Dear Human 💕,

I know that you feel like you are broken and shattered into pieces. You feel like you are not who you used to be. You feel like you don’t know who you are anymore. You can’t appreciate yourself for you who are and you can’t see what you contribute to the world. I am sorry you’re going through this, and I am here to help you get to know yourself again.

The pieces are still there, so let’s put them together. We’ll leave out some that we don’t want anymore (to hell with perfectionism, goodbye inner tyrant). And we’ll add some new ones (treat yourself like you treat your cat, be your own coach). We will create a new version of yourself. Let’s make it even better than it used to be.

It’s difficult to appreciate yourself, your strengths and abilities, or achievement when you’re depressed. You have a very distorted view of yourself right now. All you can see are your weaknesses, shortcomings, and failures. So, I took what I appreciate about you and I asked those that know you best and love you to help out, your family and friends. I want to show you yourself with our eyes.

Here’s what we appreciate about you:

• You are a very considerate human.
• You treat other creatures with kindness and respect. Mosquitoes and ticks seem to be exceptions.
• You try to understand and consider what others need. Although you could be better at understanding, when I need more treats.
• You try to be aware of the feelings of others.
• You are good at reading creatures and their emotions and you can empathize with what they are feelings. You always seems to know when I am relaxed, excited, or terrified.
• You like to support and help others. Just look of all the things you’ve been helping me with. Cleaning the litter-box and all the litter I kick out of it, opening the cans that lock away my food, getting that annoying robot to suck up all the hair I shed, all the cuddles, and getting the red dot to appear.
• You give great chin scratches and gentle belly rubs.
• You are reliable. I can always count on you.
• You are good at figuring things out. When the green ball is stuck, you always figure out how to get it back.
• You think things through before acting. You stay calm and don’t react impulsively. You never panic when you hear the doorbell.
• You always strive to deliver excellent results.
• You always strive to improve. How many times did you try to beat your “That’s pretty Clever” score?
• You’re ambitious and you have grit. You like to finish what you started. If you want to finish something, you’re not giving up. You achieved a lot.
• You’re a great travel buddy. From what I heard at least. I certainly prefer that you stay at home.
• You’re curious and open-minded. You like to explore new places, try new things, you read all those books and even take notes. You always hear me out.

See, that’s a lot we appreciate.

Meow. Meow. You think that’s “who you used to be” and not who you are anymore. Really though? Well, for now let’s assume that at least some of it might be still true.

Let’s assume you have some curiosity left in you. Be curious about yourself. Explore who you really are and be honest with yourself. Forget about what others expect of you and what you think you should be.

• What is really important to you?
• What is meaningful to you?
• What do you stand for?
• What inspires you?
• What do you enjoy?
• What is fun for you?
• What makes you laugh?
• What makes you feel alive?

You will not have all the answers right now. That’s okay. Stay curious and notice what comes up as we go along. It’s work in progress. Meow. Everyone is work in progress. We will keep working on that new picture of yourself.

I am looking forward to getting to know the new you.

Yours,
Cat 🐾.

P.S. Of course, some weaknesses came up too. That was expected. You’re human and imperfect. We’ll ignore those for now. We’ll explore what you could improve about yourself, when I successfully convinced you of your strengths and you accept yourself the way you are.