Essays
June
Where I Live Now
I was born in the country in Texas, but I live in Springfield, Missouri now. It is a small city near the Ozark Mountains, but not near enough. I am not a city cat.
Before we came here we lived on a quiet mountain, deep in the green woods, and I had never seen or heard the noises of a city in my life. Of course I am an an indoor cat now, and have been for seven years, but the city was still very hard for me to get used to. We have a grassy yard that I can look out on from my window seat in our enclosed porch, and most of the year I spend a lot of time out there, watching the birds and the occasional squirrel or bunny. There are no chickens out there like there used to be. I try not to look at all the traffic that I can see too. But at least it doesn't make me cringe any more.
When we first moved to our house here, we were all a little shell-shocked, and none of us could sleep at night because of the bright light pouring in every crack of drapes or door window and the constant noise of traffic. I would prowl the house looking for a quiet place, and my mothercat and sisfur would sit and look worried. Every night for weeks our Mom would get up and come in the living room with us. We would all sit on the floor together and talk and meow, and sometimes we all fell asleep there. Finally she made window quilts for the bedroom windows to keep out light, and we all started sleeping in the bed again.
I have made peace with the city, as I have with many things in my long life. Mom says we are here for good, and it doesn't bother me much any more. But I will always miss the deep, black, quiet nights on the mountain. I will always love my mountain best.
July
A Holiday on Tablerock
All the summer holidays where I live mean humans rush down the highway pulling their boats. They are all going to Tablerock Lake, about an hour from my city. It's nearly 4th of July, and I'll see them soon. A boat is a big long pointy thing that looks like lotsa fun to poke around in, and I hear they catch fish in them, too. But they go out on the lake to do that. The boat is surrounded by water, and there is no door back into your house on a boat! So I can do without the boat. As far as the fish go, Mom says they throw the little ones back in the water. What a shame! I like little fishes, yum!
We drove past Tablerock Lake when we moved here, so I know what it looks like. Big and blue like the ocean, to me, all surrounded by green hills with thick, bumpy trees that look like muffins. It's all shady and cool in those hills, and they have birds in there, which are much more fun to catch..., er, watch, than fish.
My mom says on the 4th of July it gets very noisy at night over the lake, and they shoot off Roman candles. Those are the things that go Puuf! and then make big, colorful spiders in the sky that get bigger and bigger, and reach down to try to catch cats! But the wind blows them into the hills before they can catch any. I wonder where they go then. It must be lotsa fun to watch. The lake is full of shiny boats, and the sky is all bright with stars besides. It is just beautiful there!
I watch out the window as the boats go by on their way to the lake. They shine and sparkle in the sunny heat of the day. I sometimes wish I could go, too. Then I go lie down in the cool air conditioning and dream of little fish and muffin trees for my summer holiday.
August
My Very Favorite Animal
I knew immediately what my favorite has to be! My very favorite animal is the Siberian tiger. He is huge, weighing as much as several hundred pounds, not little like me, but he is still a cat! He's a very wild cat and very ferocious. I never saw one in person, and I know I would be terrified if I did, but oh, it would be an awesome sight!
The Siberian, so I read, will not normally kill a human like the Bengal tiger sometimes does, so he must be nicer. But he is swift and powerful and easily catches large game. I have seen pictures of him, and he is so beautiful! And I am proud to even be very distantly related to such a magnificant wildcat. His paws look bigger than my head and his ropey tail looks longer than all of me together, including my tail.
He lives wild and free, but he doesn't have an easy life like I do. Still, I wonder what it would be like to hunt with him, and I wonder if his orange stripey fur is soft like mine. He can certainly roar much louder than any cat I ever heard! And oh my, what huge scary fangs he has! What wonderful deep golden eyes! I think cats are the most beautiful of all creatures, of course, but this beautiful tiger is my favorite of all.
September
Something I Don't Understand
I am a very wise and observant cat, so there isn't much I don't understand. Usually it's in the category of what humans do and make happen with switches on the wall; things like that. I know my mom can flip a switch and make light come on in the room. I don't see how exactly. There's no wire or wand running from the switch to the light, as in things that make my toys move - I've looked.
Well, I really don't like summer much, because it's so hot. When I used to go outside in my youth, it was awful out there in summer. So what I would really like to understand is about hot and cool. My mom can touch a little box on the wall and make cool air come all through the house. She can do the same thing in winter, and make warm air come, just when we want it.
But I guess she doesn't know where the box is to make the outside air better. I like to have the doors open and feel air through the screens, but in summer, every time Mom opens one it feels icky hot. Why doesn't she just find the box to fix the air out there like she does in the house? I know she can't turn off thunder and rain, cause she explained that to me a long time ago. But I know perfectly well she can make air cool or warm. So I don't understand why she doesn't just do it for me!
October
The Attack on America
We are American cats at my house. We were lucky, because we live far away from the horrible attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington on September 11. But we watched the attacks and all that came after on TV for three solid days and nights before our mom slept much. We had some late meals and not much attention, but only the first day. Mom held all of us enough to make up for it later, and tried not to let us feel stress, but we did anyway.
The evil behind these acts is unfathomable to us cats. The devastation is horrible to see. The loss of human life is unimaginable to us, and nearly impossible to bear for the people in New York where it was worst. We could not help thinking of dear Jazzy's family in Washington, and we hope so hard they didn't lose any family or friends so soon after losing Jazzy. It seemed so many families did.
We have pictures all over our house of men in our family in uniforms of the American armed forces, going back three generations. Our mom fears it may now become four. But she does not fear for our country, so we do not. She is very angry, and we understand the anger, but we don't feel that, either. She is sad, and we do feel that, but that we can help with. And we do.
Mom says that what we saw was acts of war, but that it is called terrorism. I don't understand the concept of terrorism, because I don't see terror in the humans. I see great grief and sacrifice going on, and will probably see it the rest of my life. I see astounding bravery and dedication in the humans of New York. I see men talking, talking, on TV, and can't help wishing they would do more than talk. But I guess I must believe talking humans know best. My mom finds it hard to believe.
I have been proud to be an American cat ever since I learned what that means. American is a word that means courage and strength and indomitable spirit. We know that. It seems there are evil men in the world who didn't know that, but they will.
God Bless America.
November
My Greatest Influence
The greatest influence on me of my life, all my life, has been my own furmother. Her name is BamBam, and she is 19 years old, and she is still here with me. She cared for me nearly all my life, until she became too old and tired. Now I care for her however I can. I'm a bit tired myself; we are no spring kittens. I was lucky, because I was born to her right in our home 15 1/2 years ago, and I have had her by my side all my life. How few cats are so blessed!
Everything I know about being a cat I learned from my furmother. I was a great huntress in my youth, because she taught me so well. I was a loving sisfur to my brofurs when they were alive, because she taught me. I can comfort my human mom and help her through bad times, because BamBam taught me. I am always perfectly groomed, perfectly behaved, and elegant, because she taught me. I learned about closeness and trust from her. I was a pretty wild kitten, and my furmother despaired of me sometimes, but her influence and example were so good that I turned out perfect, of course. And the main thing she taught me was about loving.
You see, I have a human Mom too, who adores and worships me completely. I love her with all my heart, and I show her how much every day. I've loved other cats, but my mom is the only human I ever loved. She tells me I am her very heart, and I understand that. My furmother is so tired and so small, smaller than me now. I can't imagine not having her next to me, but that day will come. She has prepared me, and I know my human mom will be here for me always.
But I am a total Cat, and only a cat, like my furmother, could really influence me in the ways of being Cat. So I am proud to say she is the greatest influence of my life.
December
Our Christmas Holiday
We have had big family gatherings on holidays in the past, even during my life, cause my mom has lots of human kids and grandkids. But Mom isn't doing any traveling these days, and they all live far away. So the way we celebrate holidays is different now. I like quieter holidays at home myself, and I'm glad Mom doesn't leave us.
The "winter holidays" means Christmas at my house! I always did love Christmas, especially after we moved out of Texas and had snow. I have seen some lovely white Christmases in our mountains and last year it was very snowy here, too.
The thing I love the most about our Christmas is the special Christmas tree we have every year, all decorated with kitty ornaments. It's been that way as long as I can remember. My mom will put the tree together - or she calls it a tree, anyway. Any sensible cat can tell it doesn't smell right and isn't real. But she hangs all our Christmas kitties and kitty angels on it, and every year she makes some new ones. It is really beautiful when it is done, and it has a lighted kitty angel in a white lace dress on top.
Last year, for the first time, we had so many kitty angels that Mom made the tree all angels. Some of them are even made from pictures of me, my mother BamBam and my sisfur Phelicity in our angel wings. There are special round ornaments that were made to look like us too, with the right color eyes for each of us. Mine is gold with a pink nose and green eyes! There are lots of lights on the tree, so it sparkles so pretty!
Underneath the tree, there will be presents for us girls, and they always smell like catnip! They will be wrapped in tissue paper, cause Phelicity has been unwrapping hers herself since she was a kitten. That's cause she's a little strange - she thinks tissue paper is a snack. We love to lie under the tree among our presents. Mom plays pretty Christmas music softly, and we like that, too. And we always get a special treat to eat on Christmas Day.
So our Christmas season isn't as busy and hectic as many are, but it is purrfect for cats.
January
New Year's Resolutions
I don't make New Year's Resolutions myself, because I am already purrfect, thank you.
However, I have a furless human Mom, and it has come to my attention that humans are anything but purrfect. My own is actually quite well trained and very acceptable, as humans go. I've had her for 15 years and I want to keep her. Besides, she loves me and will do absolutely anything for me.
So I decided to be helpful to Mom and make her a nice list of New Year's Resolutions that would be very pleasant and rewarding to me ...er, to her... if she would make. Modesty prevents my saying how wonderful it was of me to do this for her!
Here is my list:
I, Mom, resolve to
-1. Give Mewsette a sardine every day, whether they are good for her or not.
-2. Stop combing Mewsette's fur with all that pulling and mat-breaking, the minute she tells me to.
-3. Forget about giving Mewsette all those icky medicines, because she doesn't like them.
-4. Drop what I'm doing and come immediately whenever Mewsette wants me to follow her into another room, where she found something to complain about.
-5. Drop what I'm doing and come sooner if Mewsette goes under the table to pout, in case her feelings are hurt.
-6. Put Mewsette's warm breeze back where it belongs, at her porch window, instead of that cold rain I negligently allow to be there.
-7. Pull the refrigerator away from the wall more often, so Mewsette can retrieve all her furry mousies that somehow got under there.
-8. Leave Mewsette's basket alone and do not straighten the bedding or remove her lovely fur from it.
-9. Never, never take Mewsette to the v*t again.
There. I thought that was a great list, and quite sensible. Doing all those things would make both of us so happy! Anyway, 9 is as high as I can count. So I showed the list to Mom. Bad move.
Mom gave me that "look" that moms give you after 15 years. In fact, she was about to laugh at me, but she knew what a mistake that would be. I wouldn't have come out from under the table until February.
Well, we compromised. Mom made a resolution to keep on loving me with all her heart and all her strength for all her life. And I made the same one, to keep loving her that way. Oh. And to take my medicine without fussing.
I'm not sure if that came out exactly right. But the subject of New Year's Resolutions is closed.
Page Two of Essays