My indoor cat got out of the house last night. In the time since this has happened I have felt uneasy and emotionally sick, and will probably continue to do so until he comes back considering how much I care about him.
Coincidentally, over the past 2 days I've been listening to lectures by Alan Watts, a Zen Buddhist. The themes of his lectures center around letting go of things you can't control and the futility of trying to change that what you can't. He says to trust the universe to handle these things on its own. I've found much comfort in his teachings in this time, as trusting both the universe and my cat to make it back safely is all I can do, though this doesn't make me feel any less sad about the situation.
It's interesting that so quickly after applying this wisdom I've been thrown the possibility of losing an animal I consider my child. What an unfortunate way to be thrown into the fire, but I suppose there's no true comfort in uncomfortable and life changing events. I'll continue to do what I can, hope for the best, and trust that my cat will come home and make me feel silly for worrying about the safety of what is half a wild animal.