The Chilly Night
02/11/07

The shabby man is digging through the trash behind the drive through restaurant looking for something to eat when someone driving through buys an extra meal and gives it to him. The homeless person sits down to eat and a scraggly stray cat comes tentatively out of the bushes sniffing the air. Neither the cat nor the man has eaten much lately. Recognizing their kindred condition the man tosses a piece of his meal to the stray. The cat never comes close enough to be touched but sits nearby as they both eat. When the man leaves to go to his spot under a bridge for the night the stray follows him and curls up to sleep, again staying just out of reach. Though they never come into contact with each other they share that mysterious bond of companionship that somehow keeps them both just a bit warmer through the chilly night.

Our relationships with our pets are indeed mysterious and mutually beneficial. Like most comforts that we have become accustomed to over time we will often begin to take them for granted. At these times, the expenditure of time and resources incumbent to pet ownership will seem a burden. The cat box is overflowing, the old dog is having trouble getting up the stairs to the back porch and the puppy just chewed up the second pair of dress shoes this month. Your 50 hour work week just doesn’t allow enough time to take care of the family and the pets to the level you would prefer. When you finally collapse on the couch, however, the cat comes over to the arm of the couch and sits next to you purring contentedly and the old dog hobbles over and lays her head in your lap and the puppy races around the corner sliding on the tile making you chuckle in spite of yourself.

We all owe it to ourselves to take time to recognize the little comforts our various relationships give us. It’s just as easy to be pleased with the pleasures as it is to be frustrated with the responsibilities. So next time you pet your cat take time to notice your blood pressure dropping.