Who Sings Now? XXXii

A cat's sense of smell is 14 times more efficient than a human's, and even the domestic cat relies on this sense to bring down prey more often than human's rely on their sense of smell for anything at all. A cat's whiskers (vibrissae) are delicate sensory tools of touch. Four rows of stiff whiskers grow on the upper lip on either side of the nose. Small groups of whiskers are also situated on other parts of the body including above each eye, both cheeks, and on the backs of the forepaws. Cutting off these whiskers not only detracts from the animal's appearance but also seriously impairs their balance and ability to feel its way about. Cat's use these sensitive feelers to judge spatial relations and will determine whether or not they can fit within a narrow space safely by testing the opening of the space with their whiskers.  

All cats, domestic or wild, can and do purr. Kittens begin purring after just a few days, and purring may be loud or so soft that it escapes our notice. Like any other vocal noise, the sound come from vibrations of the vocal cords although science still does not understand quite how a cat produces this sound, what they use it for, nor why other animals do not purr. From my experience, cats use their purrs to express contentment, well-being, and affection. For all the loving loyalty of dogs, there is a special thrill when the confident and independent cat rubs it's head in your palm with an affectionate purr. Cats have often been painted as aloof, stubborn, willful, impossible to train, or even stupid and uncaring because of their self-confidence and Independence. Nothing could be further from the truth! Cats recognize that not everyone is worthy of trust, and they value themselves enough to give their affections and loyalties only to those who earn them.

As a child, cats played a more vital role in my life than they do at this time. Neighborhood cats often went out of their way to find me, share a little affection and investigate whatever I was playing with at the time. Strays turned up on my porch even when we had dogs, and I will never forget the day my mother took me to the local animal shelter in search of a pet I chose myself. We toured the large shelter meeting and greeting animals from guinea pigs to horses. While I was sorely tempted by the poor white horse dubbed Gandalf that they had rescued from some barbed wire, mother convinced me that it wouldn't be fair as he would have to stay with her friend in a barn far from where we lived. Continuing my search, I entered a room full of cats who began meowing as soon as the door opened. A wall full of cat kennels seethed with meowing ruffling fur and in all that commotion one tiny calico face sat serenely gazing at me, knowing that we would belong to each other even before I laid eyes on her.

Gingersnap was a long-haired calico whose black and gold face was divided by a triangle of white that stretched up from her throat to wrap around her black and pink nose. When looking at the significance of color, white represents purity and blessings. In color therapy it is used for cleansing and new beginnings. Gold represents illumination, wisdom, wealth, and in color therapy this color not only represents an alchemy of consciousness, but is also the strongest color for healings of all sorts. So strong in fact, that most people cannot tolerate it and have to condition themselves to it over a period of time! Black, like other colors, can represent many things depending on the culture you draw from, but black is often associated with negative or destructive concepts or conditions which makes it excellent for aiding in removing such qualities from our lives when applying color therapy. Black can represent fear as well as the conquering of our fear; Life, Death, and the transcendence of both. It is a color of power and authority. In some traditions it represents wisdom and knowledge brought from across the Void, as well as the Void itself.  

Ginger brought me comfort, laughter, joy and confidence in a crucial time of my life when I needed these things more than words could possibly express. Her purring weight upon my pillow banished nightmares, and her balanced ways encouraged me to find the serenity locked within me when all else was falling to pieces around me. Though she disappeared from my life many years ago, I have never forgotten her and am grateful for the time spent with this special friend. I would have no other cat in my life for a long time. As an adult I brought home a tiny gray tabby to my kids who were about 8, 6 and 4 at the time. Frodo, as he came to be called, was just as amazing and unique as Ginger had been though they were very different cats. Frodo was always a bit more wild than Ginger had ever been, more active, more challenging too. Yet he delighted the whole family with his antics in ways that Ginger may have been too proud to do.

Frodo loved to play with my kids. They had a game that was a cross between tag, and hide and seek in which Frodo would wear them out before bed time, purring happily the entire time. He would walk them up the hill to school, sit upon the top step that led to school property and watch them enter the building, waiting for their final wave, before returning home to tell me that they were safely where they were supposed to be. He guarded our door from strangers with the promise of violence that far exceeded his size, chased the neighborhood dogs from his sunny spots, brought home gifts of squirrel, bird, and rabbit, and understood every word I spoke to him much to the amazement of my husband. Frodo showered me with affection he rarely bestowed on anyone, and there was no greater balm upon my soul than his purring warmth perched above my head or curled in a trusting ball in my lap. Like Ginger before him though, when he decided his time in my life was done Frodo disappeared into the wild to stake a territory for himself. I spent nearly a year, full of tears and sorrow, searching for him and had nearly given up when he re-appeared in a near-by neighborhood, firmly refusing to return home, content to be the neighborhood porch cat til the end of his days.  

"Harar Goldeneye had eyes as hot and bright as the sun at the Hour of Smaller Shadows; he was the color of daytime, and courage, and dancing.... Fela Skydancer, his mate, was beautiful, like freedom, and clouds, and the song of travelers returned." ~ cat legend from Tad Williams' Tailchaser's Song