Oliver is the love of my life. He’s a great listener. He’s affectionate and always knows when I need a cuddle. He’s handsome, loyal and loves me unconditionally. He is without a doubt he is the reason I am so well adjusted after the trials and tribulations of recent past.
Oliver, or Ollie as I affectionately refer to him, is my half rag doll, half Siamese and something in between, four-year-old cat.
Does that make anything I previously said untrue or kind of weird? Weird to some I’m sure but untrue, no. Ollie came into my life at just the right time. Back in summer 2011, I had lost my sweet kitty, Ciarra, moved away from my (ex) boyfriend to take a new job and learned that my parents were separating after 32 years of marriage. My father had just returned from his third tour of duty in Iraq and needless to say, he left some of himself behind. Things at home were complicated and intense. Things with the boyfriend were just that as well. My comfort zone had been assaulted over and over and I couldn’t escape it.
Soon after I decided I was ready to find my new “furrever” companion and began searching local shelter websites. I must admit, when I first saw Ollie’s profile online I didn’t give him much thought. He was four months old at the time and looked much larger than the kitten I had in my head. It wasn’t until I visited the shelter in-person and he sat down on my lap that I knew. He was comfortable on a stranger’s lap despite having lived in a Dunkin Donuts parking lot for weeks. In fact, his shelter name was Dunkin. Now I like to pretend that he wishes his salmon flavored cat food were actually donuts and iced coffee.
Ollie sat on my lap and thoughtfully observed the room. He turned himself around to look me in the eye and give me a sniff. The adorable sniff/kiss move he still does to this day is what determined his fate. I asked if he wanted to come home and it’s as if he answered me with his eyes, “yes, please.”
He needed me and I needed him. It was a beautiful bond right from the beginning. Ollie was my silent therapist – listening, understanding and reassuring. See that’s the thing about pets. They’re true companions that ask for nothing in return. Their power lies in the ability to unconditionally love no matter how worthy you feel.
Sometimes I wish Ollie could talk back to me. But then I guess he might be like everyone else that can speak words. Maybe it’s the fact that pets can’t offer you advice or judge you that makes them the greatest companions and therapists of all. They allow you to be who you are, broken and all. They provide you with a safe place to share your feelings, or not. As humans, our first instinct isn’t always to trust one another. But on the contrary, animals begin to form a bond with us almost instantly. That willingness, that blind trust is what allows us to emotionally connect to our pets on a level that friends and family may not be able to achieve.
So I’m in love with my Ollie. I’m in love with a cat and every other animal in existence because I have experienced the unconditional love and respect that they have for us. That’s why I tell anyone who is capable of caring for a pet to rush out and rescue or adopt. You may end up saving each other or you may end up realizing how capable you are of trusting, caring and loving something else more than you do yourself. And that is the most unselfish kind of love imaginable.
Victoria Dingmann & Oliver
@toreyding
