Yes, I’m playing with the posting order again.  This time, I’d like to try to get a fresh sunset photo.  I have one from a few years ago, which I can always post, but I’m going to see if I can get a new one.  In the mean time, I examined the upcoming topics and “Eyes” called to me.

I talk often about my wonderful kitty, Natasha, how well she and I have bonded, and what a joy she is to have in my life.  But I almost didn’t get her, because, you guessed it, of her eyes.  And I think it’s important to talk about that.

First, the picture:

It’s not necessarily as obvious now, but if you look carefully at Natasha’s left eye, you can tell it’s a little different from her right eye.  It’s like her third eyelid is kind of stuck.  I think it was a little more noticeable when she was younger than it is today (or in October 2010 when this photo was taken).

In the Petfinder photos, this was visible, and the listing addressed it by saying something to the effect of it was from a past problem but didn’t affect her now.  Which is true. But it gave me pause when I was picking out a potential kitty.

How much more empty would my life be if I hadn’t decided to overlook a minor cosmetic anomaly in Natasha’s profile picture on the “online match site”?  (My veterinarian in AL told me he could fix it if I wanted, but I decided if it didn’t bother Natasha, why should I put her through what amounted to a cosmetic procedure?)

I will tell you it’s hard to imagine life without Natasha.  Since she’s ten this year, I can’t expect that many more years with her, so I know I’ll have to find out, but she’s a very special kitty (even if she snubs The Cat Whisperer, much to his continued chagrin).

This subject is of far wider concern than choices made when choosing to bring a new pet into our home.  How often to we look at a person and, without knowing anything about them, judge their worthiness or character based upon appearances?

We are a visual society.  How I wish this were not true.  How many opportunities for wonderful, meaningful relationships do we miss because something or someone doesn’t “look” right?  (And, really, what defines “right”?)  How many employers miss out on a wonderful employee because the hiring interviewer judges their employability based upon a physical feature that has little to do with a potential employee’s ability to do the work required for a certain job?

What opportunities are we missing because we’ve dismissed someone because they are overweight, have significant body art, have a physical deformity, have an unusual hair color or style, or don’t wear clothing we think is right for a certain situation?  Yes, sometimes those judgments will be well-founded, but how often would they be wrong?  It’s a little easier to be judgmental about things people have chosen to do to themselves, but, especially in the case of things people have no control over — body type, skin color, eye color, ethnicity, or physical variations — how can we as a people learn to ignore those things and look for the person inside the body and the value they possess?