I have a special meditation cushion that a friend made for me out of an old corduroy shirt that I owned. I treasure it, because it has a history that goes deeper than anything I could buy in a store.

I keep the zafu on a shelf in my kitchen, and when I'm not using it, the cats like to sleep there.

Sometimes, in the mornings when I want to meditate, I let the cats have the zafu, and I sit on a simple folded blanket on the floor.

The cats think this is a good compromise, and sometimes come and lie on the blanket, too.