Trust

I grew up with dogs as pets,

and not cats, so my opinion

may be quite skewed;

but we had a cat for eight years,

until a few months ago,

when we gifted her to friends

who had both another cat

and much more time

and territory for her to roam.

Gracie was a loving cat,

as far as cat love goes.

She could sit, when she decided

it was time, and demand preening,

purring to no end, so long as

her itch was being appropriately scratched.

Here's what I've been thinking

about for a few years now:

The middle part of life, which,

for most of us makes up

about 80-90% of the years,

is the time when we mostly

live like cats: predatory and

self-sufficient in so many ways,

with disdain, if not fear, toward

any vulnerability or relinquishment.

It is at either end of life,

as infants or the infirmed,

that we find innocence, courage,

and/or acquiesce to  become

transformed into mostly-trusting canines

capable of loving and being loved

in ways so far beyond

our middle-years feline tendencies.

© 2013 Todd Jenkins