The start of Spring is one of my favorite times of the year.
Who am I kidding? The start of any season is amazing. The green haze on trees as the leaves emerge, sounds of kids splashing in the neighborhood pool, pumpkin spice whatever in every store, the first snowfall. Love them!
Spring is when the windows fly open, screen doors come out of storage, and ceiling fans get dusted. Spring is also the time my cats’ predatory instincts re-emerge. When they sit on the padded ledge in front of the open window in my office. Chattering at birds. Growling at real and perceived threats. At 2:30 a.m.
Feline Fury
Recently, there I was, trying to get to sleep in the recliner in my office (Don’t ask. There’s a perfectly good reason why I sometimes sleep in the recliner, but it’s a long and boring story), wondering if I should just get up and do some writing, when three of the five cats (yes, five is too many) joined forces and voices to warn something roaming around the outside of the house that trained killers were present and whatever was trespassing in our yard had better move on.
Have you ever heard three cats growling and howling in the middle of the night? The sounds are chilling in the light of day. Add darkness, uncertainty and a sleep-deprived brain, and the cats’ protestations were worse than the sound of fingernails scratching down a chalkboard.
Unseen Danger?
My stage-whispered admonitions went unheeded, and I started to hear the outside trespasser returning its own growls.
That’s when I got scared.
Not for the unseen threat outside, but for my darling, innocent fur babies who were on the inside of a flimsy screen. One swipe from a clawed paw could rip the screen open and my precious kitty cats could have been swooped from their shelf and pulled off into the darkness, never to be seen again. (Can you sense the sarcasm dripping from each pixel on the page?)
Nothing like that could have happened … I think. But I started to think about how we bring consequences upon ourselves just because we don’t know when to be quiet.
Just Like A Documentary
Think about the last Animal Planet documentary you watched. Likely, there were both predators and prey. The distinguished voice of the narrator would explain:
Here we see a lioness that gave birth two weeks ago to three cubs. She is famished and has hidden her babies so she could hunt for a much-needed meal.
Across the savannah, a warthog has also given birth. She’s out looking for sustenance as well.
The mother warthog has left her piglets in a burrow with strict instructions. Stay put and stay quiet.
All is well until little Reginald gets restless. The young warthog sees the blue sky and squeals with delight. As he sits in the tunnel that connects the safe burrow to the dangerous land above, he is unaware that Mama Lioness has heard his call.
Mama Warthog also heard her young, foolish son and heads back to the burrow in time to see the lioness drag the hapless youngster out of the tunnel. Her hunger is satiated for a moment giving the mother warthog the opportunity to lure the lioness away from her more obedient and silent piglets.
If only Reginald had followed directions, he might be alive today helping dig a burrow for his soulmate where the pair could rear their own brood.
Why Must We Test Each Other?
I remember when my boys were younger. When we went to the grocery store, they would get the same lecture before we left the van. We are here to buy groceries so we can eat. We are not here to buy toys or anything else that is not on the grocery list. ‘I want’ is an automatic ‘no.’ Understand?
It never failed that sometime during every shopping trip someone would ask for something, I would say no, and a tantrum would ensue. Why? They knew the rules before they even got out of the van.
I understand there are times when the status quo just isn’t good enough.
“We’ve always done it this way” isn’t what people want to hear when the always-done-it-way is antiquated, inefficient and doesn’t work anymore.
I guess the key is knowing when the time is right to speak up and when it would be best to lock your lips and throw away the key.
So, what’s my point?
The squeaky wheel doesn’t always get the grease. Sometimes it gets chucked onto the trash pile.
And sometimes, when you don’t know what to say, it’s best to say nothing.
Until next time,
Susie from Stix-N-Stonez