A Woman and a Cat on a Bus

A few mornings ago, I took the bus into work. I settled into my seat and began to read my book. All of a sudden I heard a cat’s meow. Thinking I was hearing things, I looked up and around the bus to see where the meow was coming from. I’m not even sure pets are allowed, but there it was, a cat in a blue plastic carrier, very similar to the one Lisa and I have for our cats. Next to the cat in the carrier was a thin, poorly dressed woman. She had a large bandage on the opposite side of her face that partially covered her left eye. Her right hand was covering her face and she was looking down as if she might be feeling ill.


I thought it was strange that I had not noticed the woman with her cat when I boarded the bus and took my seat, but then I rarely look at my fellow passengers when I’m riding the bus. I normally just want to read or listen to my MP3 player for the 18 minutes it takes to get downtown, but the cat’s meowing got my attention. Now, I could not help focusing on the woman. Immediately, a scenario of pain, grief and sorrow came to me. Without knowing why, a story began playing out in my head. The woman never looked up, but I could FEEL it was her story.

The story went like this: She was alone, except for her cat. She had lost her job and then she was diagnosed with cancer. The prognosis was not good. Perhaps she had only a few weeks or months. She was about to lose her home. Her one last thing was to find a new home for her beloved cat. She was taking it to the City Shelter in hopes that someone would take her cat and care for it. Soon, she would no longer be able to provide for it. She had no one, no friend she could trust, so it had come to this. She was feeling tired and ill. Her head hurt and she could not bear to see the other passengers staring at her bandaged face and her meowing cat in the blue carrier.

I still don’t know why I was given that impression. Perhaps she wasn’t dying of cancer. Perhaps she just had a headache or she was in pain from the recent surgery. Perhaps she was just taking the cat to a vet for a checkup. I see women and small kids loaded with strollers and bags of groceries get on and off the bus all the time. I had to finally realize that not everyone has a car. So why was this woman and her cat so heavy on my mind? Why that particular scenario? Why so personal and why was it directed toward me?

As I sat there in my seat, I was flooded with images of my three cats, Spike, Sylvie and Babs. My heart ached at the thought of ever having to give them up because I was alone and dying. I have my wife, our house and a wonderful life. Life is good for us. I suddenly felt very thankful for my many blessings. I realized in that moment that the life we have is so fragile and our time on this earth is so short. One illness, the death of a spouse, the loss of a job and I could be that person sitting across from me.

My stop was next and as I got up to leave the bus, I looked back one last time. I’ll never know her story for sure, but it made me feel so grateful for all that I have and how insignificant my problems now seemed.

Perhaps that was the point. We only have the day…this moment…this NOW.

Food for THOUGHT…