“Great teachers often come to us in humble packaging.”

— Linda Bender

A poem to Ixxo is a poem dedicated to my cat.

Usually, I write my blog posts on Sunday afternoon, but several weeks ago it started to feel annoying. Sunday is my computer-free day, but two days seemed too much to relax so I invented a Sunday afternoon writing session. It was more relaxing to write than to ‘work’ I thought even though it is a responsibility and people read it.

Imagine that, I said to myself, there   are   persons   who   read   your   texts!

So ego immediately flashed and rushed and said – oh girl, you better watch out for your words cause you might wanna take more time to write it, maybe you should improve it a bit, you know, finally, you are not a writer, you must…! Haha, poor old ego! But this time, I know better! I have already written texts!

Today my thanks go to those whose voices are mostly unheard and who spend their lives with us and for us. This is for all humans who are ready and have recognized the person in their nonhuman eyes, a soul, a breath, a being made of the same stardust as we all are.

          Photo: Ivana Filip, IxxoCici, one of hundreds

October is World Animal Month and if you haven’t yet experienced the beauty of the Other nonhuman being, I wish it for you with all my heart. There is an expression that they -nonhuman animals activate in humans something that we haven’t ever experienced existing in us before and something that only they can animate. I will call it an exceptional piece of a heart.

I wrote this poem for my tomcat Ixxo, my great Zen teacher who is 11 years young.

Love and thanks, 

Ivana