How Malta Treats Its Cats Shows that Not Everything that Can Be Marketable Needs to be

My wife and I have become habitual feeders of the stray cats in our neighborhood. Several plastic bowls sit on the few stone steps to the narrow street below the front door. Filled with dry food throughout the day and wet food in the colder evenings and overnight hours, the impromptu feeding station can sometimes attract up to a dozen cats. Many have become comfortable enough to run into the house for a quick petting when we open the door to refill the bowls. We are comfortable doing so because all the neighbors also put out food, as if competing for the cats' attention.

The other day, I opened the door to find an extra plastic tupperware that was not ours. When I saw the tupperware filled with water, I quickly understood why it had been put there, without a doubt by one of our neighbors. We had been putting out solid food for the cats but had not considered that the cats would be thirsty while eating. The cats would be subject to the danger of crossing the street among occasional car traffic if they were to get a sip of water in front of another house. So the anonymous neighbor reminded us to quench the cats' thirst for their safety.

Such is but one demonstration of love amongst Malta's residents. Almost every sizeable park would have donated plastic shelters, blankets, and food for the residential cat population to live comfortably. Posters from local NGOs beckon visitors to donate money, food, and time to help the cats even more. In exchange, many cats have responded with kindness. Rather than running away every time a new human comes by, many would cuddle up, perhaps hoping for a quick snack, but often willing to just be petted and snuggled even without food in exchange.

The Maltese enthusiasm toward their feline friends is particularly noteworthy, given that cats have often become big business elsewhere. In Asian countries like Japan and Taiwan, cafes hosting a resident cat population attract customers who simply want to hang out with furry animals over coffee. There is no shortage of YouTube videos garnering millions of views and spurring the creation of cat-themed cartoons, merchandise, and other monetizable content. Tourism centered on cats, whether cat-inhabited small islands or a major city like Istanbul, is all the rage.

The rush to make money off cats elsewhere makes it even more unique that Malta has not yet taken the same route. Yes, there may be excessive numbers of tourists visiting these islands, but many seem to be pleasantly surprised by the cats after they arrive. Some may choose to pet a cat or two in between lounging around pools and walking through historical architecture. But very few specifically design their itinerary to find where the cats are. In other words, even travel professionals in Malta are loathe to commodify cats as a "resource."

That pure love, not stemming from hopes of financial gain, is something perhaps others could learn to do. Not every aspect of our collective culture and lifestyle should be subjected to business dealings just because there is potential for profit. Travel has often become experiential, centered on the ability to partake in authentic local ways of life that are, in reality, staged and exaggerated by the very same locals to make a quick buck out of fulfilling the faux desire for "local connections." But Malta's cats show us that the only way to really be authentic is plainly not catering at all to the demands of commercialization.

I can only hope that more people from elsewhere, not just within the tourist industry, can learn from how the Maltese live peacefully with feline neighbors. When I watched the movie Love Hurts last weekend, I cringed at the sight of bubble teas becoming the preferred drink of the Asian villain, the ubiquitous real estate agent ad becoming part of the props, or the comedic nuance assigned to interracial couples. The cultural underpinnings of these sometimes minor and niche lifestyle choices can be sensitive to their partakers, making them inappropriate as venues for profiteering through sensationalization.

Instead, it is worth thinking about decoupling private lives, whether it be how to feed cats, what to drink, and who to date, with what may be considered marketable content. Just like the anonymous neighbor with a tupperware full of water, sometimes actions are taken not because there are financial incentives to do so, but simply because it is a good deed from which costs will never be recouped. It is about time that those who are seeking to get ahead in their careers step back and normalize those pure moments of simple day-to-day living.