How would you view a cat? There are of course, cat lovers, and those who go all the way to help them, bringing injured cats to the vets, paying for their medical bills, feeding them, and finding ways to ensure their well-being. And these are the people who will do the same for other animals in similar plight, just that, the cats are the creatures that open their hearts to this path.
Then there are those who joke and laugh at these people and consider them trivial or overly-sympathetic to a non-issue (or pests) as remarked by Class 95 FM Morning Express Glenn Ong and the Flying Dutchman, that "stray cats should be sent to Peru to be eaten and stray cat feeders should be fined." Of course, they were only trying to get attention, to show how nonchalant they are, or to perpetuate their radio personalities. Whether they will eat the cats in Peru or not is another question. There are others who worry instead that their brand new cars would be scratched by the cats or that cats are filthy and will spread disease, etc. Then they are those who abuse the cats, torturing and killing them with imagination. Lastly, we have the "authorities", the AVA and the town councils who seem to be the slaves to people with lots to complain. The cats were culled during the SARS episode without contacting any animal groups, and they have traps for rent for anyone who wants to get rid of cats who might be scratching their brand new cars. (Cats don't really want to scratch metallic bodies. It's just not their thing or yours. Try scratching your car and see if you derive any kind of joy in it).
So how do you view a cat? Everybody looks out their own window. Everything external is everything internal. Everything has to be manifested as a thought first before it can become a speech, an action, or a feeling. If a certain thought is repeated and reinforced enough times, it becomes part of who you are. In short, the feelings and thoughts come automatically and "naturally" when a particular situation occurs - you are what you say, do or feel. For some, the egos are a too inflated, so it's easier to trivialize things. This makes them feel bigger and above all these "little" things. If for some reason, their ego or pride is taken away, they will struggle and this may be a good thing. For others, material things are more important than life. If you value your Mercedes Benz more than the lives of cats, it's equally true that you value material things more than your own life. If you lose your wealth, you will struggle terribly but you may learn more about life wahahaha! And for people who torture and kill cats, their lives are filled with fear (fear of life, of being a nobody, and have a very weak sense of self), and hence the irrepressible need to cover that fear with power, anger, hatred. If that fear is removed, then there will be nothing left to cover up.
Well, as for the cat lovers, there's nothing that we can take away from them. Their compassion and love are theirs to give away, and in that way, they receive much more. Sometimes, it seems easier to help cats or dogs as they are simple and pure, with no hidden agenda. If we can recognise that in them, then we have also recognised it in ourselves. People are always more complicated. Perhaps, when we have become strong enough, we can recognise this in other people and help them recognise it too. We are not that different.
At the end, we only receive what we give, good or bad.
In the act of interpreting the universe, we are creating the universe...
;)
About the exhibition...
