Ferocious Feline

The horror was evident as I charged into the garage, having heard a horrendous screeching sound, and witnessed a sight that is indelibly printed on my mind forever. A vicious black cat was in the corner of the garage on top of Harrison, our light colored and favorite cat, digging his dark claws and feasting on the live flesh of our gentle pet. In my mind, I saw or maybe felt the terrifying fear and anxiety of Harrison as the sharp teeth of the black cat sank deliberately into the fur, the hide, and the gristle of the muscles of the back. It explained the large gashes Harrison had all over his body and explained why Harrison seemed to avoid venturing out of the garage. I knew right then it was time to do something about the black cat, time to protect Harrison, time to look out for the weak, time to make a decision, and time to interfere.

But, wait. Maybe I should step out of this situation and let the Darwinian concept of "survival of the fittest" take over and rule the world of nature. Who am I to interrupt the flow of the ecosystem and interfere with the natural selection process that seems to reward the strong and the mighty regardless of the perceived ethical dilemma of the moment? Besides, what difference does it really make if one cat kills another cat in a despicable manner? They are cats, for goodness sake. They do not understand quality of life nor address the moral position of their actions. They do not know cause and effect, consequences, assess behavior or reason, evaluate, synthesize, or make decisions based on facts. They operate by reacting to their own base needs for survival. They are animals and the animal world has its own value system apart from any intellect, moral code, or consideration of each other.

Yet there is something inhumane about allowing a defenseless creature to be overtaken by a vicious predator, an animal whose prime concern seems to be to dominate all others through forceful takeover of any obstacle in the pathway toward total control. I knew that while I had a choice, since everyone has a choice, I really had no choice, due to my own nature, but to protect the weak and counter the evil that was being perpetrated on our cat named Harrison. It took a few days, but eventually I caught up to the black cat, interfered, and put a stop to the terrible behavior. The black cat is no longer a threat and is now out of the picture. This ends the story of the black cat and his reign of evil terror, his pervasive darkness that found manifestation by inflicting pain on the weak, but it does not end the story of our obligation, our responsibility, and our need to offer security to those who cannot provide their own protection.

Next week we seek guardianship of our son Joel. Most people earn some rights at the age of 18. The right to make their own decisions, to run away, get married, vote, and to bear arms. But, in the case of Joel, we want to retain the level of guardianship that is our right as parents. We do this not to take away his freedoms nor to restrict his potential. Not to govern his every step nor to insist he become a certain kind of person. We seek to be his official guardians to help him make appropriate decisions and to protect him from the black cats of the world, from the rare but penetrating evil darkness that if allowed to fester could eat away unchecked at our autistic son. We seek to be his guardians because we love him and want only good to come his way. For most of us, we learn from adversity and we learn from challenges; but for Joel, he learns through example and through affirmation. It is our job to design a world of affirmation, a world of hope, a world of optimism, and mostly a world of love. But, ironically, we do this for Joel because he does so much more for us by making our world a better place. Thanks Joel!