Like a cat in the night

When I get up at night and don't turn on the lights (to keep from disturbing my wife), I have to be careful because I could trip over one of our cats. Why don't they get out of the way? Cats have great night vision and surely know I'm heading toward them. But cats are also lazy and only move if they have to move. I think the problem is that they assume we also have good night vision, like them, and will walk around them. Why wouldn't we have good night vision? Can't everyone see well in the dark? It makes no sense - to a cat.

Our cat Henry not ready to move

Well, we all know that's not the way it works. But we act like that in our own life. We're driving along in our car and surely everyone can see us. Surely everyone is as alert as we are. Surely no one is driving drunk or having a medical emergency or have an argument on their phone or falling asleep because they are coming home from work 18 straight hours at the hospital.

It's not just driving. If there is a government shutdown, why don't the furloughed workers just get a loan to tide them over? If you have an ache or are feeling sick, why not just go to the doctor? If you're lonely, why just go somewhere there are other people? These questions come from people who are either well-to-do or just fortunate.

My goal is to be less like a cat and try to think that everyone in the world doesn't have the same perceptions, abilities and benefits as I do. It's not just about driving. It's about how I interact with other people all day. The other person may be in a bad mood not because of me but because of something bad happening in their life. I need to be more empathetic and ask questions and not just offer "solutions".