Why Cats

Vol 2 No 21

Before I begin with an apology and the blog – I wanted to remind everyone of this:

I hope you can make it - I've wanted a student Honors Club ever since I became Director and I'm so excited that we have students with the time and energy to make that dream come true.  But they need YOUR help to make it work!  Such a great opportunity...I can't wait to see how this developed!

That said, I want to apologize for being a little late with this blog.  I blame the loss of an hour - but honestly I was just ridiculously busy last week.  But, while I DO miss that hour, at least Daylight Savings Time means that Spring is most definitely coming and your semester is probably in full swing.  Today’s blog is a little bit lighter than last week’s, though the thoughts raised in that last blog are hopefully still in all our minds.  Today I thought I would talk about cats.

Why cats?

As you have probably noticed, we have adopted cats as the unofficial mascot of Honors, with a specific focus on their eyes.  That was a deliberate choice for a variety of reasons, and I’m happy to see that the Honors Club has continued the use of cats to represent them.

Most people know that cats are associated with curiosity…in fact, we all know the adage that curiosity killed the cat.  What many people do not know, however, is that the adage has a second half.  It would not be odd for us to celebrate cats and curiosity, but the killing part is a little strange.  Not to worry, however, for the rest of the saying is but satisfaction brought it back.  The cat will live on as we continue to celebrate curiosity and the fulfilling of the endless questions that seem to drive what Honors students do and are.

Cats have long been associated with independence, intelligence, curiosity, agility, and for being amazing companions in their own, unique way.  It is hard to watch a kitten playing or a cat hunting and not be cognizant of their sense of play and their seeming insatiable desire to explore everything.  They will push their way into places where they don’t necessarily fit and they will maintain a sense of grace while they do it.  Every cat has its own personality, of course, but even the most solitary cat will often find itself ‘accidentally’ in the same room as its human companion.

In short, I have always felt that there is something very Honors-like about cats.  They are a creature of many contradictions on the surface and often misunderstood.  They carry on despite of that and often with grace and seeming indifference.  They are solitary but also social, simple and yet mysterious.  Playful and yet also content to lay sleepily anywhere that they feel comfortable.

One of the things that has always fascinated me about cats is that of all the creatures we have domesticated, we have changed cats the least.  No matter how much we love and pamper them, they will always be true to who they are.  Tigers and lions, cougars and panthers, jaguars and lynxes, cheetahs and leopards, long-haired and short-haired, calico and Persian, tortoises and tabbies – cats of any size will always be curious and thoughtful.

And that is how I see Honors students – some many different variations and yet all harboring some of the same basic qualities of playfulness, curiosity, creativity, and a sense of thoughtful mystery.

That is Honors.