Cat forms adopted the posture of semi focused attentiveness

in order to reflect upon the reading below:

(Ollie was a bit distracted first and so was Augustus...

then Ollie focused and Augustus only gave me his ears,

then Augustus gave me his full attention and Ollie became defocused.

I took whatever was given me...

"..Although the reality of Divinity is sanctified and boundless, the aims and needs of the creatures are restricted.  God's grace is like the rain that cometh down from heaven: the water is not bounded by the limitations of form, yet on whatever place it poureth down, it taketh on limitations-dimensions, appearance, shape- according to the characteristics of that place.  In a square pool, the water, previously unconfined, becometh a square; in a six-sided pool it becometh a hexagon, in an eight-sided pool, an octagon, and so forth. The rain itself has no geometry, no limits, no form, but it taketh on one form or another, according to the restrictions of its vessel.  In the same way, the Holy Essence of the Lord God is boundless, immeasurable, but His graces and splendors become finite in the creatures, because of their limitations, wherefore the prayers of given persons will receive favorable answers in certain cases."  (Abdul Baha- Persian Spiritual Leader)

I asked the cat boys what form they'd be, and they pointed to themselves, how they stood together back to back, bookend style,  to create for me a valentine.  They were in the form of love.  Amazed at their natural genius I grabbed each and forced a few kisses on their faces.

Cat boys sent you love and kisses...Ciao Everyone!

As the sun rises...

in our neighborhood, and if you are passing by you just might see this sight, and you just might think to yourselves who were those furry princes ushering in the morning rays of sun so regally,

so sweetly,

so meditatively

and so adorably?

Well, they'd be Mr Sweet Pants (Augustus) and Mr Puffy Pants (Ollie) who would be wanting to send you their best wishes and heavenly kisses.

And whensoever thou dost gaze upon creation all entire, and dost observe the very atoms thereof, thou wilt note that the rays of the Sun of Truth are shed upon all things and shining within them, and telling of that Day-Star's splendours, Its mysteries, and the spreading of Its lights. (Selections AbdulBaha)

Ciao everyone!  Enjoy your weekends!

Those glances...

One of the most delightful parts of having feline playmates is the multiplicity of modes of communication. You might remember that we sometimes sit around in a circle to talk but we have our backs to each other yet our ears are pointed in the right direction. That happens to be a most favorite of mine.  It throws off us humans but not the cats.

The other is where we are directed towards each other but we link visually, we ask many questions from each other and answer them with more glances, perhaps a nod.  If the situation necessitates it one of us might give a little meows or get up and sit in a different direction.

So we sat that afternoon toward the back courtyard, heat still hanging in the air but the cement was wet and light was everywhere.

My glances bounced around, the hose, the water,

Mr Sweet Pants with his little lips,

the palm leaves reaching above

and reflected below.

Mr Puffy Pants was the experimentalist, he wanted to touch the palm

and then to taste the palm.  Slurp slurp with his little tongue.

He is very proud and so are we.

I recalled only briefly something I had read and shared it with the dudes:

Upon that glance which Jesus cast upon Peter as he went to the Cross probably hung the destinies of Christianity. Had it not been one of forgiveness and love Peter would not have gone out and "wept bitterly." Neither, in all probability, would he have died a martyr to the Cause of Him whom he denied in that moment of angry fear. Is it too much to go one step further and assert that the destinies of the world hung upon that moment of time when the eyes of Peter and His Master met and he read therein not what his soul knew he deserved but what God's mercy conferred as a bounty on His part.  

Portals to Freedom, Howard Colby Ives

Cat boys glanced at me and tried to influence my future.  I grabbed their little faces and kisses them.

Happy Tuesday everyone...ciao!

Cat wrangling is not easy...

we have been discussing this at home, why it is so difficult to wrangle in our cat boys. I have been testing various theories none of which seem to hold water and now I am throwing my hands up in the air finally agreeing that I am not Sigfried and Roy, and perhaps that is a good thing.

While these cat boys are always a bit happy to come into the cooler parlor yet they must always protest a bit just so we would know.

Mr Sweet Pants usually walks around like a jaguar in a cage

while the more resourceful Mr Puffy Pants feigns an emotional fainting that he believes would lead us into letting him out.

We held our ground that night...and then I noted that Mr Sweet Pants' front paws wanted to go out while his hind paws wanted to come in!

I chuckled...

Mr Puffy Pants found the scene adorable too.

That night the humans won.

Last Monday five years ago Augustus Sweet Pants chose to live with us; the photo below is a week after his arrival.  He was a tiny tot in those days with big paws and a little tail.  In those days he would not boss us around.  Today he does.

Still we could not love him more...yup, he is a fussy foofer but he is also Mr Sweet Pants! He talked a lot when he was little and he still does, when he wants something. Last night during entrapment we reflected upon this:

"O SON OF UTTERANCE! Thou art My stronghold; enter therein that thou mayest abide in safety. My love is in thee, know it, that thou mayest find Me near unto thee."

(Hidden Words)

 Cat boys send love and kisses...in pawfuls!

Summer afternoons...

One red leaf, afternoon light showing right through it.  The exhaustible summer heat becomes a pleasant memory when the mid day hours are replaced with late afternoons.

The cat boys drop themselves on the cement.

I want to confess that I would do the same if I did not live in a condominium complex...I know I would.

“Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” ― Henry James 


The days have been busy leaving little time to reflect.  We decided to go along with it for a bit.  Hope your days are not as busy.

Cat boys sent their love and pawfuls of kisses.

Ciao!

Rhythms of happiness...

It just occurred to me that much of my nature examination occurs when I am on daily walks with doodles, and that is a good thing.  I suppose they think that I need some lessons, and I believe that I do.

For example, there is not much to this branch and yet there is so much to this branch to which are attached an orderly array of very fresh leaves...symmetric, precise, perfect!  I can look at them for a long time without tiring, and frequently I wish that I had microscopic eyes so I could see through them, all the molecules and cells and channels.

Even more beautiful are these pink paws...the related cat boy is very very naughty.  I purposefully wet the cement so he wets his paws and leaves tracks on the dry ground.  I am very amused by this and he is not!

Here we have the delight of our hearts, the precious Sweet Pants who is back home after a three day stay over at the veterinary clinic where

he was kept so they could lance his neck wound, apparently caused in one of his fights for justice.

He was happy to be back in familiar settings as was his little orange brother, and the new squirrels.  We believe that the old squirrels did not find their way back from the convention but soon enough the new squirrels will become as sassy as the old ones.

Later early this morning the cat boys gathered on the patio for noms and reflections and silent meditation. MrSweetPants was trying to put the last few days behind him.

Mr Puffy Pants who does not keep a calendar still noticed the warm loving presence of his brother around.  He munched on his salad and

every so many seconds gazed up to adore his brother.

Familiar things....our rhythms of happiness.

We reflected on this:

"Man in reality is a spiritual being and only when he lives in the spirit is he truly happy."

(Abdul Baha in Paris Talks) 

We momentarily experienced that spiritual state of happiness from the conditions of the contingent world of worries and obstacles.

Cat boys sent kisses and many best wishes for a happy week in August!

Ciao everyone!

a natural diversion

We were going to share with you a third habit of thought that we try to stay away from, namely the tendency to create false dichotomies, but then so much has changed in our immutable surroundings that I had to and they had to comment about it.

For one, squirrels have gone to a convention, leaving behind a few shy ones.  You will see one in the pictures below, dining at a safe distance away.

Two- pigeons are no more, and au lieu of them we have seen demure doves and really loud crows; occasional parrots fly overhead, and the tss tss of hummingbirds cheer our dawns and dusks.

Three-Mr Sweet Pants and Mr Puffy Pants are on to new games. Mr Sweet Pants is Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau and Mr Puffy Pants is Cato.  The surprise attacks continue throughout the day.  It occurred to me today that MPP is missing the squirrels, and so he is using his brother to keep his attack skills in form.  I told Augustus to toughen up and not take any abuse.

Anyhow, in the brief moments of togetherness that we could muster up I shared with some ideas for reflection.

Mr Sweet Pants preparing to be read to while surveying the surroundings:  note the squirrel on the branch behind him.

 This squirrel did not go to the squirrel convention.

 Within moments Ollie jumped on the wall and Augustus has to move to a different spot.

 We exchanged glances that were packed with words.

 He is very proud and yet modest at the same time in the way only cats can be.

 Augustus could not be any sweeter as he listened,

 and Ollie could not be any cuter as her reflected.

I told them about the Navajo and how the cycles of corn rising is to them significant, a symbol of cycles of life leading us to perfection.

O SON OF SPIRIT!
I created thee rich, why dost thou bring thyself down to poverty? Noble I made thee, wherewith dost thou abase thyself? Out of the essence of knowledge I gave thee being, why seekest thou enlightenment from anyone beside Me? Out of the clay of love I molded thee, how dost thou busy thyself with another? Turn thy sight unto thyself, that thou mayest find Me standing within thee, mighty, powerful and self-subsisting. (The Hidden Words)


 The cat boys vowed to memorize this passage in cat language, which would be a series of meows.  They then made pawfuls of kisses and sent them out your way to wish you happy days.

Ciao everyone!