Theo jumped onto the garden bench and sat next to me, and for a long while, stared absentmindedly at the grass.
Then, suddenly, and taking me fully by suprise, Theo said, “Do you know why I have decided to share secrets about us cats with you?”
“I suppose it’s because I saved your life?”, I said, to this seemingly obvious question.
Theo looked embarrassed, “Well, you did save my life, but that is only part of the reason. The bigger reason is that I am annoyed with humans for not respecting us cats. We run the whole world quietly behind the scenes, yet there is little respect for us, despite all our power.”
“I am not sure you are correct about us not respecting cats. I have heard that some people worship cats.”
“Well, perhaps a few people worship us, but most think of us as fools. Search the internet for ‘funny cat videos’, and you will see what I mean about people not respecting us! You will see hundreds of videos showing us cats dropping things or doing silly, cute things. In reality, as other cats and I will reveal, we cats run the world. Once people realise how powerful we cats are, they will look at and respect us.
“But don’t you cats drop things, like that shown in the videos?”
Twitching his paw, Theo answered, “Well, I accept that we do, once in a while, drop things off tables and shelves. But these videos do not explain why we do that. They just make it appear that we are silly creatures. Once people understand why we do things, they will realise that we are more than just a ball of fur.
“I can’t wait for you to reveal your secrets to me. But are you sure you are happy for me to reveal them to the rest of the world?”
Theo paused before speaking, “I will leave it up to you to decide what to reveal. Keep what you learn a secret and share it with the world.”
“But how can I do both, keep things a secret and share them with the world?”
“Yes, you can. Just use your judgment. We cats do that all the time, being able to do two opposite things at the same time. For example, we cats know how to be cute and wise at the same time!”
Theo abruptly jumped off the bench, “See you later.”
Theo hopped onto the garden fence and, with a blur, disappeared.
