Dancing with Darkness

Dancing with Darkness: A Feline’s Guide to Confronting Inner Demons

Often we hear heartwarming stories about the companionship and love 🐾 pets bring into our lives. Today, I want to share a less conventional tale – how my cat, Cleo, saw me through a transformative “dark night of the soul” 🌌.

*Meet Cleo, my faithful ‘demon wrangler’*

It began last year, when I found myself consumed by a destructive bout of anger 😡. I was in deep resistance to the circumstances of my life, waging an internal war against reality. Opting to fully engage with these intense feelings, I secluded myself. Behind closed doors 🚪, I created a space to let it all out.

In this tumultuous dance with my darkness, Cleo, my four-legged “demon wrangler” 👹, bravely joined me. What transpired next was a roller coaster of emotions – both terrifying 😱 and empowering 💪.

Fuelled by my palpable fury, I allowed myself to embody this anger in its rawest form. I stomped around, breathed like a beast 🐺, and tore items to shreds with my bare hands 🤲.

As I unleashed this primal rage, my body seemed to respond in kind. It felt as though my muscles 💪 swelled, my height increased – I was transformed into an aztec warrior ⚔️, vengeful and ready to decimate any obstacles in my path.

At one point, I glimpsed my reflection in the mirror of my dark bedroom 🕰️. The face looking back was unfamiliar, seemingly possessed by this inner demon.

Persisting, I let the anger rage further, growling 🐻 and screaming with unabated intensity. It felt as though I was in the throes of an epic battle, fighting my own personal apocalypse 😈.

In the pitch black corner of my closet 🚪, I dared the darkness to confront me. I called to it… 📣, bracing myself for whatever might arrive from the abyss.

Then, the unexpected happened.

Cleo, seemingly oblivious to my emotional turmoil, leaped onto a nearby shelf, cooing softly 🐦. Her sudden, innocent presence startled me, breaking my trance. I had anticipated facing a monster of my own creation, but instead, found sweetness and compassion in the eyes of my dear feline companion.

The harsh reality of my internal struggle was suddenly highlighted by Cleo’s tenderness. Overwhelmed, I broke down, weeping 😭. I saw the profound grief that was the undercurrent of my rage, a protection mechanism that had spiraled out of control.

Cleo’s gentle nudges encouraged me to let go of the warrior’s facade, to soften, and to gradually return to my “normal” self. It was a process that took weeks of reflection and integration, but eventually, I emerged from the experience with a newfound perspective or rather, a new “PURRRRrspective” 🐈‍⬛💖.

In retrospect, I realize that my dance with darkness was a necessary journey, a confrontation with buried emotions that needed to be addressed. And Cleo, my brave little “demon wrangler”, was instrumental in reminding me that it’s okay to feel, to rage, and also to heal. The presence of pets in our lives isn’t just about companionship and love, but also about the silent understanding and healing they bring, often in ways we least expect.