Important Life Lesson from a Cat Named Pineapple

Some of you know about this new kitten I have by the name of Pineapple.  It's a boy.  I'm not used to boy kitties.  And he's a kitten.  

Not used to that either. And quite frankly, I think I'm getting a bit too old for the kitten bit.

Although Pineapple is a sweetheart, he's just out of control.  I thought by getting him snipped (if you know what I mean) that would control him a bit but...I was wrong.  It just put a damper on him a tiny bit but he's still wildly out of control.  However, he is only about 6 months old so what else could I expect?!

About 11 years ago, I ended up with 2 kittens by the name of Scooby and Bobo.  They will be 11 in May of this year.  I took it upon myself to make them "house cats" because I was tired of being heartbroken by cats disappearing, being eaten by coyotes, being stolen by neighbors, or just never coming home again.  So, I decided from the get-go that these 2 kittens would never go outside or know the big bad dangerous world known as the "outdoors."

Now that I'm a decade older and wiser, I realize that maybe I've deprived them of some type of life.  Don't get me wrong.  My 2 fat ass cats have no interest in going outside.  But that's because it's too late for them to want an adventure in their senior lives.

With Pineapple, I can't keep him detained if I wanted to.  You see, he tries darting out the door -- any door -- any chance he gets.  A few times he's escaped.  I've had to quickly run after the little dude, scoop him up, and toss him back inside.

Right before my trip to Michigan a couple of weeks ago, I was taking out the trash and the little guy escaped out my side door.  It was nighttime and he ran off into my backyard, into the complete darkness.  So, after mouthing some swear words, I ventured off into the darkness after him.

Suddenly the sprinklers went on with a loud hiss.  It scared him so bad that he jumped back...into the swimming pool.  I heard all of the watery thrashing about and turned on the pool lights to see the little guy struggling to swim in the deep end.  "F***!" I'm thinking.  Here the water was 46 degrees and I was preparing to jump in after the little dude when he actually swam (or thrashed) to the edge and leaped out on his own.  (It was only the day before when my daughter was asking if domestic cats can swim...I guess some of them can as I've recently come to discover.)

I had to shut off the sprinklers, grab a flashlight, and run back out there where I found the drowned-rat looking cat cowering in the bushes.  I swooped him up, took a chest clawing from hell, and brought him back into the house where I used one of my daughter's prized blankets to dry him off.

As I was warming his little body up, I realizes something significant.

Little Pineapple is an adventurer and who am I to keep him detained inside for the rest of his life just because I don't want to be heartbroken by a possible loss?

What is life without going out to experience things, even if it means getting hurt (or dying) in the process?

Pineapple isn't meant to be detained inside.  And I can't possibly keep him housebound for a decade or longer (like I have with my girls)...until he passes away.  He's not built for that type of lifestyle.

And neither is anyone else.

Neither are you.

So, I decided that I'll get him chipped, get an ID tag, and slowly introduce him to the outdoors.  Then one day, I'll let him out until he finds his way back home.  Or not.

He may never find his way back home one day.  If that's the case, I know that he lived the life he wanted to with all the exciting experiences his short life span would have given him.

Have you chosen "safe" over "adventure"?

Have you given up your life for fear of loss, danger, or excessive risk?

Have you stopped living altogether?

When it comes to your children, do you find yourself "protecting" them when maybe you should let them go onto a life of experiences and adventure?

We all aim for comfort and a life of least resistance, if you've noticed.  We get disappointed or upset when things aren't "perfect."

But did you know that you're here on this earthly plane to push through difficulty and adversity to freaking learn something?  And how do you learn anything if everything is cozy and perfect?

I've gotten so many emails from people who think they should be "farther along" in life and yet they feel like they're slipping backwards.

And if you're one of those people, you're only slipping backwards if you're standing still (i.e. doing nothing with your life).  If you're plugging away and moving forward in any positive direction, even if you're not sure it's the right direction, you're not slipping backwards and you're certainly not wasting any time.

Like Pineapple, maybe it's time to make a dash for the door to ultimately open up a whole new world for yourself.  After all, how will you ever know about anything else that can be out there for your life unless goactually get out there and experience something?

Sure, you'll probably fall on your ass a few times.  So what?  I think we always fear much more than what will actually happen to us in reality.  And sometimes what we perceive as failure is pretty damn fun.  If you've ever slipped in a mud puddle, you'd know that making mud pies or having a mud fight is pretty damn fun while you're down there.

When a student emails me and says, "I'm afraid to try.  I'm afraid to get started. What if I fail?"

Well, if you don't get off your dead ass to do something, you've already failed.

And, one more thing...

If you are in a situation (as most American's are) where you need to "transition" from your job to the New Economy opportunities then you are in a situation where you must make the economic change over...or you'll financially perish in the next couple of years.

See you at the top!

Your mentor,

Monica Main
www.MonicaMain.com