Aurora 2021 Mag

Eric Hubbard

Psychology in a Cat Cafe - Part Two

The first day Brynn visited the cat café, we had only been open for about a month, and while we scrambled to hire enough staff, I would occasionally work a shift in the cat room. On this particular day, Brynn and another teenager, who I will call Tina, came in for the first time to spend some time with the cats. Both young women didn’t seem to be overtly friendly and kept some distance from me; not so much a physical distance as much as just avoiding eye contact or any communication beyond what was necessary. I went over the rules, the waiver and briefly explained our partnership with the Humane Society. As Brynn reached for a pen to sign a waiver, I noticed numerous heavy, unmistakable, partially healed cut marks on her arms as her sleeve slid back from her forearm. She quickly grabbed the pen and clipboard with the waiver, and after she and Tina signed, Brynn laid the clipboard down on a table at the other side of the room and they both started the search for cats to pet. Although both young women were teenagers, I couldn’t help but notice that Brynn didn’t seem to have a youthful appearance. She seemed sad, tired, and had a look of resignation. In contrast, Tina seemed to be trying almost too hard to be uplifting and positive. By this time, my afternoon employee arrived for her shift. I left for the day, leaving Joi with the cats and the customers. We have quite a few “regulars,” but I was surprised to see Brynn back in the cat room, a week later, during Joi’s shift. This time, Brynn was by herself, sitting on a couch with her knees pulled up into her chest, her head resting on her arm talking to Joi, who was sitting, relaxed, next to her. They were alone in the cat room at first, but even after other customers started to enter, Joi would still circle back to Brynn often and they would continue the conversation. When Joi saw me on the other side of the café, she came out of the cat lounge and asked if I would have any objections to Brynn staying in the cat lounge a bit longer, as long as we were not going to be completely full. I didn’t have any objection but took the opportunity to mention to Joi what I had noticed the week before, and that she needed to encourage Brynn to talk to a counselor, or someone that could direct her to the resources she may need. Joi agreed, but said Brynn was fine today, and they were just having a fun conversation about the cats. Over the next few months, Brynn became one of our “regulars,” and her friendship with Joi had grown to the point where they would meet at the café even when Joi was not working, so that Brynn could practice a speech for a class or get some help with math homework.

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