New Friends

I can hardly believe it's been over a year now since my dear cat friend Haley left this life for the next.  For most of this year it has been hard to imagine caring for another animal as I cared for her.  She was a friend, teacher, constant companion for 12 of her 14 years of life.  Looking back on our time together, I am blown away by the growth that I went through, and almost a little saddened that I did not realized how much deeper a bond could exist between me and Haley, or any other animal, until fairly late in her life.  But, that is the way of all journeys - we come to a turning point only when we're ready, and not before.  In Haley's last months, she bestowed a virtual brain dump of teachings and support on me - much of which I barely understood at the time.  Her ability to see beyond the everyday facade to the real inner me, and to see where I was headed, is the sort of thing that sometimes only another being can do for us.  So often we are blind to our own path.

While the loss has eased, I still miss her terribly, and so when the opportunity to bring two new kitties into our home arose, I was hesitant.  I literally didn't know if I could care for them, or even like them all that much.  But, as usual, kitties showed up and so eventually I came around to showing up for them.  The boyfriend's parents were graced with the visit of a stray cat last spring, who soon had kittens.  Her story will be a feature of a later blog post, since I think it's a wonderful one in its own right.  And so, five kittens later, the household was understandably a bit stretched at the seams.  We decided to take two, a girl and a boy, but yet again the best laid plans were destined to undo themselves.  In the end two girls came home with us, and one of them is a brown and white tabby like Haley.  Ugh, even harder to look at this little one and see Haley, but not Haley.  And yet, after only two days with us, they are worming their fuzzy way into my heart with a frightening efficiency!  And so, I introduce Boone (aka Joan Booner, Speaker of the House), and Squeak (aka Ms. Pippa Squeak).  Boone came by her name thanks to her first Dad, who thought she looked a bit like Daniel Boones coonskin cap, and then of course it had to be politicized for use in this city.  Squeak, quite simply, squeaks.  She squeaks all day and night - quite a lot to say, this one.  She also squeaks at the birds outside, which is utterly charming.   I am so looking forward to what these two girls have to teach us.