In the Bay Area, where I live, due to the really high level of respect we have for scientific and medical opinions and directives, we were able to meet again in person this Thanksgiving, sit around tables, and enjoy each other’s company.
It was about half the mob I usually have, but it was a delight bringing people together to share in, and express our gratitude for all we have: good food, warm dwellings, and basking in the kindness of others.
I am hoping as masks come off, and we can take in the smiles and micro-expressions of others – friends and strangers alike. I am hoping that this ‘basking in the kindness of others’ starts becoming the norm.
I think that isolating at home and chewing on the furniture has been bad for civil society. When the time comes for us to mingle freely in our communities, my hopes are that the rewards of kind gestures overcome our isolation anxieties (and the resulting crabby behavior).
I was at another gathering last night at a friend’s place out in the country. The area was “crawling” with foxes – who had come to recognize that my friends were not a threat. So the foxes would gambol out on the porch and steps – much to the fascination of my friend’s cats.
My friends were worried about letting the cats out to satisfy their fox-curiosities. But this might not be an improbable meet-up. For a couple of years in my neighborhood there was a black cat and a grey fox who were clearly pals. They’d hang out together in a dignified sort of way; we’d see them in the street at night, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder, watching the night pass.
And I’m sure many of you have seen the various films of dolphins and whales playing together, or dolphins and dogs chumming it up. Even a dolphin and a cat goofing off. As we point out when we share these around, play is the universal language.
These critters are not burdened by the grief and woes we humans inflict on ourselves. I look forward to a time in the near future when we can come out from behind our masks and learn from the playful leads of our animal relations!
In my neighborhood, the coyotes are the cat hunters, so perhaps foxes are a little less hostile. Happy holidays Michael, and thanks for the continued hopeful and optimistic message.
In my neighborhood, the coyotes are the cat hunters, so perhaps foxes are a little less hostile. Happy holidays Michael, and thanks for the continued hopeful and optimistic message.