I just discovered that Cranky Kitty and I had the same idea. Hole up in my office and let the world pass us by, if only for a little while. CK is under my desk, on the baby-quilt bed I provided for her. Usually she stirs when I sit down and clunk around on the desktop above her but today she did not move, so I just spent thirty or more seconds observing her with a flashlight to see if she is breathing. Her belly is moving ever so imperceptibly, so I know she is simply sleeping soundly.
I envy CK, laying there zoned out, warm, safe, comfortable and oblivious to what is happening around her. Watching her made me wish I was a member of the bear family. No, not the Bears who couldn't catch their cheese yesterday but the bears who are smart enough to hibernate for months at a time. The natural instinct that bears have to remove themselves from their outside environs and find a dark, quiet and temperate climate is one that I wish humans were blessed with. Oh, we do cocoon, just as I am doing at present, but the world still swirls around us at a dizzying speed and with ferocious intensity.
Unless we are in a fifties-style bomb shelter, a cat deep in sleep, or a bear in its cave, it is virtually impossible to ignore the world. On one level, that may be a good thing, but on deeper levels, the world and all of its foibles seems more damaging than positive. True, grandchildren, our own children, football games and puppies bring smiles, happiness and unabashed joy but then reality sets in. Media bombards us with too much information, we listen to people pontificate, we hear, read and see deception put forth by deluded individuals, and hubris rears its head on a daily basis......all of which can be joy-busting.
A friend of mine used to be a member of a mainstream, Protestant religion and it just wasn't working for him. Eight years ago he became a Buddhist and six years ago he adopted an English Springer Spaniel. I like the way this man thinks. Plus, he knows how to brew really good coffee and he appreciates fine cheese and carrot cake. Does his inner peace come from his faith, his dog, cheese, carrot cake or caffeine? He is a Bears fan but I cannot fault him for that. We all have our own personal crosses to Bear.
Ancora imparo
