Everybody, everybody, everybody wants to be a cat...so sings Duchess and O'Malley and the gang in the Disney classic The Aristocats. (circa 1970)
Mr. Thomas O'Malley, alley cat, exudes charm, suaveness, courage, and self-confidence. He talks like Frank Sinatra and looks like Bruce Springsteen. I want to be O'Malley. I want to be this cat in the same way I emulated all the men in the shows and movies I watched growing up. In the same way I prayed every night "Please let me become a man overnight and have nobody ask any questions".
Perhaps it is a matter of maturity or gender acceptance, but I am woefully bereft of feel good role models to emulate these days. One could make the argument that at nearly 50 years old, I should be my own moral and character North Star. And, generally, I think I am. I stridently hope that I am a guiding compass point for my daughter. Still, I challenge you to sit down with the Aristocats (or your own pre-pubescent hero(s)) and see for yourself if it doesn't stir a longing for something (or someone) more in your heart.
