Blog Hiatus Post Three

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The Saga of the Miracle Kitten,

or

God may mean for me to have another cat.

At a conference in 2014 weekend a speaker, Karleen Koen, encouraged us to write what she called Morning Pages. I keep forgetting the name so I called them Morning Glories. The idea is to write, not to write perfectly. Part 1 of the Saga of the Miracle Kitten constituted about half my fourth day’s entry.

Here is the relevant portion from July 2:

Part 1

I heard the cat meow for help while I lay in bed. I’ve heard it since I got home. I heard it when I stepped out of my car at 1:00 Tuesday morning (Monday night). I searched for it then and couldn’t find it.

I heard it again last night (Tuesday) sitting at my desk (I hear it now – meow, meow, meow) and yesterday afternoon. Both times I went outside trying to find it. I checked the outside stairs to the basement. I even checked the open garbage can. I listened to see if it was in my basement or in the screened in porch. Best I could tell, it was in Babbie’s (my neighbor’s) shrubbery.

Around midnight Tuesday night I heard it again and turned on my outside flood lights. She quit her meowing while I was outside. But the cries were back this morning (Wednesday). This time I came down to the basement to see if she got caught down here – Nope.

As I write I hear her outside. She stopped. I hear a bird now, but that’s no problem.

. . . .

. . . .

The cat is back at it.

. . . .

. . . . .

Looks like I’ll have to search for that cat again. It sounds desperate.

Karleen Koen said our subconscious works in our dream state. Mine must not soak in enough to flow through a pencil.

. . . .

Better finish this page and search for that cat. She better not remind me of Poinciana. [Insert: Poinciana was my wonderful cat for eight years].

I saw a tiny baby kitten near Mary’s house in Houston. A woman stopped her car in the middle of the road. When she slowly moved it forward, a little tabby ran out from under her car and lay down in the middle of the oncoming lane. She almost got run over there before scampering under my car. I slowly moved forward and she was gone, probably in the grasses.

Part 2

Morning Glory entry #5 – this morning July 3, 2014

The entire entry

The first four morning glories were each written on different pads and I cannot locate the latest one, which I need so I can tell the story of the Miracle Kitty. [Insert: I found it - see above]

After writing yesterday’s post, I still heard her voice crying out. I went outside, thought I heard her in my neighbor’s bushes and once in a tree. Then I heard it two houses down and between my neighbor’s house and the other house. I didn’t want to go to my neighbor’s backyard so I gave up. I could still hear her every so often in my room.

Mid-afternoon my neighbor Babbie came to my door and asked about the cat wailing. I told her my story. She thought the cat was in my garage. We searched - no cat.

Next she thought it was in my car.

We looked under the car. I opened the trunk. I popped the hood – no cat, but we both heard the cat in the engine but couldn’t see it. I pulled out the water hose and sprayed under the car and over the engine thinking that might drive out the cat.

Babbie called a friend of hers – Rick ‘from’ Bottega [Insert: his name may be Jeff not Rick.]

Meanwhile we kept looking. I told Babbie about the kitten in Humble [Houston]. As I left my sister’s house in Humble I stopped behind a car that was stopped on a straight road – she was in the right lane. She walked around her car. After a while she slowly drove forward and a little kitten ran out from under her car and plopped in the middle of the on-coming lane. A car coming by stopped. The scared kitty ran under my car. I stayed parked. Finally I moved forward slowly. I looked at the rearview mirror. I didn’t see the kitten so I figured it had run into the grassy field.

I went to Momma’s, stayed there maybe three hours, then to nephew Lance’s store for gas and ice. He and I talked for maybe thirty minutes. Then I drove home to Birmingham - about thirteen hours and 700 more miles, sometimes at eighty miles an hour, in stop and go traffic in Baton Rouge for an hour, stopping for food and at rest stages. As I wrote in yesterday’s post I heard a cat crying for help as soon as I opened the car door at home.

I told Babbie it could be the kitty. Finally Jeff [Insert: Or is it Rick?] arrived and saw the kitten in ten seconds. He pulled it out of the engine area of my car. It was the same kitten I saw in Houston.

Babbie brought her cage and some food, but somehow the cat ended up in my house.

Here is what she looked like after 750 miles in my car engine and almost three days without food or water: 

 

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She is tiny – maybe six inches long and weighs virtually zero.

She is loud. She squawks most of the time. She quiets down when I talk and when I hold her.

I bought food for her at the vet and kitty litter at the store. I put kitty litter in a small dish and put it in the cage. She has spread it over the cage and over my floor and is now lying in the bowl. The bowl is too small, even for her; but at least she is quiet for the time being. I’ll get a bigger bowl in a second.

I’m afraid I’ll have another cat if I don’t find someone to take her.

She loves being held and petted.

Today was the day I was to start walking. Let’s see if I do.

End of entry.

Part 3

I’m typing this late Thursday, so it’s not part of the Morning Glory series.

Today was a good day. The kitty litter calmed her down. She is quieter, and more active. She eats heartily. I think she’s sleeping now.

I did go walking. Immediately met a neighbor, Molly. Asked her if she wanted a cute kitty. She didn’t but she came over to see the kitten. She took pictures and said she‘d post them on her Facebook page. Later in the afternoon, Babbie called. She said she talked to two women who might want the cat. One lady’s cat died last week, and she wasn’t sure she was ready for a new cat. She would be good. Babbie says she even buys videos for her cats.

Spoke too soon about the cat’s sleeping. She’s awake and wants some attention.

The cat has more strength. She’s cleaned herself and doesn’t smell anymore.  She uses the bathroom in the kitty litter. Amazing how cats instinctively know to use the kitty litter, even kittens.

I put one of those plastic balls with a rattle inside inside her cage. She has played with it off and on today. I filmed her for six minutes playing with the ball. So cute.

I filmed her earlier in the day, too. A few hours later I watched it. When she meowed on the video, she began to answer the video’s meow. I was listening to a conversation between the video cat and the live cat.

I did put in a larger bowl with more kitty litter. She’s in it now.

She’s come a long way from yesterday. Food and sleep have been good for her. She’s more active and more curious.

I took a couple of photos with my good camera on my bed. Afterwards she climbed on my shoulder for a long time. It looks like she’s asleep. I feel like going to sleep myself.

Here is what she looked like after one day of recovery:

The Miracle Kitten is now a big fat cat named Brigada (named after the original title to my manuscript, Obrigada Pumpkin.