Fall brings so much. Back to school. Cooler weather. For me it’s the most dramatic in change. Perhaps the colors or that it was always the time that as a child we went from play to work. Just as it is the first fall in six years without Roxie, now there’s Koko. Finally, finally Jean Claude seems to be warming up to the new kitten a domestic shorthair.
Category Archives: Cats
Stress Management
Experts have long reported the persons who have pets, particularly cats are often less stressed. I guess that’s true unless you are truly one of those hoarder types that make the news because you have 300 cats running around the house amid debris and empty Chinese cartons using the bathtub and the washing machine as a litter boxes. Jean Claude and Koko of course are civilized with Koko showing early signs of being a classy babe. Both provided me with relief the other day after a long stressful time at work. JC of course was typical male and Koko at first was standoffish…but after a time both came to cuddle with me for a bit. A movement of peace…purring.
Ni Hao & Bienvenue
I saw this story and I thought I would share. I love that Ni Hao means hello in Chinese. Bienvenue means welcome in French. Cats often triumph in the face of outstanding odds against them. Today, let’s all take a little of Ni Hao’s spirit and conquer something that is holding us back.
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_21476915/stowaway-cat-from-china-says-ni-hao-new?source=rss
Adjusting to New Circumstances
So as we’ve seen we have a new kitten Koko. There was definitely some discussion over her name. Koko was her name at the shelter and as we can well see our cats have names that have meaning. For example, Jean-Claude’s middle name is Calinvif which is loosely translated French for “snuggles hard” and Roxie’s middle name was Toshi which is loosely translated Japanese for Warrior.
I haven’t yet determined what would be appropos for Ms. Koko. Azeena frequently calls her Koko “Bean” which is cute, but I haven’t yet figured out what is the definition of her spirit. She is extremely loving towards humans but still gives JC a hard time. I think she hasn’t figured out that she can use his 16 pounds of cuddling to keep her warm at night.
I think it took Koko awhile to actually adjust to being home and recognizing that this is her permanent home. I think she was adopted before, so it will take awhile before she really trusts that she is a permanent member of the family. I am using scent and no stress spray to get her to be comfortable with JC as more than just a cat she shares space with. Luckily, we aren’t as bad as some people, like the couple who was recently on “My Cat From Hell” in that they can share some space and eat together and not always have it be fighting.
Most humans fear change. We delay actions and thoughts because of the fear we have in our minds. However, the older I get the more I realize that NOTHING has ever come out the way I feared it. When I’ve broken through the curtain of fear, everything has turned out to be wonderful. I have been able to accomplish things in my life that I never thought I would because I broke through fear. I have also let fear dictate some things in my life and hold me back. If we are honest with ourselves we will do those things we need to do to get over our fear and move beyond it.
We humans have resources untold available to us. We have groups, phones and can connect with people in a number of ways. We also need to to interact and connect within ourselves. Pray, a form of meditation, is a wonderful way to do this.
Cats & All That ™ 