When I was a pipsqueak kitten, Lamie really had me flummoxed with all that stuff about Santa Paws bringing little bags of catnip to all of us kittens who were good. He would even put a glass of milk and a plate of cookies out for Santa and I was thrilled to see them gone when I awakened on Christmas morning.
Of course, when I matured, I learned there was no Santa Paws and that it was Lamie who had drank the milk and eaten the cookies. After living with Lamie for almost nine years I don't think he ever met a cookie he didn't like.
Still, though I came to realize Santa was only what they now refer to as "virtual" reality, I enjoyed the whole coziness of Christmas. I particularly liked it when Lamie and Sweetie's grandchildren would come during the holidays and he would read them Charles Dickens' "Christmas Carol."
They would all sit on the couch together and I would perch on the mantel watching while the warmth from the blazing fireplace kept us all homey and snug. Those grandchildren are now all grown, some even with children of their own. I remember fondly those days of Dickensian coziness.
When I got older and learned to read, I read some of Mr. Dickens' other stories. One in particular was very exciting and I think its opening is especially appropriate for these days. It goes this way:
"It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.
It was the age of wisdom; it was the age of foolishness.
It was the epoch of belief; it was the epoch of incredulity.
It was the season of light; it was the season of darkness.
It was the spring of hope; it was the winter of despair."
Those lines were written more than 150 years ago and they were about events that had taken place 60 years earlier. When I think about them I realize they are, and have been, appropriate for all times.
Somewhere on this Earth there always is comfort and joy while at the same time there is pain and sorrow. Some people encounter triumphs while others know only setbacks. Certain people inspire us, others create misery. For some it is feast, for some it is hunger. For some it's good health, for some it's illness. For some there is always hope, for others there is only despair.
We have witnessed and experienced much disillusionment in the last few years. Things and institutions we have trusted, revered, and even counted on have let us down. All the pillars that hold up our society are under siege - government, church, business, and the American family as we once thought it was.
We don't know what is true anymore. For every story there is a counter-story, for every allegation, a denial. There seems to be glut of cynicism while the prevailing attitude is most frequently expressed in the phrase, "Well, everyone else is doing it."
There was a time when I was a little kitten and all the countries behind the Iron Curtain were gaining their freedom as the Berlin Wall was torn down and the menace of the Soviet Union had dissipated. Peace and hope was in the air. Fifteen months ago an unimaginable disaster changed our lives and our world forever. The president informs us we are already at war.
I wonder, "Where have all the flowers gone?"
And you may ask what is all this heavy stuff a cat is writing about?
And I will answer you. I, too, am a living creature. I and all others of my species share this planet along with you and lots of other living creatures. If it isn't good for you, it isn't good for us.
Therefore, I say let us yield neither to cynicism nor discouragement and let us face our future with a buoyancy of spirit so that once again we may hear the music and see the rainbow. And, most of all, let us recognize the beauty of Mr. Dickens' "Christmas Carol" in the changing and redemption of Ebenezer Scrooge, and in the entreaty of Tiny Tim that God may bless us all, each and everyone.
May your cup runneth over with happy meows.

© 2002 The Ojai Valley News

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