Cats and dogs...

Growing up in Ndola, Zambia we had two dogs - one a Border Collie and the other a German Sheppard. The Border Collie was dad's dog, he bought him when he was just a puppy and he named him Scooby. Scooby was fun was he was still my size - I think I was about eight years old when Scooby join our family of five at the time. Dad and I would bath Scooby every Saturday and run the streets with him until he was dry. When Scooby grew bigger and bigger I was frightened of him and I would not dare walk out of the house unless mom tied him to his leech. Mom's friends where going back to India and they needed a home for their German Sheppard, mom being the good Samaritan she was took the German Sheppard in. She named him Tiger, he was fiercer than Scooby and together they barked nonstop. Tiger had being with us for a few months or less when we discovered one morning that he got loose at night and disappeared into the starry night. We searched for Tiger day in day out and even went back to his previous home but there was no sign of him. When I relocated to Johannesburg, South Africa and my parents were separated - Scooby was sent to my maternal grandmother's farm on the outskirts of Ndola and it was there that he spent the last days of his dog life. He was beaten to death by a black Mamba.

More than two years ago my then three months old baby boy and I moved into a quiet Jewish neighbourhood infested with Lavender trees, Killarney. We moved into a one bed roomed corner flat and we were welcomed by a white 60 year old South African widow, Claire - she loved my son Ndashe from day one and witnessed his first crawl and walk. When Ndashe started walking he would be drawn Claire black cat that would be hanging around the doorway cubicle every time we walked past. Ndashe's curiosity to learn more about this canny black cat grew everyday and developed such a relationship with the cat - I forgot his name - that in a rush or not dare did we walk past without saying hello and goodbye. Whenever we returned home he would sometimes stay by the doorway playing with the black cat while I started cooking supper. Three months ago we moved to a new neighbourhood to be close to his new nursery school and our first day he was welcomed by a group of barking dogs which he was intrigued by - he played hide and seek with smallest of the dogs at a nearby tree. They are a few cats in the complex and whenever he sees one he is drawn by them. As for me cats or dogs. I don't mind Ndashe enjoying the company of cats but personally even though my star sign Leo is a cat I cannot be in a room infested with cats without my sinus acting up. As for dogs - if they are small, cute and friendly then they are more than welcome in my company. Dogs are man's best friend after all.

Last night I there white, black, black and white, and grey cats all over our garden duplex flat and while Ndashe's first nanny, Noreen was holding Ndashe there I was flustered trying to get them out of the flat...when I woke up this morning I was pleased to discover that this was yet another vivid dream. So been a curious being I googled cat symbolism and this is what I found:

As an ancient symbolic Celtic animal, the cat represents the guardian of the Otherworld (or Underworld, depending which texts you read from various regions). Stoic, silent and mysterious, cats fit the bill of Otherworld guardians quite well. They keep the secrets of the Otherworld eternally to themselves, as they gaze with guile upon a world that does not see or understand the depth of their knowledge. However, black cats in Celtic lore were considered evil, and were sacrificed.

In Western tradition, black cats have been associated with witchcraft. This is due to black being associated with supposed perils of the night, and the cat is associated with transformation just as the veil of night shifts our perception of reality.

However, in Ancient Rome the cat was sacred to Diana, the moon goddess. Here the cat was also considered a guardian of homes and a symbol of domestic goodness.

In Muslim lore, the cat is honoured for saving Mohammad from an attack by a fierce snake. Here it is believed the “M” marking on the forehead of many tabby cats is the mark of the prophet (”M” for Mohammad).

In Norse legend the cat is depicted drawing the chariot of their fertility goddess, Freyja, and therefore the cat is thought of as a blessing upon newborns and a good omen for those increasing their family ranks.

In ancient Egypt cats were sacred and were even depicted on the head of their lunar goddess, Bastet which was worshipped by the ancient Egyptians. In her honour, cats were even mummified along with mice for them to eat.

Here's a quick-list for cat animal symbolism:

• Astute
• Clever
• Secretive
• Mysterious
• Intelligent
• Intuitive
• Supernatural
• Watchfulness
• Selective
• Independent

Cats themselves are quite resourceful and tend to give us messages of change, flexibility of adaptability. Often, when a cat makes an uncommon appearance in our lives it is a message for us to shake up our habitual routines and make some fresh changes in our lives, as well as be more flexible in our thinking.

Cats can also be quite aloof, and this too is often a message for us to distance ourselves from people or situations. Sometimes the best cure for a problem is to step away from it - the cat inherently realizes this, and we would be wise to recognize this need as well.

Lastly, the cat animal symbolism is about mystery. Unfortunately, its unpredictability has given the cat a bad name in some areas of folk lore, specifically witchcraft. When, in actuality, this is an asset that can be harnessed by us humans.

Sometimes displaying very strange behaviour and antics, you can never really pin a cat down. Simply put, the cat animal symbolism is synonymous with creativity and psychic power because of its sometimes unorthodox & “mysterious” behaviour. This is also reflected in the Tarot deck as we see the cat in the Queen of Wands card.

The good news is, this mystery is a message to us that we have the power over illusion. Cat animal symbolism reminds us to not fall prey to false beliefs, to not be a fool out of ignorance and derive understanding from our own internal wisdom. The cat beckons us to realize that when we turn within to our own hearts, minds and souls, and trust in ourselves we will always be shown the truth of matters.