"Thank you for meeting such a servant." 4 moments when I'm glad I have a cat

I can keep going because this child is by my side... I think there are surprisingly many days when I look at my beloved cat and think that. When I touch their fluffy fur and warm body, my heart softens.

Never forgetting my gratitude, "Thank you for being by my side, a mere servant," I will continue to offer them delicious treats. This time, I want to reflect on and engrave in my heart those moments in everyday life when I was glad to have my cat.

When they warmed my heart in the freezing cold winter

I was born with a heart condition that causes poor blood circulation, so I really dislike winter. The prefecture I live in experiences severe cold in the mornings and evenings during winter, so every year I manage to get through it fully equipped with thick fleece-lined innerwear, a fleece-lined turtleneck, and a fluffy knit sweater.

後ろ、どうした pic.twitter.com/NYgBe9yVXJ

— ゆあ ｜ ライター🖊 (@yunc24291) January 18, 2021

During cold seasons, my heart tends to feel dark. It's not just my body; it's as if blood doesn't circulate as well in my heart, and I often feel down. Since I don't have a spleen, I'm prone to catching colds this season, and getting the flu can be dangerous, so I refrain from going out, which also contributes to my mental decline...

Since I usually work from home and don't get out much, if I can't go out alone on my days off for a "change of pace," stress builds up and I feel like I'm going to go crazy.

It's my beloved cats that warm my heart during such winters. When I touch their gently warm bodies, my heart softens, and my disturbed mind calms down, making me think, "Staying home isn't so bad."

And in winter, even though they're seeking warmth, my beloved cats tend to come closer to me, which boosts my self-esteem, making me think, "Wow! They really love me!" (Though I do keenly feel their cold stares.)

I feel like I was able to get through this winter thanks to the physical contact with my beloved cats, who warm my body with their higher body temperature than humans and seem to bring blood back into my heart. Especially in winter, I am deeply indebted to my warm and cozy feline overlords.

They make me laugh when I'm eating alone

My husband often comes home late, so I usually eat dinner alone on weekdays. In the past, even when I heard "food tastes better when eaten with someone," I'd cynically think, "The taste of food doesn't change." But as I've gotten older, I've come to genuinely feel it. Eating with someone while laughing is delicious.

Of course, eating alone has its advantages, like being relaxed, but I love the time I spend eating with my husband, saying "This is delicious," so sometimes I feel a little lonely eating dinner alone. Perhaps because curses were served as side dishes in the family I grew up in, I'm just happy to be able to eat with someone while having casual conversation.

When I feel such small moments of loneliness, my beloved cats make me laugh. Gigi, the calico cat, stares intently at the natto pack, aiming for it, and Kotaro, the tabby, has a weakness for chicken dishes.

When I see my beloved cats trying to snatch food without being noticed, I can't help but smile and say, "No!" (laughs), and my sense of loneliness vanishes.

I'm looking forward to seeing how my beloved cats' tactics will continue to be refined in the future, as they skillfully (?) reach for food while looking away, or pretend they're "just sniffing! Not at all intending to eat it!"

When they snuggled up to me on sleepless nights

I'm not a fan of nights. I've suffered from insomnia since I was a teenager, and when I'm feeling down, I sometimes utterly despise myself for not being able to sleep, and tears well up.

It's hard to show that kind of vulnerability to other people. I feel like it's wrong to involve someone else in my own problems.

So, I secretly move from the bedroom upstairs to the living room alone and pet and hug my beloved cats. It's不思議 how my heart naturally calms down when I embrace a cat's warm body, as if I'm touching life itself.

Perhaps because cats are creatures that sense human emotions, at times like these, my beloved cats lick away my tears or purr and doze off nearby, dedicating themselves to being healing staff.

It's probably because I was healed by such subtle kindness and was able to calm my own heart, thinking, "Some days are like this, thank you," that I am who I am today.

When I thought, "My cats are so energetic today."

My beloved cats are always by my side as if it's natural, but the truth is, it's a miracle that their daily lives continue with them happily trotting around.

I started feeling this way strongly, of course, largely due to Gigi facing a life-threatening situation around the New Year, but also because all my beloved cats have become seniors, and I've started thinking about the "farewell" that will eventually come more often.

The slight hassle of having to intervene in "mini-fights," and the sadness when they ask to be held but then immediately slip out of my arms — all these are emotions I can only feel because my beloved cats are healthy.

That's why, recently, I've strongly felt that I want to cherish even negative emotions and experiences as "proof that this child is alive and well." That's why I worry even about minor health issues, and when they recover, I feel a sense of relief from the bottom of my heart.

こんな写真撮って遊んでるから、仕事が進まないのは分かってるんや。 pic.twitter.com/7vWenfBkYu

— ゆあ ｜ ライター🖊 (@yunc24291) July 5, 2023

Gigi's strangely horse-like way of running, Kotaro's yandere-like jealousy, and Leo's innocence in sweetly nibbling my hair to give me a "cat-cat cut"—all of these are behaviors I can witness precisely because they are healthy.

Perhaps cats are just beings for whom we say "thank you for being here" just by existing.

There must be as many "thank yous" we want to tell our beloved cats as there are pet owners. Please tell me your stories of "This is when I was glad to have my cat."