Black Cats

I had been neglecting Lao-Tzu for some time due to the festivities at the temple and when I finally made it down to the garden that evening, I found him a little peeved.

“So, what took you so long to come here?” he asked.

“Sorry, Sir, you know, we had been busy over these last few days with all the Chinese festivals.. …” “I know, I know,” he said impatiently. Then he relaxed and smiled. “It’s ok, old chap. It’s just that I missed your little cat face. We always had such a good time discussing this and that.”

“Yes,” I replied, relieved that he was not angry with me. “Tell me,” I asked. “Why do people fear black cats? I’ve been wondering about this for a long time.”

Lao-Tzu laughed. “Well, people regard black cats as bad luck because they believe they are a reincarnation of the devil! Black cats were associated with witchcraft and black magic in the olden times, you know. I see you are not black, so you don’t have to worry! “

It was certainly an interesting piece of information. I remember a couple of black cats I used to play with when I was small. As far as I know, they didn’t bring bad luck to their owner.

No, I don’t believe we cats bring bad luck to anyone. We don’t have evil in our hearts, we don’t have curses on our lips. All we ever say are harmless meow’s. We’ve only got nine lives, why make anyone miserable?