We owe to cats a debt beyond the grasp of gratitude for all that they have done and are doing to promote thrift and financial self-control in this spend-crazy time of year.
Savannah, the newcomer in our lives, takes endless pleasure from a crumpled sheet of brown, kraft paper and a length of cord. She hides the string in the paper then pounces in to pull it out again. Over and over.
The paper came as padding in a box of calendars from the printer. The cord is one we made years ago, to hang a tassel. Two bits of scrap material that would normally be thrown away.
Somewhere back in memory I keep my own recollection of playing less with the Christmas toy than the box it came in. Especially if the box were bigger than me. I think the difference was simply this: the toy contained someone else’s imagination, whereas the box gave me a place to invest my own.
Clearly the cat sees it the same way. It is cheaper fun, and better, when you create it yourself.