Pets

Strangely enough, cradling a cat in my lap has a calming effect on me. I say strangely because I did not grow up with pets in the house. In fact, I have always been afraid of animals. Never trusted what they would do. I was a bit apprehensive when my boyfriend told me that he had two dogs and three cats in his household. But I have fallen in love with every single one of them. One cat, Remy, is my favorite. She was the first to jump into my lap. She lets me hold her and pet her. Sometimes she curls up and goes to sleep. My boyfriend says he has to compete with her for my time!

One day I had Remy in my lap and I was talking to her. Silly talk. (I didn’t expect her to answer me, so no calls to my therapist, okay?) I asked her if she would be my “babydoll” now that my nephew is all grown up and doesn’t need me anymore. That’s when it hit me. Holding Remy reminds me of holding Billy when he was little. Remy jumps into my lap when I am working on the computer. I used to give Billy a pencil and a piece of paper so that he could “help me” with my homework as he sat in my lap. And I used to love holding him as a sleeping baby.

I guess it’s not just pets. It’s contact with another living being that is so calming. So comforting.

Hug someone you love today.