When I got home from work last night, I was lost in thought and a little distracted and random-feeling. I was so thankful for my cats, who brought me back to the present with their insistent nudges and soft bellies, and low, rumbly purrs. Sometimes I don’t know what I’d do without my companion animals – they’re such a comfort.
I remember reading a couple of books by Helen and Scott Nearing, who pioneered the back-to-the-land movement in the mid-20th-century, and Scott had a very strict anti- animal husbandry and companion animal philosophy. He didn’t believe in using animals for human profit or pleasure. I remember thinking at the time, “Is keeping pets inhumane?”
I certainly try to keep my own animals as well as I can. I know their lives are “unnatural.” They are fierce predators who should be outside, killing mice and squirrels and birds. It’s what they were born to do. So I can acknowledge that it’s an act of selfishness to keep them in my apartment, for the sole purpose of cuddling.
Bless my pets. I love them, and I hope I’m worthy of their love…
Are you an animal person? A pet person? What would it take to make you change your point of view?
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This is a photo of one of my cats, lounging on my bed with me this past Sunday morning. I love sleeping with animals. I love living with animals. Their little spirits wandering around my home make the space feel more alive.
