Sunshine in the middle of winter.........

When you think of sunshine......I immediately think of the warm rays of the sun warming the chair where I sit or making patterns on the carpet.

To the handicapped it might mean an opportunity to get out without the frigid wind and cold temperatures. To the caregiver it means all an opportunity to just walk around the yard and inhale the freshness of the day.

Sunshine is also one of the best medicines to push away depression and heartache. My husband is often depressed because of the inability to do what he has always done and the lack of mobility to move where he would like to go. This morning I asked if he would like to go out into the sunshine for awhile. To move around in the yard and watch the feline residents at play.

He declined the invitation because of pain and general discomfort. Perhaps later in the day another opportunity will arise. A caregiver may feel such awakening and infusion of energy and strength in the sunshine but a patient doesn't always respond in the same manner. We have to wait and try again and hope for a change in emotional wellness.

Sunshine awakens the plants and brings new life upward and we all want the same thing for the patient. That feeling of renewal of life in the patient would be rewarding for both the caregiver and the patient. Just watching the felines that inhabit our yard you would think spring had arrived on the morning sunrise. The small kittens at play and the adults resting on the bales of hay that I have added to the yard in special places for windbreaks gives your heart a surge of good feeling.

Yes, you read that correctly. I have added bales of hay in places in the yard to provide windbreaks. Later this spring those bales of hay will retreat to the barn/shop and some will be broken up to add mulch to the flower beds. This is the first time I have purchased hay for the windbreaks but it seemed a good idea. I even like to go out and perch on a bale of hay and hold a cat or rub the back on another feline that is sitting beside me.

Just to keep the record straight. These are not my cats. They are the refuse of the unthinking people who give their children kittens and later abandon them to starvation or the wild animals. All I provide is an opening into the shop/barn so they can get away from dogs or other wild things, plenty of water (ice broken in the winter) and food (dry, canned, and table scraps). I have also constructed temperary shelters behind the trash cans and behind the hay and under benches so they are generally out of the wind and worst of the chill.

Yes, it is costly but the enjoyment and entertainment that is provided for my husband has far exceeded the cost in my estimation. We have had 2 males fixed! This I didn't know... that the males are the most affectionate of the sexes and make excellent house cats. My mother had a house cat that now lives mostly in the car garage because of her/his nasty attitude toward all others, sometimes even humans. That cats plenty of petting and attention when the other cats are not around. There is a young kitten that may also get to the vet soon because he has lived well with the other two. He came in originally because he was sick and has stayed a lot of time inside.

It has been a beautiful day. These are rare in the middle of winter. The sunshine has been warm and full bodied not thin and unfulfilling. Hope your sunshine has made you happy as well.