🐈⬛ The Cat Who Forgot She Was Shy
Once upon an evening, a black cat spotted a human.
The cat observed him from a reasonable distance.
🐈⬛: Hmm. Looks friendly. Well-mannered. Seems easygoing. Potentially enjoyable.
The cat continued observing.
🐈⬛: Oh. Wait.
🐈⬛: He’s actually quite good-looking.
The cat blinked.
🐈⬛: Noted.
She then returned to her scheduled plans. After all, the cat has priorities and a reputation to maintain.
The human was sitting across from her. Far enough away that she could appreciate his face without becoming self-conscious.
The first meeting went well.
The human is a pleasant new acquaintance. The cat approves.
The cat made a decision:
She would approach the human again.
And so she did.
🐈⬛: I have decided that this human is interesting. I shall approach him.
🐈⬛: (walks towards human.)
Human: “Oh. Hi, cat.” (Crouches down to interact with the cat.)
Human: “What’s up? How are you doing?”
Human: (Shakes the cat’s paw. 🤝)
🐈⬛: …
🐈⬛: Oh no…
🐈⬛: Wait.
🐈⬛: He is looking at me.
🐈⬛: Of course he is looking at me. He’s talking to me.
🐈⬛: But he can see me.
🐈⬛: What should I do with my paw?
🐈⬛: Why am I suddenly aware that I have a face?
As usual, the human was friendly, easygoing, and there was absolutely nothing wrong with him.
The short encounter, unfortunately, made the cat painfully aware that she was a cat being perceived by another living being.
🐈⬛: I am a cat.
🐈⬛: He is a human.
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🐈⬛: 🫣
Despite the occasional internal malfunction, the cat stayed. After all, the human had not suddenly become intimidating, unpredictable or unsafe.
He was the same human she met the other day.
She continued to spend time with the human and gradually became more comfortable.
The nervousness did not magically disappear. It simply stopped being the most important thing.
The cat went home with no intention of abandoning the friendship.
That evening, the cat realized one important thing:
Confidence is not quite as straightforward as what the cat, or others, had imagined.
The cat wanted to approach a human, approached him confidently, and then got nervous when he got close enough to look at her.
But the nervousness had not made the cat want to retreat into the nearest cardboard box or under the couch. It had not even stopped the cat from approaching the human again.
She had approached the human because she wanted to.
There was no logical reason to suddenly flee.
The cat may not be comfortable enough to flop. She may not want the human to touch her beyond shaking her paw. But she knew she enjoyed the company of the human and wants to spend time with him again.
The cat has always thought that confidence is rather straightforward — either you have it or you don’t.
Perhaps sometimes, things are not that simple.
Sometimes, it’s simply the willingness to do something even when you feel a little nervous doing it.
The cat has always imagined a future version of herself who can walk into any room full of humans, meet anyone, and never feel awkward.
But maybe, the point is not becoming a cat that never gets shy.
Maybe the point is to become a cat that can get shy, get startled, get awkward, but still continue with whatever she came to do or approach whoever she wants to approach.
Feeling shy does not need to be a warning to run away.
Sometimes, a human is simply pleasant to be around. Sometimes, another cat catches her eye. Sometimes, she gets aware of herself around a particular human more than she is around other cats.
And that’s okay.
She may think: That’s interesting. Then get on with her life.
Maybe being a black cat helps too, as no one could see her blush.
The cat is still the same cat.
She could still approach humans she finds interesting to be around, enjoy their company, be confident, curious, and capable of making her own decisions.
Life has never required the cat to choose between these versions of herself.
Occasionally, she may find herself interacting with a handsome human and become acutely aware that she’s a cat with a face to look at, a meow, and an actual physical presence.
Awkward. But survivable.
She would simply take a breath, remind herself that she’s done that before, and continue interacting with the human.
She is still a perfectly capable, confident and functional black cat.
If necessary, she can always pretend that she is looking at something interesting in the room.
Preferably the something is not a handsome human.
Though, the cat makes no promises. 😏
