Our pets, career & life companions

A companion of 21 years has left my life. He had lived a long life, loved, and was loved in return. As I reflect on the length of time, he was with me, it strikes me that, my cat, Noah, journeyed with me through a few changes in life. During those 21 years, I graduated, got married, developed my career to where it is today, the family grew, a few houses move, and all the things that make up life really. Each day coming back from work, irrespective of whether this could be described as a long day at work or not, Noah would be there, always willing to purr and soothe the day away. Many of us have pets, and they are invariably costly (pet owners will know this all too well!) and require a commitment to be cared for. The reason we are a nation of pet lovers stems from the simple fact that between human and pet, be it a cat, dog, or else, there is a mutual understanding, a relationship, which develops and eventually becomes deep-rooted. It is no surprise that cats and dogs’ videos are some of the most-watched content on social media platforms. This cat was with me longer than my daughter and my husband, up until now that is, and invariably was a source of support during all those key events. Isn’t it amazing that one so small, with no words but body language and I guess sounds, was able to communicate his needs and intentions so well? Human communication is certainly much more complex and the ability to use words but disguise needs and intent, certainly adds to that layer of complexity, and makes communication a subject matter, with much literature dedicated to it, and certainly always a challenge in business management. Our pets are also good at getting us to talk, right? Yes, a few pet owners will be nodding at this statement, and probably smiling at the same time. There is also something about the tone of voice. Let’s be honest, the tone we take when we talk to our pets, is a little different shall we say, to the tone we have when we speak with our colleagues. Ah! Perhaps, the world would be in a better place, if we could all speak with such gentleness to each other, but that is perhaps a discussion for another day.