If animals could talk what might they say

JOURNEY OF A WAYWARD CAT


She might say this.

What happened to me back in March 2010? Well I often have dark lingering flash backs from my unhappy kittenhood. My memory seems to be a bit blurred from those days. Perhaps it's better not to dwell on that unpleasant time. I do remember some of my survival, being on the side of a dirt road, and feeling the sensations of pain, cold and hunger. I could hear the loud sounds of cars flying by me, so I dragged myself back from the road behind some bushes to keep out of sight. After reposing myself and licking my wounds, I got up and limped on down the road a ways. I quickly came upon an old abandoned house, with a large opening under the foundation. Along side the old house was a brook. Wow I thought "shelter and water close by. this would be a great place to hunker down, now all I need is food". After checking out my new prospective shelter, from the backyard I climbed up a steep bank over grown with trees and shrubbery. When I reached the top of the bank I discovered a small gray house, which appeared to be occupied. Oh fooey I thought, I'm not alone. After stealthily crawling about the bushes observing the residence from day to day, I came to the conclusion that only 1 person and 1 cat lived there. So I thought if I keep out of site, perhaps we could share the area. So upon my daily hunting expeditions, I also kept a close watch on the residence to learn their habits.

One warm sunny spring day as I crossed the clearing around the house, I heard a shrill voice yelling "here kitty, kitty, kitty" I quickly discovered the sound was coming from an open window in the house. When I saw her in the window, I thought oh no I've been made! I broke into a bounding leap and ran for my life. After getting far enough away I stopped to catch my breath, thinking "On no an encounter with an atrocious human. And here kitty, kitty, kitty, what's that all about?" It must be what they say when they want you gone. And I'm sure she wants me gone? Why else would she yell at me with that horrible shrill voice. After that incident I decided to only approach that area in darkness. And every night since that day I began picking up a pungent aroma of food. The odor always led my nose right to her back deck. So every evening I made it a daily ritual to visit her back deck and gobble up a big plate of food. And as time went by I noticed that I was no longer a scrawny runt with thin scraggly fur. I was growing and feeling very robust and healthy. As the days grew longer, I found it difficult to wait until dark to check out the back deck. So I began checking around the bushes to sniff out the area before nightfall. If the food was there, I would run up, gobble up, and run away. It worked out well for awhile, until one day, as I approached the deck and I discovered her quietly sitting there. Well that was a shocker and a big disappointment. And to add insult to injury, when she went back in the house, she brought the food back in with her. One evening I could smell that fresh hamburg all the way down to my shelter. And I made up my mind, I'm having some of that meat! So up the bank I went. As I stealthily crept up on the deck, she sat quietly on a swing, not even looking at me. She showed no interest in me, so I crawled towards the bowl of meat. After I gobbled up every morsel I quickly crept away. After that I decided if I had to, I would go for food, while she was there. As days went by she just quietly sat there, as I quickly ate. After awhile I no longer crept up to the deck, feeling more at ease with her, I just walked up. One day after I finished eating, she moved her arms about and threw me some extra morsels of meat. As I scoffed them up, I was not even aware how close I was to her feet. I guess that was when I realized I had nothing to fear from her, and it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Every evening before the sun went down, I would rush up to her deck for a big bowl of meat. And after I filled my belly I would rub myself against her as she gently stroked my fur. She was the first kind human I had ever met. And so far she is the only human I trust. When she spoke to me she often used the word Ezzabella. It seemed she only used that word when referring to me. So when I heard her call Ezzabella, I would run for her deck, and there she would stand with a big bowl of food.

When the summer passed and there was a chill in the air, she invited me into her house. I thought it might be nice to live in such a grand shelter with her. But upon my concern to this other cat that lived with her, I thought not. You see I had encountered this cat out in her yard several times, and it wasn't pleasant. She was mean, territorial and she chased me away. So when I approached the residence, I always had to be on the lookout for her. How could I possibly cope with such a territorial critter?

As the days got shorter it got very cold, and along with the cold weather came the snow. Some nights it got so cold, I ached right down to my bones. Getting through the snow to her deck got more and more difficult. One very cold day when she opened her door with some food for me, my paws were so cold I kept picking them up. She put the food in her hallway, so as I reached in to eat it, I felt great relief for my frozen paws. As I began munching on some chopped steak, I was not aware that I was actually in her house. Then I heard the door shut, and when that door shut behind me, I was very confused and frightened. At first I refused to eat and I refused to move. After an hour went by, I finally gave in and followed her to another room, and that door shut as well. Okay I thought, I've been abducted by a human I thought I could trust. I looked around, and saw no presence of the ill tempered cat. My first strategy was to hide, so I ducked under the bed. I stayed there all night, and as strange and discomforting as it was to be locked up, at least it was warm. In the morning I decided to come out from under the bed to taste the nib-lets she offered. As she stroked my fur, it seemed she meant me no harm. True I was contained in a room, but it was a large warm room. I had food, water, a litter box, and windows to look out. As I gazed out the window watching the snow falling, I could hear the wind howling. I decided to curl up on the bed for a nap. As I dozed off I thought to myself "I'm warm, I have everything I need, and so far no threatening cat to cope with".

After a few days when the cold spell passed she opened the window for me. I looked at her thinking "you mean I can leave if I choose?" I jumped up at the window and saw a large box and a ramp right by the window. First thought that came to mind was to jump out, run down the ramp and escape, and I did. I quickly struggled down the bank through the deep snow, back to my underground shelter. It wasn't as cold as it was the day she lured me into her house, but it was cold enough. As I huddled down under my foundation I began to miss the soft quilt, and the warm room. She allowed me to leave, so clearly I was not a prisoner In the morning I struggled up the bank through the snow, back to the deck. At first it was very quiet, with no sign of her, and I was about ready to return to my old shelter, until she appeared by the window. She poked her head out the window, waved and called to me. I was so happy to see her, I jumped for joy, leaping through the snow towards her thinking "I'm so glad that your still here, I want to come back inside!" As I joyfully jumped back in the window, nudging her with my head, she greeted me with gentle strokes and soft words. She may of tricked me into coming in, but it all worked out for the better, as I know she meant no harm. I now consider her a keeper, and I have named her friend.

So now I have friend, and this is my journey thus far.