Love Yourself - Act Like a Cat

(City the Kitty in my laundry basket before bulldozing through my neatly folded clothes)



It's the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, and I can feel Holiday Fever. Traffic has lightened, people have buzzed out of town. All the newspapers and news channels keep feeding us turkey tips followed by commercials and advertisements screaming holiday sales! I printed a massive email coupon from Borders with great markdowns on books and dvds. Great for holiday gifts, and great for long weekends like the one ahead!

Sometimes we yearn for a long weekend, we yearn for some time to ourselves, we yearn for the holiday break. But, when it comes, do we spend it mindfully? Are we saying yes to engagements that really suck us dry? Make us cringe? Make us bury our heads in the cranberry sauce rather than answering yet more questions from Aunt Mildred about our future plans, particularly with that boyfriend (or, "where in the world is your knight in shining armor?!")?

Perhaps you spend it just as you choose. You eat your turkey, you take your naps, you go to the movies, you enjoy shopping on black Friday. You come and go as you please. Kudos to you. And, kudos to my cat.

Everyday is a holiday to her. She takes a dozen naps, she hops up in my lap for cuddling without warning, she think she deserves treats at all hours of the day without making excuses, she stretches, she rolls, she scoots on her belly, she chases "ghosts", she chases her tail, she zooms through my apartment like her tail is on fire (which has actually happened before, I'll share another time. Bless her, she probably has post traumatic stress syndrome from that scary morning!)....and, then, she naps again.

My cat takes really good care of herself, turns her head away without making excuses, and asks for love when she needs it. I want to be more like my cat!

For some people though, it's a lot harder to sift through everyday with self-care, not to mention the holidays - experiencing your personal true meaning of holidays, to connect with yourself and others in healthy fulfilling ways. Instead of me giving a laundry list of self-help survival skills for Turkey Day, shopping stress and other holiday festivities, how about trying to act like a cat?


*Nap
*Chase something (let's steer clear of chasing the knight in armor - he doesn't exist anyway!)
*Gaze out the window
*Imagine, then leap after what you see!
*Stretch
*Roll over, show your belly, and play with your friends.
*Curl up in a comfy blanket.
*Bathe anytime.
*Ask for treats or love - and do not stop until you get at least a little of what you want.
*You can say no at anytime without excuses. Think "JUDEX" - No justifying, no defending, no explaining. However, when you say no or set a limit, please do not dig your sharp nails into your loved ones. It hurts, it scars, and it's completely unnecessary.

Have a safe, healthy, comfortable and loving Thanksgiving!