Cat Consciousness~

There is something about the wisdom of cats that cannot be denied.  In fact, I think it is safe to say that cats are very wise beings and simply leave it at that. I am continually in awe of the wisdom and playfulness with which they go about their lives, and just a very short moment ago my cat Moaph ( pronounced like Loaf, originally called Sophie) taught me something, that I hope, I might never forget.  

There I am, a stack of books spread upon the table before me, a cup of herbal tea steaming away, the light is dimming, dusk is upon us, candles are flickering, and I am seeking inspiration for an up and coming dance class.  I am looking for a poem, or a picture, or a concept that will lead me into a creative place.

It was during this exact moment that I thought I might take a rest from the searching and the looking, a break from my dedicated need to find something of magikal and mysterious importance.  And as I paused, and breathed, and took a sip of tea, and looked across the room, I noticed Moaph, my calico feline friend, doing a most interesting thing.  

She was watching something with that kind of soft alertness that cats are famous for.  At first I thought she had found a mouse, but no, it couldn't be because her gaze was moving from place to place too quickly.  Then, she got up from her stationary position on the floor and began to follow something around the room with a kind of playful inquisitive enthusiasm. "What is she following," I thought, and as this thought came into my mind, she took her delicate paw and began to gracefully touch it down on various parts of the floor.  She did this, this graceful touching down of paw to floor, paw to floor, whilst moving around the room in the most joyful way, and that's when it struck me... that's when I realized just what she was doing.  

Moaph was playing with her shadow, she saw it there in dusk's light. The pale December sun setting outside the window made a soft yellow glow that illumined the living room and made the most perfect shadows on the dark wood floor.  And Moaph being the wise and content being that she is took full advantage of this fine moment and made a game for herself.   And when she tired of it, which was not so very long after she began, she simply stopped playing, stretched and took a nap.

And, as for me, well,  I took another sip of tea and I thought.   I thought what a good idea Moaph just gave me, for the next time my shadow,( and I am speaking of my psychological shadow now) comes out to find me, the next time I find myself surrounded in my own darkness, I will do what Moaph does.  I will try to see my shadow for what it is, and then,  I will follow it around in a playful way, until I tire of it, at which point, I will pause, stretch and take a rest.

See what I mean, cats are brilliant, the cat consciousness is truly something to marvel at.