Never Say Never
A cat’s advertised, needing a home. I’m surprised by sudden longing. I said ‘No more’ after my last darling died. I realise – two years of processing the grief; now I’ve become lonely.
L phones just then. ‘Quick!’ I say, ‘Talk me out of this.’
Instead, she says, ‘M knows of a beautiful cat needing a new home. Otherwise she’ll be put down.’
(The cat in the ad was safely in foster-care.) I phone M. Then I phone the cat owner, and arrange a ‘let’s see’ visit.
We click! We have things in common including our ideas about cat care. The family must move; there’ll be no room for Poppi. She needs her own zone: she hates and attacks their other three cats. Or she needs to be someone’s only cat. They’d rather put her to sleep than let anyone have her who wouldn’t look after her properly.
Poppi is 9, Burmese, sable coloured (dark brown that looks black to me). She is very deaf, very affectionate, and she’s a completely indoor cat. Owner explains, Burmese are too fearless for their own good so must be kept in. That suits me. I don’t want her out killing birds, or being killed by a snake.
I visit three times over two weeks so she gets to know me. At the first visit, I say, 'I'm in!' The owner does too. Poppi indicates she likes me. I let her come to me, as you do with cats. She becomes progressively more affectionate.
‘Bring her to me on the 13th,’ I say. ‘I’ll have four days free then to be with her.’ They bring all her toys and paraphernalia, some of her favourite foods, various instructions, her papers, their own palpable grief … scoop her up in one last hug, then leave quickly.
She has a good explore, then politely tells me it's her dinner time by going to her water dish and looking up at me expectantly. After dinner she settles in the bed atop her giant scratching post, parked by the window. She welcomes my strokings and scritchings.
Next morning she lies on the floor, stretches, turns over, asks for a tummy rub. I oblige ecstatically – such a sign of trust!
369 words written for Poets and Storytellers United's Weekly Scribblings #61: Starting a New Relationship.
