Daily Photo Reprise: To Sleep, Perchance to Dream, 2011

July 15, 2017July 17, 2017 Bernadette

Just because it’s one of my all-time favorite photos of Sunshine having a summer nap on his back…

No living creature sleeps better than a cat. Out of my cats, Mr. Sunshine, seems to sink deepest into dreamland, rolling on his back and simply collapsing into whatever heap of plushy black fur his limbs go to, toes curled, mouth open, all afternoon. I often wonder what sweet dreams his feline imagination composes for his unconscious enjoyment; he is motionless, not running or nursing or doing anything in his sleep, just slowly breathing. I imagine him imagining himself sleeping in some quiet field in the sunshine with a light breeze and birds singing.

He usually does this on top of the file cabinets in front of the window where I can turn to watch him in repose, a little tingle of jealousy in my belly; but I like what I do, I enjoy spending my days in pursuit of truth and beauty and, I’ll admit, enough almighty dollars to pay the bills, I really wouldn’t want to sleep my life away. No, I wouldn’t, and I’m happy Mr. Sunshine is here, sleeping his life away on my filing cabinets instead of some less desirable alternative.

When I first took this photo I was so angry with myself for framing it badly, not capturing the lower part of Sunshine’s head and body, and while I liked the focus on his nose and the softened focus on all else, I thought it would have been a better photo with all the rest of him in there; in fact, it might just be confusing cropped the way it was. But the photo stayed with me for days and I realized it was absolutely perfect the way I’d shot it, the nose, the curled paw, the relaxed hind paws, the tail stopped in mid swash when he fell asleep. I cropped the excess from the top—a tall, narrow image was what I’d been angling for—and left him in a heap at the bottom. As I said above, it’s one of my all-time favorites.

Art and Gifts featuring cats you know! Visit Portraits of Animals

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Feline Photos from Portraits of Animals!

Oh my goodness! I think that needs to be her name. Every time I look at her that’s what I say because she’s so cute. Ophelia is a formerly feral foster who came to me in September 2015. By July 2016 she was pretty relaxed, as you can see. But she is such a bundle of cuteness that she has to think her name is “Oh My Goodness”! That cuteness got her adopted by a very understanding couple who adore her every move. Read more, and purchase.

Copyright

All images and text used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission, although links to your site are more than welcome and are shared. Please ask if you are interested in using and image or story in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of an image or a product including it, check my animal and nature website Portraits of Animals to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.