I believe cats are perhaps more intelligent than humans. I know for certain that they are more empathetic. The more I know people, the more I love my cats. I know that many people think cats are aloof or uncaring. I surmise this is because cats love so richly, and feel so deeply, that they are guarded in initial dealings with a person/people. Their trust isn’t easily earned, but is so worth the effort. 

When Julia, my daughter, was 4, we got her a lilac point Siamese. People warned us that Siamese cats were mean and we’d regret it. Last year, after 16 1/2 years of loving each other, Rosalie slipped away. Julia has had a rough time of it growing up. She’s dealt with not only her issues, but ours. Ralph is developmentally disabled and I am bipolar. Julia has her own issues, both health and emotional. She was born 6 weeks early, and had RSV at 3 months. She’s been asthmatic since 1 1/2 and began developing the first symptoms of Hidradenitis Suppurativa at 8. In her teens, on the heels of my bipolar diagnosis, she was diagnosed with bipolar and another disorder. We also believe she has Sensory Integration disorder that went undiagnosed. Through it all, Rosalie was her constant companion. Rosalie always knew instinctively when Julia needed her to draw closer, and when to give her space.

After Rosalie passed, Leo, a long-hair domestic rescue, broke through all the pain, and showed Julia that she could love again. Yesterday, Leo escaped outdoors, as the was wont to do. He had a wild heart that just could not be confined. He left our yard for the first time since demanding to be let in our home 3 years ago, and was struck by a vehicle. Julia discovered him by the road. He looked as if he were just asleep. We laid him to rest below my June blooming Lilac, where the catnip always grows. He was drawn to the outdoors so often by catnip. Julia’s heart is broken just one year after losing Rosalie. 

The last month or so, Leo was extremely insistent on having Julia’s undivided attention and love. He insisted on it. She’d even have to put down her laptop for him. It was like he knew his time with her was coming to an end, and wanted to love her as much and as intently as he could. This leads me to believe cats have more than just five senses. He needed to love her as hard as he could, so she had those times to cling to. Rosalie lingered her last day, until Julia told her it was okay to go. I think cats have an empathic sense that allows them to read people. I also believe they know when their life is coming to an end. I also believe a cat can die of a broken heart. My late brother’s cat did. We took her in after he passed, but no matter what we did, she just didn’t want to live without him..

I know a lot of people that don’t “like” cats or think they are evil or uncaring. I think they haven’t met the right cat, or are threatened unconsciously by their intellect. I am a Christian. God made cats. He didn’t choose them as the form of evil in the Garden. I believe a loving God would not create a Heaven where His creations would be excluded. Any of them. If He had mentioned every good thing Heaven would include, the Bible would have been more than double the size. I believe every good gift He has ever given us here will be there. Cats (and dogs, fish, hamsters, etc) included. He uses the loyalty and love our pets give us as a reminder of His love on a daily basis. We may forget to read the Bible on a bad day, but our pets are there loving us for Him. 

Thoughts?