RIP Shyanne:
November 2011 - June 2023
Thank you for being our kitty!
I originally published this post in August of 2020 but wanted to rerelease it in honor of our little "Shy-Shy." Her physical presence is missed, but she lives on in our hearts. She's survived by me, my mom, and her sister, Luna.
“You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.”
-Ray Bradbury
Authors are drawn to complex characters. That could be why so many authors (famous and those waiting to be famous) love cats.
Ernest Hemingway (East of Eden and so much more) was said to have up to as many as 23 cats living with him at one point. He referred to them as “love sponges” and “purr factories.” Joyce Carol Oates’ (We Were the Mulvaneys)) cat would sit in her lap, keeping her pinned to her chair so she had no choice except to write. I can completely relate. I have had a number of “love sponges” and “purr factories” in my life, and it is indeed, oh so hard to move a cat that has snuggled deeply into your lap.
From a practical standpoint, the cat is an ideal companion for an author. They don’t require to be taken for walks and definitely not as needy or as time consuming as dogs, but it goes deeper than that. Some authors see cats as soulmates in a way. According to Robert Davies (Mindfulness), “Authors like cats because they are such quiet, loveable wise creatures, and cats like authors for the same reason.” That makes sense. Cats are pretty discerning about who they choose to hang out with (emphasis on choose). They do tend to steer clear of the loud blowhards out there, who talk constantly and at a very loud volume, and never manage to have anything substantial to say. Can’t say that I blame them.
I want to take this moment to fly in the face of popular opinion and declare that cats are indeed smarter than dogs. The argument often used here is that you can train dogs to do all sorts of tricks and tasks – but not a cat. Well, let’s not forget that dogs are pack creatures and are instinctually inclined to want to please their alpha/owner. To that end, dogs “allow” themselves to be trained, where a cat would never suffer such an indignity. You can train cats to use a litter box and (if you’re lucky) not to scratch the furniture, but as far as fetching, shaking hands, or rolling over, a cat would never stoop so low. Going back to what I wrote earlier about how discerning cats are about the company they choose, dogs are conditioned to come when you call them. A cat will come to you if it wants to, and if you have earned the love and respect of a cat you have indeed earned it, and that is indeed something special.
I have never met two cats that have had identical or even similar personalities. Every cat has a style and a voice of their own. It’s no wonder so many authors have written about cats. Edgar Allan Poe, Charles Bukowski, and Joyce Carol Oates. So far, my favorite literary feline is the Cat in Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, who so brilliantly (and very catlike) states that, “Cats don’t need names. We know who we are.” So true. I want to take this moment to thank all the cats in my life for humoring me by allowing me to give them names, solely for my convenience.
Cats are artists in their own right. You know, if they could, they would write poems, draw and paint, or compose music. And maybe they do, in ways we’re just not aware of yet. Andre Norton (The Time Traders) stated that “Perhaps it is because cats do not live by human standards, do not fit themselves into prescribed behaviors, that they are so united to creative people.” They’re kindred spirits, for sure.
The cat’s mysterious, complex nature often leads to talk of the supernatural. Think about how each cat is a little aloof to its surroundings, as if its mind is focused on higher realms of thought, or how their piercing eyes that seem to see right through whatever they’re focused on, as if they’re penetrating a magic veil that allows them to see the world and everything in it for what it truly is. No wonder they are so closely associated with witches and once worshipped as gods.
I know I’m not the first author to refer to my cat as a muse (Or is it “mews?”). As I sat down to write this blog post, my cat, Luna, decided to join me. In fact, every time I write, she has to join me and graciously allows me room to write at my desk. She may not pin me to my chair the way Oates’ cat does, but something about her presence and her proximity keeps me relaxed and allows ideas to freely flow, and all she ever asks for in return is a little scratching behind the ears.
MY "MEWS" LUNA
So here’s to our feline companions, our kindred spirits, our “mews-es.” We can only speculate upon your true motives about why you choose to love and inspire us as you do, but we will always be grateful for it and never take it for granted.
