Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Missteps


After a wild chase through the rest of the house, Patch skids around the corner of the bedroom and arrives at the doorway to the sunroom where she sits and yowls. I'm sure there's a purpose to this but it eludes me. After a minute or two, she loses interest and jumps to the old leather chair where she curls up in the sunlight for her morning nap.

A great deal of feline behavior is mysterious to me. I often wonder what goes on in their empty little heads as they prowl the house, ferociously attacking a random ivy then pretending they didn't and looking at me with total innocence, hurt and insulted by my accusation. An assault upon a venetian blind cord leads to a tangle then a crash and when I arrive at the scene, Murray has distanced himself from the destruction and is looking on in complete surprise as if the picture frames on the floor leapt there on their own accord. He gives me an indifferent glance before casually strolling out in search of something more interesting. Muggs discovers a moth and the chase is on - she vaults over furniture, leaps at the curtains and lands on an unsuspecting lampshade where she rocks precariously until moth, Muggs, and lampshade all tumble to the floor in an untidy heap. The moth flies on while Muggs watches and decides whether or not to pursue it and I snatch her up before she makes up her mind and causes more damage. Mischief investigates a plastic bag and gets entangled in it - panic stricken, she tries to break free while shrieking and crashing into furniture. When I finally catch her and remove the bag, her heart is racing and she is terrified but not so much that she will learn a lesson.

I've heard it said that we learn best by our mistakes but with the distance between adventure and pitfall only a matter of a misstep or two, it's best we should all tread lightly and watch where we're walking. An inquisitive nature can too often take us off the path and into a hazard. Consequences follow curiosity no matter who or what you are. Learn if you can.


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