Books to Blogs #23
Book: 3001Question All About Me
Question#: 321
Prompt: “Who have I told my biggest secret to?”
According to this prompt, I should have one.
The problem is, I couldn’t think of one.
When I read the prompt, my mind immediately started searching for some dramatic confession or life-changing secret that I had carefully protected for years.
Nothing came.
I sat with it for a while and wondered if I was missing something.
Do I have a big secret? The truth is, I have always been a fairly open book.
If something is weighing on me, I usually talk about it.
If I am excited about something, I share it.
If I am struggling, chances are I will eventually write about it, discuss it with someone I trust, or work through it out loud.
That doesn’t mean I tell everyone everything. There are parts of my life that are private. There are stories that belong to other people. There are experiences that I hold close until the time feels right to share them.
But private and secret are not always the same thing.
As I thought about it more, I realized that if I have shared any secrets over the years, they may not have gone to another person at all.
For some people, that trusted listener is a spouse, a best friend, a sibling, or a journal. Someone who can hold their thoughts, fears, and dreams without judgment.
For me?
It may have been a cat.
If you’ve ever shared your life with animals, you probably understand.
Looking back, I have probably shared more random thoughts, worries, dreams, and frustrations with cats than with most people.
Over the years, they have been quiet companions through many chapters of my life. They have sat beside me through celebrations, disappointments, difficult decisions, and ordinary days when I simply needed a moment to think.
They never repeated a secret.
They never offered unsolicited advice.
They never told me what I should do.
They simply listened in the way only a cat can—usually while pretending not to pay attention at all.
I currently have three cats. One of them is the photo for this post.
Over the course of my life, I have had far more cats than dogs.
Maybe that’s why this answer feels so fitting.
Cats have always been there in one form or another, quietly occupying a corner of my world while I sorted through whatever was happening in my life.
Patches may not know all of my secrets, but she has certainly listened to more than a few of them.
The more I reflected on this question, the more I realized that maybe the absence of a big secret is something to be grateful for.
I don’t spend much energy maintaining different versions of myself for different people.
What you see is generally what you get.
I am not perfect.
I am still learning.
I still have things I keep private.
But I have never felt called to build a life around hiding who I am.
Maybe that is the real answer to this prompt.
I don’t know if I have a biggest secret.
And if I do, I probably told it to a cat.
Reflection Questions:
- Who is your trusted listener?
- What’s the difference between being private and being secretive?
- Have you ever shared your thoughts with a pet?
- Are you an open book, or do you keep your cards close to your chest?
- If your pets could talk, what stories would they tell about you?
Theresa
Flexible Being
Empowering Your Journey to Healing, Clarity, and Self-Discovery.
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Theresa Martinez-Shapiro
Theresa Martinez-Shapiro is the founder of Flexible Being, a Reiki Master, Certified Oracle Guide, intuitive mentor, and writer based in Stockton, California. Through Musings of a Flexible Being, she explores healing, mindfulness, relationships, intuition, and personal growth with a grounded yet spiritual approach.
