More then a cat.

It has taken me a long time to write about the passing of our cat Miles, and that's because he was so loved it is heartbreaking to sometimes think of him not being in our lives.  When I met Steve he had never had a pet.  I on the other hand have always had pets and probably always will.  We visited his friend often who had a cat and Steve fell in love and we decided we should get our own.  We went to the pound and there were so many cats it was a bit overwhelming.  But Miles was meowing at us and we just knew the first time we held him he was our cat.  We named him Miles because Steve had a love of airline miles (still do).  He was with us for 12.5 years and basically died of old age.  He lived in our apartment and three houses with us.  He was never afraid of the kids and they could do anything to him.  He was always a bit... plump, but that just meant more of him to love.  He knew his name and always came running when you called him.  The last couple of years he became very close with Juliana, she even referred to him as her boyfriend.  He slept with her every single night (he actually would lay his head on her pillow and she would cuddle him).  Having to tell Juliana and Tyler that it was time to let him go was so hard.  Juliana was the last one to hug him and told him she would always remember him.  We still all get sad about him every now and then and I always say we were lucky to have him in our lives and we should just cherish the memories of him forever.  He may of just been a cat, but to all of us he was so very loved.

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Kindness... am I a kind person?

I was watching TV this morning and there was a segment about kindness, and everyday things we can do to make sure we are being kind and spreading kindness everyday.  I feel like I am a kind person most of the time, but I am sure I have my moments when people would say the opposite.  If I am in a good mood I will smile at strangers, and they usually smile back.  I always hold the door if someone is close behind me.  I always say please and thank you when ordering food (even in a drive thru).  I always wave a thank you when driving if someone lets me into traffic.  If possible I always do a "favor" when asked.... but is this enough?  Does this make me a "kind" person?

There are people I don't like, and if they say hello to me I will say hello back, but I would never go out of my way to say hello first.  When I am out shopping, in my head I swear at people if they are in my way, I may be smiling on the outside but on the inside I am spewing out insults.  I've been known to "not get" a phone message, text, or email to avoid having to talk with someone.  If someone has done something bad to someone, I wish for something bad to happen to them (eye for an eye).  Do all these things make me unkind?  Am I a mean person?

I feel like I am a nice person, I try to be a nice decent human being.  Could I be nicer?  Couldn't we all?  I would never do anything to intentionally hurt someone, and try my hardest to always be there when someone needs me (I sometimes feel like an unpaid therapist).  All I can do is try to be the best authentic me there is.  If I sometimes hate people, then that's just me and probably always be me.  I have a kind heart, even on days I don't feel like being kind.  I try to surround myself with other kind people, and hopefully we are all just doing the best with what we have.

Sometimes a gesture from someone will remind me about the kindness in the world.  Yesterday my best friend sent me flowers...  they were "Just because" flowers, which are the best kind of flowers in the world.  They once again reminded me of what spreading a little kindness can do.