It was never my intention to be the “little old lady who lives with cats”. I love critters, and I’ve always had a houseful. One morning I woke up and realized that my children had all moved away, and I was living in a house full of cats–with a couple of dogs added for interest.
But moving right along here, before we get maudlin about the whole thing, I’d like to share with you my kitties (and dogs). As we go along here, there will be real stories, a bit of poetry and a fiction story or two.
Alice, my autumn colored cat, matriarch of the clan.
Alice, my oldest feline, is a good place to begin. One afternoon a young neighbor ran up the hill to the shanty where I was living at the time. It was a late spring evening, and I had let the fire die down in the wood cooking range. Alice and her sister, Carmen, had been drenched in transmission fluid. With the fire asleep, there was very little hot water, so the poor dears had to have a very quick bath in tepid water and dish washing liquid. By the time the last of the oil was out of their fur, the two little girl cats were shivering. I wrapped them in a towel and cuddled them beneath the blankets in my bed. Exhausted, we fell asleep together.
January 25, 2012:
Alice will not be going home to the house under the sycamore. Last week, while boarding with family, she went to sleep and did not wake up. She was tenderly cared for in her temporary home, and had been sick for some time. During the spring of 2011, she had been diagnosed with a growth in her left ear that the vet pronounced in operable.
She came to us when my daughter was 16 years old, which means that she has run my household for 18 years. She is survived by a sister — a litter mate, and a daughter. She will be missed by both her feline and human family.
Articles about cats published elsewhere:
Daisy Peasblossom Fernchild 