Racing dogs and resting cats
I’m a resting cat amongst racing dogs.
Unlike those around me, I care not for chasing the mechanical rabbit; because I know it can never really be caught. Even if you could catch it, what would be the point? There will always be another rabbit the next day, and the day after that…
I just want to get off the track. I already feel like a spectator, but I was born into the race; a race which is never won because it is never over. A race which has only a few cats; amongst many, many dogs.
Each morning and every evening, between the states of race and rest, I contemplate how I might win the race whilst staying true to my feline nature. But it’s so difficult being a cat in a world ruled and fuelled by dogs.
Dogs hate cats you see. Not because they fear harm from us, but because of our lack of interest in the rabbit, and thus the race, is a subtle reminder that their goals and aspirations are ultimately worthless.
Socially, cats and dogs are very similar. But these dogs were born and raised in the race and competition is a force which drives things apart.
Competition encourages you to see yourself as separate from everyone else. Due to this separation and the motivation of competition, we cannot help but judge others in terms of their success and failures.
Thanks to all of this, classes came to exist, simply as a means of placing ourselves and others within a social hierarchy. This is simply a bi-product of living within the race. You see, in all competitions, there are winners and there are losers.
At first, this may be difficult to believe, but winners and losers are not all that different. The ones that are really stuck in the race are those in the middle. Let me explain..
The fastest dog is closest to the rabbit. The closer it gets, the more it realises that the rabbit hasn’t met its expectations, that it’s a fake.
But this dog is a winner, and through its success has won the respect of its family, the jealousy of its peers and the admiration of its fans, as well as vast financial wealth.
Because this winning dog was born and raised in the race, it has found itself in a dilemma. Having lost its desire for the rabbit, should it continue racing? The fear of losing its accomplishments is horrifying and it has never known how to live without desire for the rabbit.
And so the winning dog has a tendency to continue racing without the love, passion and desire it once had.
At the back of the race are the losers, some of which are so far from the rabbit that they can hardly see it at all.
Because the rabbit is so far away, and there are so many other dogs to overtake, they lose interest in the rabbit because the likelihood of ever catching it is miniscule.
But these dogs are still caught up in the race. They end up hating the race for making them losers and loathing the winners for being closer to the rabbit.
Now the dogs which are most caught up in the race are those in the middle. The rabbit is close enough that they can almost grasp it, but still too far for them to realise that it’s all fake.
They struggle to take over the winners and stay ahead of the losers. Looking up at those ahead and down on those behind. In the heat of competition, they secretly resent one another, putting down those who threaten their position and taking advantage of those who might help propel them forward.
So, the winners and the losers are the dogs which, after losing interest in the rabbit, are most likely to become cats. But this depends on whether or not they can see outside the race.
In the meantime, we resting cats continue to watch the racing dogs chase their rabbit round and round, hoping that one day they can all stop, look at the beautiful world around them and realise that the race is just a distraction. A never ending game.
Planet Snooch 