Ten Things I Learned From My Cat About Relationships

1. Always be ready to play. Know how to recognize the playful look in the person you love, and immediately start playing.

2. When you are happy to see someone, stretch your arms up to him or her and ask to be picked up.

3. If the person you love forgets to feed you dinner, don't take it personally. Instead, run to sit by your plate and look hungry.

4. Talk to the one you love, incessantly and constantly. It makes him or her feel loved, appreciated and important.

5. Don't be afraid to ask to be touched. Just falling down and looking cute works well. Otherwise, rubbing up against the person you love will do the trick.

6. If you keep asking for attention and don't get any, try disappearing suddenly. Then, don't come back for a little while, even if you are called. Your loved one will think twice before ignoring you next time.

7. Show your love and adoration by bringing presents. Make sure to stand by your present and get fully appreciated.

8. Purr when the person you love is anywhere near you. It will encourage him or her to get closer to you while feeling appreciated.

9. Encourage the person you love to take naps with you. When you take naps together, make sure to cuddle up under the blanket and get as close as you can.

10. Always comfort the person you love, regardless of whether he or she needs emotional or physical comfort. Cuddling, purring, and being sat on are sure cures for almost anything.

Poem: Taking Risks

Recently, something happened in my life that caused me to risk it all. I took "all the chips" to the table and bet everything. I knew if I didn't, I'd lose anyway. Only by being willing to lose everything, did I have the opportunity to win everything. I'm much richer for this experience, not because I "won", but because I was willing to risk it all.

Risks

by Janet Rand (or Leo Buscalia)

To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.

To weep is to risk being called sentimental.

To reach out to another is to risk involvement.

To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.

To place your ideas, your dreams

before the crowd is to risk being called naive.

To love is to risk not being loved in return.

To live is to risk dying.

To hope is to risk despair, and to try is to risk failure.

But risks must be taken

because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.

The person who risks nothing, does nothing,

has nothing, and becomes nothing.

He may avoid suffering and sorrow,

but he simply cannot learn and feel

and change and grow and love and live.

Chained by his certitudes,

he is a slave, he's forfeited his freedom.

Only the person who risks is truly free.

Everything happens for a reason

Here's a great story illustrating the philosophy "everything happens for a reason". I've heard/read this so many times over the years and never get tired of hearing its lesson...it was today's meditation of the day.

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Everything in life holds both a blessing and a curse. We deny this when we label the events of our lives as either good or bad. The following old Zen story illustrates this lesson most effectively.

A farmer had a horse but one day, the horse ran away and so the farmer and his son had to plow their fields themselves. Their neighbors said, "Oh, what bad luck that your horse ran away!" But the farmer replied, "Bad luck, good luck, who knows?"

The next week, the horse returned to the farm, bringing a herd of wild horses with him. "What wonderful luck!" cried the neighbors, but the farmer responded, "Good luck, bad luck, who knows?"

Then, the farmer's son was thrown as he tried to ride one of the wild horses, and he broke his leg. "Ah, such bad luck," sympathized the neighbors. Once again, the farmer responded, "Bad luck, good luck, who knows?"

A short time later, the ruler of the country recruited all young men to join his army for battle. The son, with his broken leg, was left at home. "What good luck that your son was not forced into battle!" celebrated the neighbors. And the farmer remarked, "Good luck, bad luck, who knows?"

Photo credit: Chinese Horse Painting

Poem: Falling in love is like owning a dog

Photo credit: Gorgeous and Hip Dog Collars!

I'm always discovering poems on obscure blogs. I like this one, thought I'd share it here. Enjoy!

We can have all the relationship essentials like chemistry and compatibility, the Match.com analysis, so that on paper it looks like we have the "perfect pedigree"; but in reality, sometimes the best "dog" is the scruffy mutt that simply follows us home one day. The mutt that, despite reason and logic, grabs our hearts and our minds in the simplest as well as the most profound ways. The mutt that makes us laugh as well as cry; the mutt that makes us pull our hair out as well as calm at merely the sight of. The mutt that brings with it, the X-factor -- something that sets it apart from all others, something that shakes up our lives, rocks us to our core, and yet gently draws us out of our comfort zones, and brings healing and cohesion at the same time. And when we realize that nothing or nobody else in the world causes our tails to wag with such happiness and joy, then we know we've found a keeper.


Falling in love is like owning a dog
by Taylor Mali

First of all, it's a big responsibility,
especially in a city like New York.
So think long and hard before deciding on love.
On the other hand, love gives you a sense of security:
when you're walking down the street late at night
and you have a leash on love
ain't no one going to mess with you.
Because crooks and muggers think love is unpredictable.
Who knows what love could do in its own defense?

On cold winter nights, love is warm.
It lies between you and lives and breathes
and makes funny noises.
Love wakes you up all hours of the night with its needs.
It needs to be fed so it will grow and stay healthy.

Love doesn't like being left alone for long.
But come home and love is always happy to see you.
It may break a few things accidentally in its passion for life,
but you can never be mad at love for long.

Is love good all the time? No! No!
Love can be bad. Bad, love, bad! Very bad love.

Love makes messes.
Love leaves you little surprises here and there.
Love needs lots of cleaning up after.
Sometimes you just want to get love fixed.
Sometimes you want to roll up a piece of newspaper
and swat love on the nose,
not so much to cause pain,
just to let love know Don't you ever do that again!

Sometimes love just wants to go for a nice long walk.
Because love loves exercise.
It runs you around the block and leaves you panting.
It pulls you in several different directions at once,
or winds around and around you
until you're all wound up and can't move.

But love makes you meet people wherever you go.
People who have nothing in common but love
stop and talk to each other on the street.

Throw things away and love will bring them back,
again, and again, and again.
But most of all, love needs love, lots of it.
And in return, love loves you and never stops.