I was leaving the house and rushing since I was late, when a mangy ugly
alley cat who has adopted us came over asking for food. This cat has no one
else in the world to feed it and has great difficulty in looking after itself.
It found us a few weeks ago since we already feed a few of the neighbors cat.
The other cats shun this one and altogether the poor thing is a pretty sorry
feline. The reason I'm writing all this is that it was so easy to ignore its
pleadings for food. I was late and would be getting back soon and would feed
this cat and the others dependent on us....
Then a thought came to me. On their deathbeds, no one ever says, "I
wish I had spent twenty more hours at work each week". No one wishes they
had better cars or other possessions. What people regret is that they did not
spend enough time with their loved ones. That they were not kind and compassionate
when they could have been....
So I went back and brought food out for the cat. I took time to pet him
and then I left for my appointment. Sure I got there slightly late, but it was
not the end of the world. Inside I felt a warm glow of satisfaction. I boosted
my self-esteem my self-worth by caring about a fellow being....
I am not suggesting today you do the same. All I am asking is for you to consider
how you will feel about things you have done on your death bed. What missed
opportunities will you regret? Go for them. What actions you took, you will
consider as wasteful? Do less of these. Set your own priorities....
P.S. More than 200 days later: The cat has a name Freddie and has appeared
in so many other articles in this series. He has given us so much pleasure....
Even later: Freddie is a most loving and appreciative cat. He is such a
blessing....
Added June 19, 2006: Freddie started as an outdoor cat and we were only
feeding it. Later on he ended up moving in and living with us. He has such a
wonderful loving personality and now he is a most beautiful cat in our eyes.
This shows another thing that true beauty is a matter of the internal rather
than superficial externalities. Unfortunately too often we only look at the
trivial.
