It’s occasional that I’ll find a whisker — maybe once a month, or less these days with my aging eyes — on the sheepskin, on the sofa, on the floor. Over 13 years of collecting them, I have about 300. I’ve never actually seen one fall off. I do like watching the whiskers flatten against the cat’s face when it eats. Or when the cat’s curious about something, it’ll bring all of its whiskers forward.

I always imagined I would eventually make a paintbrush with my collection of whiskers. I could probably make a few at this point. The whiskers could be put in a bamboo tube and the length of the whiskers would be adjusted. I’d have someone who knows about making things like that make the brushes — I wouldn’t really want to try it myself. And then it might be weird to use them. Maybe with ink that’s water-based, that would wash out and wouldn’t mess up the color of the whiskers.

For now, I keep the jar of cat whiskers in my bedroom, in view. It’s on top of a very old, red digital clock that hangs on the wall. I’m an insomniac, and sleep has always been tricky. I have to see the clock and know what time it is whenever I wake up. The clock and the whiskers are linked together for me, part of my desire for deep sleep, providing protection or a spell. This is just magical thinking, of course, but what else are you going to believe in?

Xylor Jane’s show “3Lakes” will be on view from Sept. 6 through Oct. 19, 2019, at Canada gallery, 60 Lispenard Street, New York, canadanewyork.com.