April 18, 2012 8:01 AM

A birthday...or just another chance to be happy I'm still drawing breath?

If Obama wished someone a “happy birthday,” some conservatives would accuse him of hating the 99.7% of Americans born on other days.

  • Rogers Cadenhead

I turn 52 today. I say that not because I’m looking for birthday wishes, but because, as it is for many folks, milestones represent opportunities for me to reflect on my place in the world. There’s a lot I could say, but I think that for today, my task is going to be to try to separate the (not inconsiderable) stress in my life from the (truly amazing) gifts I’ve been blessed with.

There are certainly difficult things I could focus on and obsess over, but Lord knows I do enough of that as it is. No, today is for me to separate the challenges from the rewards, and if I’m honest with myself, I’m admitting that I’m one very fortunate cowboy. F’rinstance, there’s the new addition to the family….

Meet Fred. With Hilda being claimed by her owner, Erin and I realized that we were ready for a new cat, so I went to the Oregon Humane Society (please feel free to make a donation) last week and found Fred. I hate human names for cats, but it turns out that “fred” is the Swedish word for “peace,” which seems appropriate for the little guy. He’s three years old, and within 24 hours had pretty much established complete ownership of the house as his dominion. He’s friendly, affectionate, and relaxed around kids and new people. The transition has been seamless and easier than I’d thought.

I hadn’t really considered Fred as a birthday present to myself, but I couldn’t have done better if I’d actually planned to do that. Fred’s been a great addition to the family; it’s been four months since Sundance’s passing and it was time. It’s nice to have some company during the day.

Now if he’d just stop trying to get out onto the roof again….

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on April 18, 2012 8:01 AM.

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