Combating the Groundhog Day of Life to Help Promote Inner Peace, Health, and Happiness for You and Your Cats
“I Got You Babe.” Remember how that song played every morning as the alarm sounded at 6:00 a.m. on the movie Groundhog Day and Bill Murray’s character found himself repeating the exact same day over and over? I think in life as we move from one day to the next often we get so settled and stuck in the daily routines of our life, that it seems like we are living the same day over again, even though in reality we are not.
I say all of this because lately Dan and I have kind of been stuck in the doldrums and we have been digging ourselves into a quiet rut of complacency by allowing the routine to continue. We have been going through some life struggles that have been difficult and we are also grappling with the fact that our kids are all grown up and that we don’t get to see them nearly as much as we want to. We find ourselves lamenting that there is a certain void in our hearts that is contributing to the sameness of our lives.
We’ve yet to gather the whole family in one fell swoop, but we were able to share time with some of our kids on a great trip we took to Discovery Cove in Orlando a few years ago that we will never forget. From L to R – Dan, me, Jackie, Chris, and Crystal.
But, the truth is, it is our fault. We cannot build a personal fortress by imprisoning ourselves in our own little world. Sure, we can miss our children and look forward to them visiting, but we can’t forget to live in the meantime. For the most part, life is not going to come knocking at your door, inviting you to participate. You have to go out and find it and create your own sense of community in order to fill the emptiness in your heart. We live in South Florida – a gorgeous state with beautiful weather, stunning tropical flowers, and ocean views. Many people would be envious to be in our position, yet we rarely take advantage of what is around us.
That all changed last weekend as I realized that our personal preoccupations and willingness to let life slip by was affecting the cats and that is just not fair to them. Our cats are not outdoor cats, but we do take them out, supervised, in our fenced in backyard on occasion. It has been ages since we have done that and I could visually see the dejection on their sweet little faces as yet another day came and went that we did not open that magical door to the paradise of lizards, bugs, and the intoxicating sights and smells that only the outdoors can offer to a cat.
One of those blessed moments for the cats when we take them outside. Seen here is Rolz who is on high alert sniffing his surroundings…
Even if Dan and I don’t do anything in a grand sense, at the very least, we can come and go as we please and change our environment. We can run errands, go out to dinner, do some gardening and my Mom and oldest son do live close by, so we can visit with them when we can. We do not have to be in the house 24/7 like the cats if we don’t want to. Can you imagine that? Every single day is the controlled sameness unless we help provide a changing and stimulating environment for them.
And don’t get me wrong – it’s not that we don’t give our cats lots of toys, playtime, loving, and attention. We do. But, I think we can do better by them. And the first step was to do better by us. It was time for us to stop allowing our negative circumstances to control us and to wake up with a renewed attitude – we only get one life and it was up to us to shape to our own liking.
So, Dan and I have made some deliberate changes – we are stepping away from the computer on Saturdays and taking small day trips to enjoy the sites and scenery around us. Last weekend we ventured to Hollywood Beach and instantly fell in love with the two plus mile long boardwalk filled with a charming array of small restaurants, one-man bands, shops and more. The ocean was right there and the beach was alive with the joyful and exhilarating chaos of children playing, people rollerblading and bicycling, and couples holding hands. Nothing out of the ordinary, yet to be a part of it all, was completely extraordinary and it was a life changer. We felt better about ourselves and a sense of inner peace, calm, and happiness prevailed.
Ahh… just taking it all in – feeling the fresh air and the heat of the sun… so, so liberating and mentally cleansing…
Just life… ordinary, beautiful life all around me…
Well, Hello Kitty!! Finding the cat in life, no matter where I am!
How cool is this!? A theater on the beach starring a “Cat Daddy” performance!
I know a lot of you would say that if you lived here, you would take advantage of the warm weather, the beaches, and everything else. And maybe you would. Or, maybe you live in your own town and barely take advantage of what is around you for whatever reason and people would comment that if they lived where you did, that they would take advantage of all that your community offered. All I can say is that if you don’t, I encourage you to do so. Even if it’s a walk around your neighborhood or stopping somewhere for a cup of coffee, it feels nice to get out and be a part of the world. Granted, all the small and large issues in your life will not magically go away, but your perspective and way to handle them will. So, do it for yourself, and do the same for your cats. Give them a new toy or some extra playtime. Or an empty box for them to jump in for no reason. Or open the door to an otherwise forbidden room for some adventurous snooping around just for the fun of it. Keep in mind that they react off of our emotions, so by keeping yourself mentally healthy, you are helping to ensure they live a longer, happier, and healthier life too.
It’s also easy to delay to later a little pleasure (be it going to the beach or admiring the NYC skyline – that latter one would be my human’s stuff 😉 because one has so much to do, and to think about, and to get out of trouble with, while the little pleasure could have been an appreciated and healthy break that would have helped tackle the problems more efficiently later.
Purrs
We have really been enjoying your NYC art that you have been sharing on your site, Texas, so we are glad your human is getting out!
Sage advice – and we all need to do the same. We’re sending our humans out today to an arts festival – it *IS* good to break things up/shake things up a bit!
OH! An arts festival – we love those, Maxwell, Faraday, and Allie!!
I was just thinking about this sort of thing a couple of weeks ago. I live just outside of a college town and spend a lot of time in town. Now I’m an alum and an employee of the University so I may be more involved than most but I feel sorry for community members who only see the problems that the college brings to their lives. Sure it gets crowded and noisy and they get tired of seeing the school colors everywhere they turn.
But a couple of weeks ago reminded me how much fun it is to be in such a town. It was the annual Iowa – Iowa State Football game and the town grew by nearly 60,000 for a few days. I love that. Most everyone in town wears the cardinal and gold (except those Iowa fans who slink around in their dreary black and gold ) and nearly every conversation involves the game.
Radio and TV stations invade our small community and help to get us all revved up. But those few groups who don’t like the University in their town, grumble and pout and snarl at the rest of us. How can that be a fun life? Why not join in, enjoy what you have right here in our town? Have fun, for goodness sakes 🙂
I so agree with you Andrea and love the camaraderie and spirit a sports team can bring to a town! It is fun to be part of something and it is too bad that some can only see the negative side of it!
As far as the Moody Blues/Mewdy Blue comment, I am glad you are taking the step to go to the concert. Yes, it will be hard, but it will also be good for your heart and soul. Your darling Mewdy Blue would want you to remember him with happiness…
I should also tell you of my venture out this week too. You know I’ve been extremely bummed since July after losing Mewdy Blue. This weekend was particularly difficult because I was at my club’s cat show where I honored his memory by giving a trophy to the highest scoring household pet. I’ve been a total wreck all weekend.
But a friend of mine invited me to see the Moody Blues in Des Moines on Wednesday. At first I wasn’t going to go because I’m so afraid that I’ll spend the entire concert crying and making a fool of myself but she talked me into it. I’m not saying it won’t be hard but their music touches my soul. I know it will be good for me. It definitely won’t be a groundhog day!
there bee nothin wrong with takin a brake frum bloggin guyz….we iz knot a loud ta play on line on de week oh ends for a reezon…… N onlee will go on line durin “off time”…….for a “speshull” circumstanze….
havin REEL time with de kittehs N de familee iz way mor important N havin VIRTUAL time with other kittehs N friendz…..
sure de interenetz iz grate; ya can go places N see stuff ya never wood get two other wize…like uz see in rite now de doplhinz above…TOTAL lee rockin…N ya can meet sum way total lee kewl soooper grate friendz; like we haz with ewe N all R online palz….
but…. face book N twitter N blogger N all de social media….canna N willna ever place fresh air, outdoorz, familee: even if ya hate em, kittehz, pupz, or any oh yur petz….nor will they ever gives ewe bak…lost time…ya coulda had… spendin with familee; reel time friends or kittehz N pupz…
bravo two ewe guyz for puttin down de lazer mouze N goin out N lookin for a reel one
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pea..ess….even de groundhog takes a brake….ya dont see him in Christmas cards due ya….noe, coz him iz squirreled a way til february 🙂
da tabbies… you are all so very, very wise… and very cherished!! We adore you and are so glad to have met you – maybe one day it will be in person! xoxox
What you say is absolutely true, Deb! I cannot go away and travel like I used to and sometimes I rebel at the routine my life has to have now, but I live in a beautiful place and I am blessed with wonderful views, so I count my blessings!
BTW My nephew is coming to Orlando (ok, I know it’s not near you) for a conference at the end of the month. He works for Curse.com on the Minecraft game making videos. I can guarantee that he won’t get out of the hotel very much and it will be such a waste as it will be his first visit to the US.