Whatever.
My advice to you - regardless of your preference - is to get a pet. Whether you're simply feeling a bit blue or suffering from major depression, a pet can and will help you.
Yesterday I saw the truth of this first hand.
Life can be tough. Regardless of how upbeat and cheerful we are, no matter what kind of positive outlook we have on life, it is inevitable that something will eventually try to bring us down. Some random catastrophe during the day/week/year will, without notice, consume whatever good-feeling thoughts we're having and temporarily drain us of our happiness. Of our appreciation. And of our joy.
It's an indisputable fact that, no matter how few and far between they are, there are days when the glass is going to be half empty.
The woman who came into the clinic yesterday was having one of those days. Her glass, at least from her point of view, was nowhere near full. It was obvious from the moment she walked in the door.
A loud sigh. Shoulders tensed. Her face twisted into a scowl. Heels clicking angrily on the ceramic-tiled floor...
I smiled and offered a hello. She ignored it.
Her lips drawn into a thin line, she stomped past the counter, grabbed a bag of prescription cat food, stalked back to the counter, and slammed the eighteen pound bag down in front of me.
So, a challenge, I thought. I brightened my smile. Tried a bit of chit-chat as I updated her account.
It didn't work. The only responses I seemed able to draw from her were sharp, one word answers.
Okay, I thought. Time to throw in the towel. Sometimes people in bad moods just want to be left alone. I get it. No problem.
And then, low and behold, I witnessed a miracle.
While I had my attention turned to the credit card machine, I heard, "Oh, hello there, sweetie..."
A voice as sweet as syrup. Could it be? I glanced up and, yep, it had come from the woman whose glass was half empty.
A bit confused, as I was pretty sure she wasn't talking to me, I twisted around in my chair, searching for the source of her affection. And there it was.
Moochie. Our office cat.
Slinking around the corner of the desk, she gracefully hopped up onto the counter and seductively made her way toward our disgruntled client.
My jaw dropped. Seriously. I mean, it was an amazing thing to watch. The woman's entire countenance changed. Her eyes softened. Her face relaxed. Her lips pulled into a smile. Her posture opened up. And I could almost see the weight lift from her shoulders.
Like I said - it was a miracle.
As she chatted with Moochie, I simply sat and stared. And tried to pry my jaw up off the floor.
Of course, being an animal lover, I know that having a pet is beneficial to a person's health. I love my girls immensely. But seeing an example such as this - seeing proof such as this - was close to mind blowing.
The woman looked over at me and smiled. Talked a little bit about her cat. Smiled some more. Laughed.
Throughout the rest of our interaction, her hand did not stray from the purring feline.
Her mood had done a complete one-eighty. In a matter of seconds. All because of a cat.
Crazy.
It's said that "animals encourage social interaction between people." Obviously. And among other things.
I went home to our two girls last night and hugged them. Gave them a treat. And thanked them for lowering my blood pressure.
And Chris thanked Molly for his one gray hair.
Eh, not everything's perfect. ;)
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"I love that quiet time when nobody's up and the animals are all happy to see me."
-- Olivia Newton
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