Look closely at the forehead. There, between those alert, green-gold eyes, lies the mark of the first cat. An “M.” Legend says the prophet Muhammad, needing to soothe a frantic serpent, placed his hand upon a cat’s brow, and the imprint of his fingers remained as a blessing. Older myths whisper it was the Virgin Mary, who gave the mark to a barn cat that kept the Christ child warm. But I prefer the Egyptian story: that the “M” is a shadow of the pyramids, a hieroglyph for Mau —the sun god’s feline form that slew the serpent of darkness each dawn.
You are seen. You are safe. Now open a can of tuna. Look closely at the forehead
And when it blinks at you slowly, in that deliberate, languorous way—know that it is not just tired. It is teaching you the oldest prayer: Older myths whisper it was the Virgin Mary,