This is another BIG RED story. Those who read the blog know the legend of BIG RED. He's the feral cat who hopped through an open living room window of my old apartment in Nyack. I tried to get rid of him for a week - unsuccessfully! That was nearly 17 years ago. He has been a pleasure every single day of those 17 years. He has been with me longer than any other living thing except my parents. And if he keeps going the way he's going now, he will break that record, too! He's getting a little senile and his hearing is starting to fail him. As soon as the heat comes up in the radiators, he heads for a long nap on the make-shift bed we made for him on top of two of them . All the heat rising must feel great on those old bones! When he wants to go out, come in, or get attention in general, he lets out this horrific screeching nose that sounds a little like a WWII air raid siren. It DOES get your attention. He hates grooming. He always hated grooming himself or to be groomed, but he's pretty much abandoned it as a practice. So, he looks pretty ratty lately. But he eats like a horse and craps like one, too! He still insists on going outside for at least a portion of the little time he is actually awake (LOL!). He still hunts! He brought a delicious, plump mole to share with me just the other day. He's never been a "lap" cat but he has always been very social and still makes sure to greet every visitor to the house. And he was always affectionate without being "clingy". Now, as ages, he's much more willing to snuggle up next to you on the couch or on the bed. He spreads it around, too, spending time with everyone in the house.
OK. So you're saying to yourselves, "but my cat is like that, too. So, why isn't this just another cat story"? Well, I have had animals my whole life: dogs, cats, mice, rabbits, turtles, fish, salamanders, frogs, and so on (although I don't think I ever actually had a hamster!). And, from the great to the small, they have all rewarded me in some way. But, I think that, naturally, some have effected me more than others. Like ALL relationships there are those that touch us most deeply. This is one of them. When I looked at BIG RED walking across the living room floor the other day, I couldn't help but smile broadly and think about how important that stupid cat is to me. I asked myself "why"? It gave me an opportunity to think about some of the things that I value in all rewarding relationships. And mine with BIG RED remains one of most.
First, he is steadfast and loyal. He has always had a strong sense of who he is and what place he occupies in our social structure. Some might say that role is as "King" but that's not entirely true. He is secure in his role as one of "us". He often lets us know that we are important to him. When you don't see him right away, we know we never have to go far to look for him. He never strays far from his family. And he's always been that way. He is independent. Even at nearly 17, he ventures into our yard to both hunt and fend off rivals. Sometimes, because of his age, I am reluctant to let him out at certain times. But he won't take "no" for an answer. He's always gone outside and I'm sure that he will until he just can't anymore. BIG RED is never violent but never takes any shit from anybody. If strangers get a little too familiar with him, he will give ample warning (usually by whining or groaning!) for them to back off before he strikes. Male rivals who dare to venture into his territory must face his wrath! He's no pushover.But I don't need a full hand to count the number of times he has lost his temper with me. He is always patient and has an intuitive understanding when you need to hold him.
Perhaps, most importantly, it's BIG RED'S approach to life on a daily basis that teaches me the most. He is constant. He has such a strong sense of being just what he is: THE BIG RED CAT. He knows his place in the world and is completely comfortable with it. It's a good role, a strong role, a complete role. He has fulfilled his mission, continues to and will to the day he dies. He has what the French call joie de vivre. Although self explanatory, it also has a deeper, nuanced meaning. I think that meaning is: do the best you can for as long as you can and enjoy every minute of it.
When BIG RED broke his leg badly a little over a year ago, I thought that he was certainly a "goner". After all, he was pushing 16 with a shattered leg. He would never recover. He was in a cast for nearly 10 weeks but he never gave up. He never lost that joie de vivre. I marveled at his ability to adapt. When he first came home from the doctor's, he was afraid to move at all. But after a few days I watched him struggle to his feet and, eventually, drag the cast as he moved his other three legs. He looked a little like Boris Korloff in The Mummy. He dragged that leg around for weeks. After a few weeks, he found that he could be even a little more mobile if he swung the leg with cast in time with the movement of his other legs. With that movement he could even climb the stairs! After a few more weeks of that, he could walk almost normally if not, of course, due to the hard cast, stiff legged! Eventually, the cast came off and he had to learn to walk normally again. Starting slowly, he eventually built up the strength in his leg to the point where, after a few weeks, he was walking totally normally. Today, there is virtually no sign of his injury what-so-ever. Both physically and emotionally, it's like it never happened. I know of many other instances among older animals and people who would have given up. But not him. BIG RED never really missed a beat.
I know that someday I will lose him. Even BIG RED cannot escape the inevitable. But until that day comes, I will continue to learn to live within myself. A BIG LESSON learned from A BIG RED CAT.
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