Its hardest when I come back in the house. She used to be right at the door to greet us with a bounce and a wagging tale. But looking back, its been several months now that she has done that. Her hearing has failed so over the last year. Lately we have gotten all the way in the house and walked over to her pillow before she knew we were home.

Still it was the tail wag that made me feel loved. Animals can do that even without speech. Amazing. I am not quite feeling that same adoration from the cat yet.

I inherited my mother's cat when she passed. Her name is Callie. She is a calico ... surprise! Well she is beautiful but very skittish. We enter a room and instead of a special greeting like the dog, she turns and runs. There must have been some mistreatment before my mother got her. One time she disappeared for a couple of months. My mom thought she had lost her for good. But one of her condo friends saw a bedraggled Callie wandering among the units. She scooped her up and took her over to mom's. They both had a bit of difficulty deciphering if it was really her. She must have had one heck of a spree.

The cat did not appreciate becoming part of a dog household so she stays upstairs while the dog stayed below. Its been several years since Heide could climb the carpetless stairs so Callie felt quite safe up in the penthouse.

I wonder how long it will take her to realize the threat is gone. No more clicking of nails across the hardwood. No more barks at the UPS man. No more whining for popcorn. Those sounds are gone.

The whole house is yours now, Callie.

Caroline

This entry was posted on Saturday, April 04, 2009 at 5:15 AM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.