10/02/2025
๐พ ๐๐๐๐ข๐ช๐๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ฅ ๐จ๐ก๐๐ค๐จ๐๐ก๐๐ฆ๐ฆ
My cat is a character.
Six months ago, Monica Rose showed up at my door after a hard snow. She was cold, hungry, and curious. Now, sheโs part of the rhythm of my daily life. She follows me from room to room, โhelpsโ me work at my desk, and purrs so loudly at night that I can hear her through the walls.
But hereโs the thing: sheโs not a cuddler. She doesnโt like to be held. If sheโs unhappy, sheโll bite. She talks constantly until sheโs fed or heard. And sheโs been known to chew the corner of a good book when Iโm not home.
I could focus on all the things she isnโt. I could label her โdifficultโ or โbad.โ
Orโฆ I can understand that she had no mother to model cat behavior, no early nurturing to shape her mannerisms. She came as she was.
So Iโve learned to give her space to be Monica Rose.
Not trying to make her a lap cat. Not forcing affection where it doesnโt belong. Just making room for her to be who she is โ and loving her within that space.
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โค๏ธ ๐ง๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก๐ฆ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ก๐ฆ๐๐๐๐ง
This isnโt just about a cat.
Itโs about how we treat people โ especially the ones closest to us.
In relationships, we often expect our partner to fit into the version we imagined theyโd be. We tighten our grip, push for more cuddles, more compliance, more โwhy canโt you justโฆ?โ moments.
But love that thrives allows room. It doesnโt mean we accept harmful behavior โ it means we stop trying to mold the other person into our preferred design. We make space for their history, their wiring, their quirks.
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๐งโโ๏ธ๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐๐ก ๐๐ซ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐
I worked with a couple once where the wife loved long, deep conversations at the end of the day. Itโs how she connected. Her husband, on the other hand, would come home from work mentally exhausted. Heโd retreat to the garage for 30 minutes to decompress before engaging.
She took this personally for years โ reading it as rejection. He felt smothered โ as if he couldnโt be himself.
When she began to allow space for his unwinding ritual โ without judgment, without chasing โ something shifted. He started coming inside sooner. He was more present. She felt safer.
Why? Because love doesnโt thrive under pressure. It flourishes in space, understanding, and acceptance.
โจ ๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก
Where are you trying to mold someone instead of making space for who they are? What would change if you allowed more room โ for them, and for yourself?
๐ Stay tuned โ this is the first in a short series of reflections inspired by life with Monica Rose ๐พ and the lessons sheโs teaching me about love, attachment, and growth.
Daniel Clark - Transformational Coach
Living Life Abundantly
๐๐ข๐ก๐ก๐๐๐ง ๐ช๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ -
Learning about who you are how to be the person you can be? Relationships fall apart when we focus on the other person and not our own behaviors. Maybe our conversation can spark the change you need https://danielcclarkcoachinghba.com/application
๐ช๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ ๐ฌ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ช๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฅ-
This is where I share strategies and a deeper understanding of relationships and how they affect who we are: https://link.danielcclarkcoachinghba.com/sp/29535349b2c
