Four Cats

Mental health is something many high schoolers struggle with today. Many may look for ways to cope and for some, pets can provide comfort after a hard day. For sophomore Rebekah Easterling and their family, their cats help to keep them going through hard days.

“I really love them like they’re always just with me,” Easterling said. “They’re like some of my good friends, if I’m not doing too great, they’ll kind of just notice and they’ll just be there, it’s sweet how they just know.”

Easterling’s family has four cats in addition to the four human members of the family. They enjoy being able to come home and see the cats after a hard day and simply relax. Dealing with a school day can be hard and cause anxiety for some, for Easterling having these pets can help get them through a hard day. 

“I think pets are really good for your mental health,”  Rebekah’s mother, Amy Easterling said, “I think they can be a great source of stress relief and relaxation and they give you something to love and care about and something that loves you back.” 

Having pets allows for coping with a two-way relationship. People have something to love and give them comfort, but they can also love back. For the family, they find this mutual affection to be something they enjoy. They provide for the cats and the cats provide for them.

“Rebekah loves them so much. They are a very anxious person and the cats make them happy, which is good because I don’t like to see them sad,” Keira Kelly, a friend of Rebekah and sophomore at Holt High School, said.

Having a pet to love and care for can help keep people happy and moving forward through stressful times, which is important in many areas of life. For Rebekah’s family, their cats bring them joy and happiness. They have something to return home to and that something is waiting for them.

“I think the interesting thing about pets, in general, is that they don’t care if you’re a CEO or a janitor or you drive a nice car or you walk,” Rebekah’s father, Ray Easterling said. “They take you as you are, and sometimes it’s important for us to be reminded that we are awesome and deserve love.”