Reincarnation

I do wonder if animals can reincarnate as humans. I don't claim to know any more about the subject than someone could read in a book on Buddhism, but I still wonder if it is so. Who knows the extent of what a soul may carry from one existence to another? Some say a soul's total experiences are retained even if the act of remembering is another function altogether. Still, we are all here now. Whether animals can reincarnate as humans are not, I still believe that it is a good thing to give them good memories.

Along those lines, when they are comfortable, I take them to the family pictures in the hallway. When the cat takes a particular interest in looking at a certain picture I say the person's name and add a few words about them.

"Yes, that is "mommy's" Grandma. That is a picture of her when she was younger. She is on the beach and it looks like she is eating a sandwich. She would have liked you very much."

Y'know, that kind of thing.

Maybe none of this sinks in and it is silly. But if I were a cat (and maybe I was), I would like someone to treat my this way. But at the very least I like to think that the cat knows that it is being treating as something more supreme than the biology that defines it. Kindness. Respect. Who knows what a soul remembers. The universe is a big place.