It’s been a challenging week.
Last Monday, I received news from my vet that my 15-year-old cat, Fiona, was not going to live forever. On Tuesday, blood test results came back. It wasn’t good. Her kidneys were kaput. He was forecasting that without intervention, she would live a month, at most.
A transformation took place within me: I started to see Fiona as a cat that was dying, instead of one that was living. She seemed smaller, quieter, vacant. She reflected my profound sadness.
Then another transformation happened. I shared my grief on Facebook, and wonderful friends came forward with empathy, shared experiences and good wishes. There was one comment in particular that caused a seismic shift in me. A friend called this a “sacred time.” Wow – that gave me pause. All the chatter in my head – “Fiona’s dying. What am I going to do? Fiona’s dying” – was silenced as I reflected upon my choices about the diagnosis.
All of the time we have together is sacred. Yet when something like this happens, it’s a particularly precious sacred time. We are called to expand our ideas of what it means to care and love. My friend’s words helped me shift back to seeing Fiona as a living soul that needs all I can give her. I now view this time as a period in Fiona’s life during which I get to be an especially loving presence for her.
Expand your love this week, and feel it transform you and everyone around you!
PS. We’ve started Fiona on regular fluid therapy, and she’s responding well. I am forever grateful to my husband, Andy, who doesn’t almost pass out at the sight of a needle.
Getting Curious:
What transformation is happening in your life right now? How do you feel about it? What choices do you have? What are you learning from the experience?
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