Copyrights reserved by the author. If you are in doubt, please click on 'Copyrights' and read the details.Taking care of the furry parts of our lives By J. G. Fabiano What do you want? That is all I could ask the white furry face with the large black eyes as he was staring at me in my usual horizontal position on my couch after a rather difficult day at work. At first I tried to look past him and follow the many disasters CNN was reporting on TV. But, he kept on staring pushing his head between me and something that was destined to make me feel worse. I actually think he was doing this on purpose but how would he know for after-all he is just a cat. Now smiling even though the reporter on TV was just about saying the world was coming to an end I remembered the many times in my past when this animal attempted to comfort me at a time when I so desperately needed to be comforted. I remember once my sciatic nerve decided to rebel. The pain was remarkable and I had a tough time standing, sitting, lying down, or doing anything else a homo-sapien is supposed to do. Attempting to levitate myself off the couch my feline friend quietly jumped up on the end of the couch. He then carefully walked around my leg and ended up putting his body on the part of my leg that gave me so much pain. I guess it was his warmth or maybe it had something to do with endorphins but my leg started to feel a bit better. He stayed next to me for the entire night because there was no way I was going to climb any stairs to get to my bedroom. But, how would he know for after-all he is only a cat. I am not the only one my cat takes care of. Actually the cat is not supposed to be mine. He is my wife's cat. I just happen to be living in the same home. It seems every time my wife is having a problem or is not feeling well he some how gets near her and they basically talk out the problem between them. I am not saying the cat talks but it can communicate in an odd way. I watch how it stares in my wife's eyes as she pets him. Of course thunder has nothing on my cat when it purrs its way into a kind of trance where he attempts to get into my wife's mind reminding her that all her problems are not that important and like everything else in this world things will change. Everything always does. But, how would he know for after-all he is only a cat. My cat also has the capacity to know who to trust and who to stay away from. When we have guests over he works his way over to people he knows wants to see him. He loves having them pet him and even entertains them by rolling on his back or playing with something they think he wants to play with. I know he is too old to care about a piece of string or the strap of a handbag but he has the capacity to know his playful antics will make our guest feel comfortable and entertained. Of course there are people whom he stays away from. Actually these are people I want to stay away from. I know they don't like animals and most of them give the excuse they are allergic and will get sick if they stay too close to any cat. But, most of the time these are people who simply are not nice. They are the kind who takes advantage of people who are weaker. They are boastful and arrogant and would have little time for something that demands nothing and gives a lot. But, how would he know for after-all he is only a cat. Little children are not a favorite of my cat. This is probably because most of them chase him and are very rough. My cat has the capacity to find places to hide I can't even locate. In fact, he disappears long before they arrive. But, every now and then a quiet young man or young woman visits whom my cat seeks out. They love sitting with the cat and are seen staring into his eyes as they pet him into his favorite trance. I have no clue how he can discriminate between the two types of children but he always does. But, how would he know for after-all he is only a cat. Last week my cat became ill. The vet told us he needed to have a couple of teeth pulled and a growth under his chin had to be removed. All this time I thought he was developing a double chin. Most of my colleagues at work thought I was crazy spending four to six hundred dollars on a cat. I never questioned doing it even though I could clearly not afford it. When he came back he was a bit groggy and obviously in pain. I quietly sat as close as I could to him so maybe the heat of my body would make him feel better. He did what he always did before. He stared at me and I stared back. But, how would he know for after-all he is only a cat.
The End.
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