Dad, Get Up, It’s Thanksgiving!

I woke up this morning to the usual sound of my cat, Ace, meowing in my ear to alert me that it was time to get up and feed him. His pitch is so loud it’s like he’s saying, “Daaaad! You’re killing me and I haven’t eaten in 5 days! Get up before it’s too late!” I look at his little body and wonder how can an animal that small produce such a loud sound as to strike fear in me that it will wake the neighbors. He proceeds to walk on top of my chest and then nuzzle across my neck and the sound of a purring symphony begins. He’s always done this since he was a little kitten and I’ve grown accustom to these signs of affection and have begun to look forward to our morning “bonding time”. At this point, he gets bored as he always does and jumps off the bed. I don’t dare watch him or move for fear that he realizes that I may get out of bed to feed his starving little body. About 10 minutes go by and he’s back on the bed meowing as if I didn’t hear him the first time. This whole procedure continues back and forth and until I am forced out of my slumber to serve him. A thought enters my head as I stumble out of bed and wonder if he is “thankful” for what I do for him. Does he know the word and does he know that today is Thanksgiving, the day to be thankful for the things in your life.

I doubt any of these things because I believe in the life of an animal, everyday is a day to be thankful for and it’s a given. They inherently know that everyday is a day to live to the fullest. I don’t think they actually ask themselves, “Hmmm, what or who am I thankful for in my life?” It doesn’t even dawn to our pets that they have a good life, good friends and a job that they love. No, they get up every morning and think, “Hmmm, I wonder if Dad is going to get up to feed me!”

After feeding him his new food and him looking at me with disdain because it’s not his favorite food he’s use to, I lick my wounds of letting my little cat down. I want him to be happy and I think he is. Currently, he’s sitting on my lap and encouraging me to type more about him and his undying love for me. I think it’s amazing that animals give us so much. I always look forward to seeing him after a long day and know that no matter how my day went, he’s always there with a loud meow or wanting me to pick him up which always puts a smile on my face.

I decided to look up the word thankful and here’s what it said:
pleased and relieved : [with clause ] they were thankful that the war was finally over | [with infinitive ] I was very thankful to be alive.
expressing gratitude and relief : an earnest and thankful prayer.

So, I wondered, how thankful am I today? Am I pleased and relieved for something? Maybe my cat is the thankful one in my house? He’s pleased and relieved that I’m home and feeding him- everyday! Why do we have a holiday that reminds us to be thankful? I think we should be thankful and wake up being grateful for our jobs, our family, and especially our health. I know for myself, I’m thankful for all these things. I’ve got a great job, family and my health is great!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving spent with people you love and surrounded with reminders of how blessed we all are for what we have. I know I’ll be especially thankful today because of the friendly reminder from my cat, Ace.

He just meowed, again...