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PatchWork by Joyce Whitis |
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PatchWork by Joyce Whitis |
Cats
Anyone interested in learning how to accept motherhood might benefit from spending some time watching lesser members of the animal kingdom, particularly cats. I've been a cat watcher for most of my life and I have yet to see a cat take her newborn babies and toss them into the trash can, nor abandon them on some other cat's doorstep. Even when the plunge into motherhood was somewhat of a surprise and a down right intrusion in their carefree living, I've yet to see the cat who killed her children. On the other hand I've watched very young cats, hardly more than kittens themselves, cuddle, talk to and feed the first born even while in the pain of yet more children on the way.
Although inexperienced mother cats sometimes make mistakes in choosing a home for their family, they don't hesitate to move to a better neighborhood if the place where they are living seems dangerous. They don't wait to relocate, but pick up their kids by the scruff of the neck and hike out to a more desirable environment. Often they move their children several times before being satisfied that their family is in the safest possible place.
Cats begin the education of their offspring very early, right after they open their eyes to the wonderful world awaiting them. Mamas teach their babies how to play, not by sending them off to find their own entertainment, but by playing with them and watching carefully as they play with each other and other youngsters in the neighborhood. Mother cats often instruct their children as to the right behavior and stand ready to correct any misbehavior whether manifest in their children or the children of their friends or relatives.
Although as single parents, mother cats find it necessary to leave their children for short periods while they go outside the home in order to bring back food, they give their kids complete instructions for behavior while they must be away and never leave them to wander the streets getting into trouble.
As soon as they are old enough to perform necessary functions, cat children are taught by their mothers the proper way to do them. Kittens learn by the examples their mothers set for them. They learn how to groom themselves and how to clean up after themselves.
The day comes when the cat children are in their teens and then their mother takes them out into the world and shows them the skills they will need to earn a living. She goes with them and prepares them for their independence in life by teaching them how to work to get food.
They learn how to be successful by keeping their mouths shut except when necessary to their betterment. They learn when it's OK to open their mouths and how to be patient and persistent when necessary for their own salvation.
Cats grow up learning how to take care of themselves without being dependent upon others. They will accept favors and special assistance but they never ask for help unless they have fallen upon hard times and they never let anybody do anything for them that they can do for themselves.
Unlike other domesticated animals that fawn and slobber over any attention that might come their way, cats strut when they walk letting the world know that they can take care of themselves and their children very well, thank you. The independence of the feline mother is appealing to all those of the human gender who aspire to be independent themselves, requiring help from nobody and being quite happy with what they have been delt in life.
This Mother's Day, 1999, we'd like to give a special salute to all those cats out there who depend upon themselves and ask for nothing other than fairness.