from my former mother-in-law. She said she likes your books.

    Love,
    Janie

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    1. Dear Janie, you are always so supportive of my writing and I so appreciate that. Thank you. Peace.

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  2. I read Dulcys story as I was providing hospice care for my beloved Pecheecho. Your book and the story of Dulcy provided me w great comfort at a time when I needed it. peace to you.

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    1. Dear Rhonda, thanks for stopping by. I'm so glad and gratified that Dulcy's book comforted you. Thank you for sharing that with me. I'm wondering if the time came when you brought another cat into your home? Peace.

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  3. Hmmm. Did Matthew make his point, did Ellie make hers or did Maggie spill on Guantanamo? But, we'll never know.

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    1. Dear Joanne, oh woe is me because they share so little of their private lives! Real secrecy. Peace.

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  4. They do make us look past ourselves indeed. And tend to work through their tiffs too.

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    1. Dear Pat, I think I try too hard to work out their tiffs between them. I'm learning that it's best to let them sort out their relationships themselves. You must have known this all the time. Peace.

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  5. Not quite sure what went on over there, but I hope they have worked this out for good and all. Have a wonderful, quiet-cat weekend and enjoy your company!! :)

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    1. Dear Rita, I'm not sure either. My company ended up not coming. They're posting, not canceling. Health issues intervened. Peace.

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  6. Cats have their own hierarchy and I am sure that having claws puts one of them on top. I hope they have settled their differences and all will be peaceful in your household.

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    1. Dear Arleen, they seem to have settled their differences, but I'm ashamed of myself because on Saturday night Matthew went after Maggie and I'd just had it with the cat fights that sounded as if mayhem were being committed. So I chased into a bedroom, closed the door, and squirted him with a water bottle every time his head appeared above the bed or chair or hassock. Finally he let out a cry of sheer horror and I realized that I was emotionally abusing him. I'd terrorized him. Since then he's been quiet, wanting to be held by me a lot. I am ashamed of this but perhaps some good will come of it though I'd never do it again. Peace.

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  7. Great pictures of those sweet creatures. Cats can get bees in their bonnets, just like us. Glad to hear it's worked out now. Hopefully. :-)

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    1. Dear DJan, I so like what you said about cats getting 'bees in their bonnets"! It made me laugh because it's so true. Peace.

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  8. What a beautiful post, Dee. I so loved your book about Dulcy, and it is nice to see your close bond with the other cats in your life continues as you give to them and they give to you. And how true it is that if we are not continually giving to others in even small ways, we can too quickly become self-centered and self-absorbed. This is the human condition, regardless of our situations.

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    1. Dear Karen, do you think that we are all prone to self-absorption? I've thought it was mostly me. And then I realized that maybe it happened to everyone who lived alone. Perhaps I need to broaden my world view! Peace.

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  9. What a lovely, peace gathering family you four are! I love the pictures and the kind looks on their faces. To sit and marinate in gratitude is better for the soul than anything else, I believe. And just to let you know, I will not be blogging for a bit, but will be checking in on my favorites, of which yours is in the tops, periodically. Stay well, my friend!

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    1. Dear Shelly, as I've aged I've come to realize that to live in a state of gratitude makes all of life meaningful.

      I'm glad to know both that you'll be visiting my blog each week and that you are taking some time off. That's so necessary at times. Peace.

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  10. It is a great gift to have other creatures in our lives. Observing them is observing more about reality than we realize. Interacting, empathizing, sensing - these things we must do when others share our spaces, and this is humbling and uplifting, at the same time! I appreciate how your little community's interactions help spark my processing. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Dear Deanna, they really did spark your processing. I think you could write a truly philosophical and enlightening posting about this. Peace.

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  11. The Peaceable Kingdom returns! Matthew has such a sweet and innocent look on his face--Who, me? I would never cause any trouble!
    Glad they have worked it out and you can enjoy your friends from my state: Minnesota.

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    1. Dear Cynthia, yes, Matthew does look so innocent but he can be a bully. Still, if you read the response I left to Arleen's comment, you'll see that I turned into a horrible bully too on Saturday evening. Peace.

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  12. I like pictures of cats more that I like cats

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    1. Dear Jo-Anne, well I think that's true about all of us and animals. I like pictures of wasps and their intricate structure more than I like wasps. Peace.

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  13. Love your kitties --and am so glad that they are such a blessing to you.

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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    1. Dear Betsy, yes, a true blessing. Peace.

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  14. Hmmmmm . . . intrigue, is it, Dee, with a spy in residence?
    Is that Ellie on what looks like the same throw or rug that we see Dulcy upon on the book cover?
    Yes, cat do, indeed, have a way of putting all things into perspective, don't they? Our neighborhood prowler, Midnight, who stops by regularly for a cup of milk, meowing loudly at the door, brushed past me in the garden earlier, looked up as if to say "no time for you today, Miss Penny" and proceeded to wage a war with his shadow.

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    1. Dear Penny, no, I gave that rug to one of my nieces when I moved here because there was no floor space for it. What Ellie is lying on is a hassock.

      I so enjoyed your anecdote about Midnight. Such personality! Peace.

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  15. My cat keeps me out of my own head - always a good idea!

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    1. Dear Linda, it's so true that cats almost force us to pay attention to them and to get out of our heads. They help me live in the present because that's where they live.

      Thanks for stopping by and peace.

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  16. In every family there are periods of strife and periods of calm. Cats are family.

    Talk about self-absorbed. Have you ever seen a cat not self-absorbed?

    They are such regal creatures, sitting there with not a care in the world (apparently), certain that their next meal will be on time and that their every need will be answered.

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    1. Dear Friko, it's true about families but I forget that, having lived alone so much of my adult life. And yes, cats are self-absorbed but so beauty with it all!!!

      I know that they run this house and that I am their servant. Or perhaps, to their way of thinking, their slave. Peace.

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  17. Awww - peace at last among those lovely felines!

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    1. Dear LadyFi, ah yes, peace. blessed peace. And peace to you.

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  18. I love cats!! I have had my cat Ruby for over 4 years now and she's become my family :)

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    1. Dear OE, I like the name you're going by! I'll visit your blog today to say thank you for stopping by this blog. I, too, love cats! They have taught me so much and they are my family. Peace.

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  19. Oh Dee. How did I miss this post? As you know, I also love cats. And live with one who sometimes verges on being a tyrant. Jazz chastises me, and Jewel, with tooth and claw. I frequently bleed. His treatment of Jewel worries me - and yet, when they go outside they look for each other. If one of them is inside without the other they call. And won't settle until the other one comes in. I still step in to prevent bloodshed (and pay for my efforts) but am pretty certain that they work our their lives better than I can. Hugs.

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  20. Dear Sue, I do know that you love cats and I've so admired the two with whom you live when I've seen the photographs of them you've posted. Clearly, after 42 years of living with multiple cats, I need to learn to let them work out their own lives. I am such a s-l-o-w learner! Peace.

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    1. You are definitely not alone on the slooooow learner front. Sadly.

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    2. Dear Sue, . . . and you are definitely among the kindhearted . . . for which I'm grateful. Peace.

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  21. Dee, I've never met a human or a cat who wasn't self-absorbed at least some of the time. Your three are lovely and I'm glad they've finally sorted their differences out. I was horrified though at the mention of Ellie having been declawed. What a horribly cruel thing to do to a cat!

    PS In the UK what you call a calico cat, we call a tortoiseshell. :-)

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    1. Dear Perpetua, like you, I cringe at the thought of declawing a cat. Quite a number of people here in the States do it so as to keep their furniture safe. I've been against ever since I first lived with cats--Dulcy and I adopted one another in 1972.

      But I did do it once, back in 2010. Raissa used her claws to scratch at my face and nearly got my eyes several times. I wasn't able to train her--I'm not sure anyone can train a cat--to stop doing that.

      And so, not wanting to take her to the animal shelter where they may have euthanized her because they might see this as "destructive behavior" that would keep other people from adopting her, I had her declawed.

      Many people here keep cats inside so they think that cats don't need claws. I used to let the cats with whom I live go outside--I did that from 1972 to 2001 when one of the cats (Noah) also died from a dog encounter outside. After that I kept the four cats with whom I lived inside. But I didn't get them declawed. I hope never to do that again. Peace.

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  22. Our Ellie has her mood swings and we are sometimes amused and other times worried because she is tough to figure out. We do know she owns us though :)
    PS i reread the Dulcy book on kindle earler before midnight and was surprised at my chosen date with this work, July 6 ! She must have guided me to her and to you. I marvel at such moments

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