My artistic plans for the evening changed as soon as I walked through my front door. One of my cats, Shy Boy, wasn’t his usual self this morning. Although I couldn’t find an injury, he seems to have a tender hip. He has rested most of the day, following his own innate wisdom for healing.
He seemed better when I got home. However, he has craved attention and closeness. This big male cat followed me into the bedroom and wanted to be held. I let him stretch out on my lap as I sat on the bed, checking texts and emails, and then gently transferred him to rest atop the quilt.
But that’s not what he wanted. As I reclined in my chair in the living room, he crawled back onto my lap, relaxing with a deep sigh.
Shy Boy is one of my original rescue cats. Seeking refuge from the cold, his momma brought him and his two sisters to me when they were kittens. Marco came along a year later. Shy Boy is aptly named. He is the most timid of the cats, fearful of people he doesn’t know, the garbage truck that drives by every Thursday, and ceiling fans in motion.
He isn’t typically a lap cat. Tonight, he is. And that’s okay. We are both going with the flow. My creative project can wait. Everything else can wait for a bit. Shy Boy needs cuddling and loving right now and this is the perfect time for such tenderness. I’ll hold him until he decides otherwise.
“Cats seem to go on the principle that it never does any harm to ask for what you want.” Joseph Wood
