Cat and Mouse

Saw something today kind of sad, but understandable and necessary.    Something that most people would not care to watch or maybe would turn away in disgust.  I have to admit it was definitely not a pleasant sight, but for some reason, I could not stop watching. 
It was curiously compelling battle between a tiny barn mouse and local barn cat.  A battle of one creatures desire to live, and one creatures desire to hunt.  Any other day - I probably wouldn't have looked twice but this little mouse was something else.   This mouse was up for the fight, and was not going to give up. 
The cat had must have bitten it on the spine as it looked like the mouse could only get around by dragging itself with its front legs. Despite repeated swipes from the cats claws, the mouse made every effort to drag its half paralyzed body away from its attacker. Of course the damage was irreversible, and the cat was just "playing" with its prey.  To the cat, the job was done.  Despite the paralyzing bite, the mouse still had fight in it.  With every swipe, the mouse would still use its front legs to turn itself towards the cat and attempt to fight back with its sharp little teeth.  Again, and again, the cat would reach towards the mouse, and again, and again, the mouse would try to bite back.  This went on for a very long time.  I felt sorry for the little bugger.
Don't get me wrong.....I have no intentions of setting up a neighborhood shelter for mice. I would rather NOT have any furry little rodent crawling around my house thinking my home is a welcome refuge from the winter winds or a safe haven from the neighborhood cat.  There will be no TLC channel broadcasting the Thursday night special on me the "mouse hoarder" any time soon.  Hmmmm......I shudder to think, that there really may be someone like that out there somewhere........
Anyway....... It just got me thinking about the cycle of life. Got me thinking for a moment of how many times this battle is played out in the run of a day.  Are we the "cat" or are we the "mouse"???   Do we let things play out the way we think it should  in life? or do we fight to the very last breath?  Is there anything that we could have changed that would have prevented that "paralyzing" last bite in our own personal "battles"?  Or do we just give up and let the cat win?
The cycle of life is not always pretty.  But it is necessary.  Despite this, with every death, it is replaced with a new birth somewhere.  Some where again, there will always be that renewal, that cycle.   And of course, another new cat and mouse........