Signs and Wonders

I recently started a two-week class at the Annapolis School of Seamanship.  I’m attempting to earn my Master Mariner/100-ton Captain’s license and to say the least, I was very nervous and more than a little intimidated. It’s a difficult course and I’ve been out of school for several years now, so the thought of tackling such a tough curriculum was starting to feel a bit ludicrous.

I arrived at the campus (a quaint building in the heart of the city) early, ahead of any other car. I was debating whether or not to try the door and cursing myself for doing something like this when I heard the sounds of feline distress. I turned around and sure enough, a small black cat was sitting by a fence not five feet away. After I hunkered down to her level and called her, she was very friendly and came right on over for an ear-scratching and purring session. She seemed to forget about whatever it was that had been annoying her for the moment and enjoyed the adoration that most cats have come to expect over the years.

The somewhat eerie part of this experience is that this little cat was nearly a mirror image of the only cat I’ve ever owned and loved and who my wife and I had to have euthanized five years ago after an all-too-short life of four years. A black cat with seven white hairs on her chest (I counted), a clipped left ear from having been caught, spayed, and released by Animal Control, and a sweet temperament. The only difference I could find was that this particular feline didn’t have the same kink in her tail that my Lipton had. In every other respect, this kitty was identical to my own, right down to the tone of her voice when she cried.

I don’t believe in omens, at least not as the term is commonly understood (and no, not just because my first name was in those silly horror movies). My faith teaches that God sometimes sends us help unexpectedly, and I’m definitely onboard with that idea. I didn’t take this kitty’s appearance as a sign that everything was going to be all right or that things were going to turn out the way I want them to, but her presence eased my mind and distracted me with the chore of taking care of another creature. Maybe the act of taking the focus off of myself was what I needed; if so, this little black ball of fur did a marvelous job of it. 

I know this cat wasn’t my Lipton and was just a cat of the same breed.  I know it was likely just happenstance that both she and I happened to be in that parking lot at that time.  But when I walked into that building after hanging out with her for those amazing few minutes, I was calmer and considerably more confident than I had been before (and who wouldn’t be confident?  If you can get a cat to come to you when you call without offering a food incentive, you must be doing something right). I was ready for the task of that first day back at school and attacked the first round of nautical lectures with a more settled heart and mind.  And a big part of me believes that’s down to a little help from above.

What about you? Do you believe in omens? A higher power? Chaos theory? What do you think when things like this happen to you?