The Neighbor's Cat

My neighbor has this wonderful little gray cat, who I am convinced believes that our house is merely an extension of his own house. He comes over quite often, purring away, and affectionately rubbing up against us in search of a good head scratch. He’s always happy to see us, no matter what the situation, and is as friendly a cat as I’ve ever seen.

More than a few times, I’ve come home from a challenging day, convinced that the world is conspiring against me and plotting my demise, only to see this wonderful little cat come prancing over from his regular home to his “vacation home”, namely our home, to cheer me up. The cat seemingly doesn’t have a care in the world, and he’s just as happy to see me on those days I’m gloomy and doubt-ridden as on the days where the world is going my way. He never fails to bring a smile to my face, no matter what I’ve experienced that day, and in so doing, has brought a lot of happiness to me personally.

I’ve seen it written many times that animals were created for human beings’ enjoyment and use, that the animals really don’t have souls like we humans. I for one don’t believe this. When I look into the eyes of my neighbor’s cat, there’s most definitely a soul there. While the cat is not on the same plane of development as I am, there’s intelligence in those big green eyes, there’s a sense of fun and play, and there’s love. Yep, there’s a soul.

Any animal lover reading this would probably tend to agree. I do believe that animals have souls, and are every bit as much a part of God’s kingdom as are we humans. I see a lot of God in my neighbor’s cat, actually. There’s unconditional love, there’s joy, there’s a sense of humor, and there’s an uncanny ability to live in the here and now, the precious present moment. I think we could all learn a lot from this cat. I know I have.

Recently, I’ve been going through some questioning times, like I’m prone to do. I tend to contemplate the reasons for my existence. There are times when I can get quite tied up with this, and my head becomes a maze of thoughts and concerns. It’s times like these I like to head out on my front porch, sit down, and more often than not, see the little gray cat come prancing over from my neighbor’s yard.

In every fiber of this little creature’s being comes the message “Do not be afraid, there is only now, and there is only love”. I tell you, that cat is wiser about life than I am.

Perhaps its time I start listening better to this little messenger from above.

-The Minister