Hello, friends of Faye!

Raise your paw if this whole COVID-19 frenzy has you feeling a little shook.

Most of you know that I’m an English professor at one of our New Jersey colleges, and, like many other schools, we have canceled classes and are preparing for the potential transition towards temporary, digital, remote-instruction. It started with an email sent out during my 4:30 class on Monday—an email that my students saw before I did, leading to a subsequent conversation about what happens next. There was visible stress and justifiable concern about what could happen if our lives are temporarily disrupted or displaced.

It started me thinking—remarkably—about Tabby’s Place and the many kitties, like Faye, who found themselves here specifically because their lives were disrupted or displaced. And yet, what is Faye doing right now? Most likely either taking a sunlit siesta out in her solarium (if outdoors) or surveying her kingdom from atop the ramps in her suite or chillin’ in her new favorite “hiding” spot: inside a large cardboard box. And if you were to sit in the lobby or peak into any of the suites, you would see a plethora of cats doing a plethora of similar kitty-esque things: climbing, pouncing, munching kibble, snuggled on the lap of an adoring volunteer, and most of all sleeping. Every one of our cats has an origin story that points to some type of chaos, adversity, or uncertainty—some more or less dramatic than others. How do they do it, then? How do they muster through these disruptions and displacements with such courage, such resilience, such grace?

I don’t have the answer, friends, but I certainly wish I did. I wish I knew whatever cats know that helps them be so zen when everyone else is so, well . . . not zen. Case in point: Faye. Faye is having a wonderful month and enjoying good health. Her weight is stable, she’s enjoying quite a bit of uninterrupted rest due to her new-found fondness of large boxes, and she gets a real kick out of playing hide-and-seek when it’s time for her to take her medications. When she wants to go outside, she goes outside, and when she wants to take a nap, she takes a nap. She is deliberate about how she spends her time, and she finds joy in just about everything, especially boxes.

I wish I were more like Faye. I wish I could absorb the lesson that when life speeds up, it’s best to slow down, find a box, and take a nap.

Faye and I hope you are doing well, and that you and your loved ones—human and animal—are happy, healthy, and safe. Faye thanks you for thinking of her and for checking in to see how she’s doing, and she appreciates your love and generous support. The next time we talk it will officially be spring! We’ll talk again soon, friends!

Your correspondent,
Beth

Postscript: In light of the arrival of COVID-19 in New Jersey, Tabby’s Place is currently closed to the public except by appointment. Please click here for our official COVID-19 response.