When I was going through a particularly difficult time in my life, the person I was most thankful for was my cat. Yes, my cat is a person. She is my person, my best friend, my family. I would recommend getting a cat to anyone, because adopting my cat was one of the best decisions of my life. Why? Here are just a few reasons…

She comforts me when I’m feeling down.

Cats (and pets in general, I think) are incredibly perceptive. They know when you are feeling out of sorts and they do their best to comfort you. My cat, Lucy, will crawl on top of me and meow in my face until I smile. When I’m crying, she will come lick my hand until I start to pet her and laugh. I don’t know how she knows, but she does. She notices when I’m sad and she does something about it.

She is a great listener.

If you have something going on in your life and you just need to talk it out with someone who won’t interrupt you, a cat is perfect. I can sit there and talk to her without her interrupting me or giving me unwanted advice. She will just listen to me and let me talk until I don’t need to anymore. Another perk is that you will never be called crazy for talking to yourself again, because you can just say you’re talking to your cat!

She is always there.

People in your life may come and go, but your cat is always there for you. Your friends may love you, but sometimes they are busy. They may have other friends, a boyfriend or girlfriend, work, or something else. While they may be busy, you are your cat’s entire life, so they will always have time for you.

She is my constant cuddle buddy.

I never have a shortage of affection. As soon as I’m laying down, she is right there beside me ready to cuddle. She is always willing to lay with me, whether it’s on my chest, back, legs, etc. Who needs a boy when you have a cat?

She misses me when I’m away.

There are weekends when I go home to visit my family. I tried bringing her along with me, but she hates traveling, so I have to leave her home. My friends stop by and feed her daily while I’m gone, but she spends most of the time here by herself. As soon as I come home again, she won’t leave me alone. She is constantly meowing at me and crawling on top of me to cuddle. It feels so nice to have someone miss you while you’re away, and she always does.

She is always my dinner date.

We may be eating different food, but I never have to eat alone. She lets me pick out the food, the entertainment, the place we sit… I never have to cater to someone else’s preferences, because she is willing to do whatever I want, as long as she gets to cuddle with me later.

She is just so cute.

She’s a lot of great things, but she is so fun to look at. Unless you have a cat like the one Rachel Green paid $1,000 for on "Friends," then you have an adorable cat, because they are all beautiful. She may try avoid the camera, like any celebrity who deals with paparazzi, but I have captured some lovely photos of her. I absolutely adore her.

She loves me.

I have addressed this throughout the other reasons, but it deserves its own paragraph. I know that no matter what I do, Lucy will love me. She will stick by my side through everything. When I come home at the end of the day, she will be right there, ready to listen to me, to cuddle with me, to comfort me. My cat makes a habit of following me everywhere. I’ll be sitting on my bed doing something and she will be lying beside me fast asleep, then I’ll get up to go to the bathroom. Instead of continuing to sleep while I am in the other room, she gets up and follows me just to lay on the bathroom floor and fall asleep again. It may seem like a weird habit, but I take it as her wanting to constantly be with me because she loves me. My cat loves me so much that she doesn’t want to go a moment without being with me while I’m home. I love that.

No matter how many reasons I list, I cannot express how much I love my cat. I never understood people’s attachment to their pets until I got Lucy. The day that I lose her will be one of the worst days of my life and I am not looking forward to it. I am incredibly thankful for my cat and I am extremely happy that I adopted her. She is my family and my best friend, and I hope to keep her around for a very long time.