A Tale of Two Kitties

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...

There was a boy with a strong jaw who loved animals. It was unfortunate that this boy couldn’t experience the loving companionship of animals because of his mother. When he was 10, his family moved to a small house in Northern Virginia, and there was a cat that would always appear in their backyard. She was a beautiful cat with long gray hair and white paws. His sisters named her Whitesocks. The boy and his two sisters took care of the cat by leaving food and water in the backyard. On the occasion when their mother wasn’t home, they would bring Whitesocks inside. Sometimes they would even sneak Whitesocks inside when their mother was home and bring her to the basement since their mother never went down there.

One day during his 12th year, they noticed Whitesocks was acting strange. One of his sisters got a book on cats from the library and they realized she was pregnant. They kept her indoors after this realization, and shortly after, she gave birth. Fortunately, their mother wasn’t home during that miraculous moment. It was the first time him and his sisters saw an animal give birth. It will always leave a mark in their memory just like the blood marks left on the carpet.

Now they had five mole-rat looking kittens in the house that they hid from their mother. If she saw them, she would’ve gone mad and cast the creatures out and send the children to their rooms. The kittens grew up to be beautiful and when they were of age, the boy and his sisters released them to the outdoors. The kittens were just like their mother Whitesocks, and they would visit the backyard daily for water and food. He became fond of one of the kittens and named her Mimi.

One day during his 13th year, his family decided to move to a bigger house many miles away. His mother wouldn’t let them take the cats with them. It was a heartbreaking moment. He was determined to have animals under his care when he was of age and free from his mother’s laws.

It was now his 18th year, and he was dating a woman. They’ve recently graduated high school and decided to get a kitten together. He was a short haired orange tabby with beautiful soft fur. They named him Swag because he had swag and that word was poppin at the time. It was his dream come true! A couple years later they adopted another short haired orange tabby and he was about the same age as the first. They named him Cheese. They thought Swag and Cheese were good names for some reason. It took a few days for the cats to get adjusted but they became good friends. Unfortunately, a couple years later they broke up. She said that she wouldn’t give up Swag and he could have Cheese. But they also didn’t want to break the bond that cats had, so she kept both cats. He knew that she deserved the cats anyways. It was another heartbreaking moment for him. He thought he lost everything.

Now it was his 26th year and he lived in an apartment in New Jersey with a new girlfriend. There was an exotic animal store near their place, and one day while they were walking past it, they saw a sign that said free kittens. They saw one man come out with a kitten and they rushed inside. There was one black kitten left and he was the cutest most adorable kitten they saw. They named him Harrison. He was a timid little kitten and hid from them for 3 days, but they all grew to love each other. He loved calling him Harry baby or Harrison my hairy son. He had a bond with Harrison like he never had before with any animal. Then they got married and his wife got pregnant. A blessed moment and now he would be able to share his love of animals with his baby.

During his 28th year, a pandemic broke out. They struggled with their finances and had to move to the West coast to live with his Korean relatives. Unfortunately, they were allergic to cats. They had to give up Harry baby. They took Harrison back to the exotic animal store and the owner gladly took him back. Another heartbreaking moment.

It’s been over half a year since they moved to the West, and they finally got their finances in check. A few months ago they found an apartment to rent and life was starting to look bright again. He was desperate for his daughter, who was 16 months, to grow up around animals. It didn’t work out with Harry baby, but that wouldn’t stop his search to give his daughter what he desperately wanted as a child. He knew that she would learn to love animals.

***

We’ve been searching since we moved into our apartment a few months ago, and finally, we’ve found two kittens near the beginning of April. Brothers from another mother, introducing Plato and Luci. Their names are inspired by Plato the philosopher and the demon Luci from the Netflix series Disenchantment.

We got Plato first from a town thirty minutes North of us. He’s part Maine Coon and he’s one of the most loving cats I know. His fur is one of the softest things I’ve ever felt. He’s growing at a rate that I didn’t think was possible. He likes to snuggle in our armpits or anywhere near our heads when we sleep and has a strong therapeutic purr. That’s what daddy likey.

A few days later we adopted Luci from a town two hours South of us. He’s an all black cat just like Harry baby. I was specifically looking for an all black cat because of Harrison my hairy son. He's a little different from Harrison, but he’s a sweet kitty. All he wants to do is cuddle. He’s a little stiff and awkward in his movements, so we think he may have been the runt of the litter, but it just makes him more cute.

When we first introduced them to each other, Plato was growling a little and was a bit territorial. But after one day they were snuggling and grooming each other. And they always join us when it's time for bed. It doesn’t get better than that! Come to Daddy!

They’re day involves waking up, taking a shit and waking us up with that horrendous smell, having breakfast, going insane, nap time, going insane, eating more, nap time, going insane, nap time, eating more, going insane, then bed time.

Now we want to get a puppy, but our apartment is too small for one. Hopefully sometime next year we’ll be able to adopt and add to our family. Then get more puppies and kitties. Then some pocket pets. Maybe some birds. Definitely a parrot. I want to be like Cinderella, Snow White, and Pocahontas.

I believe everyone should adopt pets. It’s good practice before having a child, and even if you don’t want children, it’s good practice to take care of a living creature that’s part of this world. It makes us disciplined, responsible, and most importantly empathetic towards the critters of Gaia. Which hopefully will make us empathetic towards each other. Some words of wisdom from one of my favorite painters:

“If we’re going to have animals around we all have to be concerned about them and take care of them.” - Bob Ross

And it doesn’t matter which animals you want because

“You can do anything you want to do. This is your world.” - Bob Ross

Oh yeah, it’s therapeutic too. Oh yeah, you can also talk to them like they’re little babies cause dats what dey r. Whittle babies dat need sum huggies and snuggies. Sha sha boo boo come here Plato and Luci babyyyy. Ok, I’m getting carried away, but it’s funny when you do it and I think they love it. I never had issues. Just try it for yourself and see.