Life's Simple Little Pleasures

My husband Steve and I love cats. We have three: Two that we adopted from shelters and one that adopted us. Fluffy is 15 and she is a Texas cat. She’s done a lot of moving with us. PT is 3 (she looks just like Tacha, our 17 year old cat we had to put to sleep in 2005 because her kidneys were failing and the vet told us that was nothing more to do for her. We did have her anointed by a pastor friend and she lived 9 more months). PT was adopted from the Elkhart shelter and Salem is 4 and she adopted us. Fluffy can be a little cranky but otherwise we have the best dispositionned cats one could ever hope for.

One of the most delicious moments in my week is when I get to sit in my recliner on Sunday afternoon to read or take a nap. Invariably Salem comes to sit on me, or between my feet and she wants to be loved on for a while, or she just sits by me, watches me and purrs. There is something about petting a purring cat that is very soothing and calming.

I said that Salem adopted us and that is true. She showed up 3 years ago when I was serving a church in Granger. She was thin, very hungry and smelled of old garage rags because we found out that she slept in the neighbors’ old barn. After checking with these neighbors and others and finding out that no one was claiming her, we kept her. She is the sweetest cat. We named her Salem because she is all black, except for a little white on her chest and tummy and she “adopted” us a couple weeks before Halloween in 2005. She was also named after the church I served.

I love all our cats but there is a special bond with Salem. She seems to intuitively know when I need company and when I need to be left alone. Besides sitting on the recliner with me, she often comes into my office at home and sits on the desk by my laptop and watches me write. Once in a while she decides that I need a break from working so she purposefully lays on my sermon notes or my Bible and demands to be loved.

I remember a conversation some students and I had with one of our seminary professors several years ago about whether pets were going to Heaven or not. This professor said that it was bad theology to believe that pets would go to Heaven. All the students disagreed. If God created all living things why wouldn’t beloved animals go to Heaven? And if Heaven is Heaven, how can pets (along with Starbucks coffee and Belgian chocolates and good books :) ) not be part of it?

Revelation 5:13 talks about every creature in Heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea singing praises to the Lamb and I think Salem and PT and Fluffy will be in the bunch.