I'm sitting here with a cat on my face.

[thetatiana]

She's a very cute cat, doesn't weigh much, purrs comfortingly, and has that black silky soft fur that reminds me of some Asian girls' hair that I would love to have hair like. But she's lying half on my chest and half on my neck, chin on my face, and it's a little uncomfortable. I could use a couple of pillows to hold my head up. Of course, in this position I have a good opportunity to kiss her tummy, which I take advantage of. Kiss, kiss, kiss. Purr, purr, purr.

Her name is Sekhmet, though we sometimes call her Momo because she reminds us of the character by that name in the anime series. She's nearly five months old. I got her when she was about two weeks old, part of a rescue mom-and-litter I adopted this spring. Mama Julie and seven littermates, plus Grace, equals nine cats who live here now. They keep things interesting.

It's endlessly entertaining to watch them spar. They're far more interesting than any tv program; running, jumping, pouncing, playing, tumbling one over another. Every so often someone crosses the line from play into more serious contention and starts calling out "Meow, meow, meow, Mom he's hurting me make him stop!" And I respond "Joshu, when he cries, you let him up." Usually it's Joshu who is the perpetrator, since he's the biggest and strongest and most intrepid and dominant. Joshu when he was only a few weeks old used to scamper up to my feet every time I entered the room, wanting to be cuddled and pet. He was the first one out of the big box they lived in when they were tiny.

Sometimes the offender is Ghost, though, who's second-in-command, and whose full name is Sand Lion Ghost Olorion. Ghost is dominant but chill. Rarely is it anyone else, though Masa (short for Thomasina) can be quite fierce when roused. She's the one you least want after your foot-lump when the covers aren't clawproof. She'll flat amputate toes if you aren't careful.

"When they cry, you let them up" is one of the things I repeat endlessly to the little ones. Others are "Kitties aren't allowed on the table (/counter/keyboard)" and "Be sweet to the babies, Mama, be sweet." Julie was an excellent mom until she decided to wean them. After that she started beating them up fairly often and making the kind of cliche ferocious cat noises that might be heard on a cheesy jungle show or an ad for cars. She does this mainly if they try to suckle on her, but also occasionally if she just happens to be feeling grumpy. She's a sweet cat to humans, but really needs to be in a one-pet household. She doesn't get along well with other cats. She's always very gentle and loving to humans, but attacked immediately and fiercely my two other cats at every opportunity. Felicity was 18 and is gone now. She got beat up 2 or 3 times before I separated them forever. Grace is timid and only got beat up once. Finally I realized Mama Julie has to stay sequestered from the others, and now she lives in my bedroom. I'd love to find her an excellent loving single-pet home.

I have some Prozac for her that I may try, if I can gather my courage enough to tackle administering it to her daily for long enough to see if it helps. It might be pretty tough until she gets the hang of things. She's crazy about Whiskas Free Range Chicken treats, though, so that helps. I give them all a treat or two after anyone has to have medicine. Bribery usually works pretty well, as soon as the cat realizes "let's get this medicine business over quickly so we can move on to the treats." Anyway, I heard about someone whose very unpredictable and vicious (to humans) cat had his whole personality changed forever by a few months of Prozac. It may be worth it, since she could come out and enjoy the freedom of our home if only she weren't so aggressive. Living in one room isn't really ideal, even when you have everything you need in the way of food, water, litterboxes, and plenty of company. The kittens come in and out between my room and the rest of the house.

My black furry chin muffler has moved to my lap now, which makes it a lot easier to type. I must say she's doing her job quite well. Her job of course -- the job of all cats -- is radiating contentment in the home. They have such a powerful sense of how lovely it is to be indoors, in climate controlled luxury, curled up on a soft spot, a sunny spot, or just a warm spot, relaxing and enjoying the awesomeness of being alive. Cats patently enjoy life, and the feeling is rather infectious. They so much more than pay their way by this talent. Life truly is deeply enjoyable, just being, drawing breath, tasting oxygen. Perceiving. It's so amazing and fantastic, and yet we humans tend to forget. How weird that we can forget for hours and days at a time, sometimes, just how magnificent and glorious it is to be a living sentient being every moment of our lives.

Cats rarely forget this. So they kindly remind us in such a way that we can feel it too. All that, in exchange for a few vet visits a year and some daily fresh water and kibble. What a bargain! The affection isn't part of the deal, that's just for free, because cats like humans and vice versa. From the cat point of view, humans are their symbiotic servant species. God, the cat God, obviously made humans so that they should serve cats. I mean, their hands are just the right height to turn doorknobs! That's a dead giveaway. Since rendering loving service to others is what makes humans feel most happy and fulfilled in life, too, it's completely win-win.

Now Sekhmet is licking herself in my lap, and she takes the time to lick my leg a bit as well. I don't know if she feels it could use cleaning or just happens to like my flavor. I feel the superpowers soaking in and taking effect. Cat licks convey superpowers, of course, and the smaller and more timid the cat, the stronger the powers granted. Following a stray impulse, I lick God's hand mentally in my prayers, and thank him for giving Sekhmet and the others into my keeping.

Then I thank him for my son who's the light of my life. I ask him to protect and heal him. And I remember once again how grand, how exalted, it is to be alive.