It was a calm evening and everything was quiet around me,
everything was calm until I received the sharp blow of this tiny creature
slapping me with her paw and digging her deep nails into my soft skin!
It seemed as if she was teasing me with the words, “Not today. HUMAN!”
It was as if she won
a silent battle, by lifting her paws and pausing with dramatic effects before
she reached out to give a swift, slap on my arm.
She was a little devil in disguise and as I was wailing with
pain to think that I had a chance to hug this tiny creature without a sharp
slap. As if she was satisfied with this devious deed, her tail
flicked lazily from left to right, which left me bewildered by this cat’s act
of sass!
Although the scratch stung me and there was quite a lot of
blood, I couldn’t help but laugh to myself about this ridiculous creature who
had me stumped at the moment.
Mini, was done with me although we barely knew each other
long enough and sauntered off to her favourite spot on the bed – her mission
accomplished!
I reflected on the couple of hours that had passed by and it
was a quiet afternoon. I had just found Mini, the multicoloured cat on one of
the narrow alleys of Colaba, close to where I live. It took me only a split
second to decide that I was going to adopt her and make her my own!
She was beautiful even at this tender age of being such a
small kitten and had a very affectionate yet plotting something against me
look. I was beyond thrilled to have her in my life.
It’s funny how an animal can become your best companion when
you can’t even really converse with them. Is it the silent connection that is
tugged by our hearts that makes this bond so fragile? It is the poetry of emotions that is felt
between the two through gentle nudges and contented purrs.
I never expected this pretty creature to have such a
profound impact on my life. Days and years passed as this once tiny creature
became a common name in my life. Routine trips abroad called for immediate
attention for there to be a cat sitter while I was gone. Regular check-ups with
the vet and monthly food stock became a norm in my life.
Very soon, three more added to the bandwagon of cats at home
with two black and whites (Bunty and Babli) and a Persian cat (Prince Goldie)
joining the family. Of course, it was quite a challenge to have three female
cats and one male. Before I even grasped the fact that I had 4 cats, Prince
Goldie had attempted to attack a passing pigeon almost swallowing it whole!
It was not only the perfect cat family to come home to but
the best sort of family that you could imagine having. Right from the number of
glasses that have been broken in my house to the irreversible destruction done
to my furniture, there were a lot of compromises involved in handling these fur
babies. Mini, not only changed the way I lived my life but how I lived it as
well. Every day is just a reminder to appreciate all the small things in my
life, just like this calico changed my life with a quiet purr and a flick of a
tail.
The bond I have shared with these cats is immeasurable; from
having their curious, unwavering eyes staring back at me while I eat to being a
part of my daily routine! Always sitting close by, following me from room to
room, it sort of becomes a ritual to have shared moments with these cats even
in the simplest of things.
Sharpening their claws by tearing my bedsheets or towels,
all four of these cats have remained inseparable from the additional joy in my
life. Curled up by my feet or just having a calm presence beside me, not even
for conversation or activity but solely for their companionship, I couldn’t
have felt more at ease without them.
Waking up besides not only Mini but Bunty, Babli and Prince
Goldie has calmed my nervous system down where I constantly hear their soft
purring or a soft paw on my face. However, despite having these bundles of joy
in my life problems were inevitable in life and I got overwhelmed and exhausted
many a time with life’s idiosyncrasies.
On one such day when everything seemed to go wrong; work had
been relentless and deadlines were piling up; emails were flooding in and a
project that I had poured my whole soul into was rejected by a company. It felt
as if the world truly had come to an end and I felt utterly defeated. I dropped
my bag on the couch and collapsed on the couch, staring blankly at the white
walls encompassing me feeling drained and disturbed.
I had no one to talk to or share the frustration with, other
than my cats who of course could not understand a word I said. Suddenly Mini
sprang up on the bed and sat beside me, the others were under the bed. For 5
-10 min she just sat there beside me with her crystal green eyes staring at my
face. As if there was a sudden urge to start talking, I burst out crying and
started talking about everything that was bothering me to her.
Mini just sat there and blinked across from me and I just
sighed alone in despair. I looked down at my palms and suddenly out of nowhere
I heard a quaint voice say, “It’s gonna be OK, master”
For a moment, I struggled to understand who was talking. I
froze for a second, looking around the room. Was it Mini who just spoke back to
me or was I just hearing things?
I laughed at myself
for entertaining such a thought but again I heard,
“Yes, it’s me, my dear Karina.”
I almost jumped right off the bed by then. Was my cat
speaking like a normal human being?
“Yes, my dear I am speaking and you can speak back to me.
I only have to meow
when I’m with Bunty, Babli and Prince Goldie. They don’t understand human
language!”
“Cats can’t talk”, I stammered. “Well yes, most cats can’t
but I’ve been around long enough to pick up the language and figure it out!”
Mini jumped by the windowsill and sauntered over to where I
stood.
“How long have you been able to talk?” I asked. Oh, it’s
been a couple of years but I have no one to talk to yet as Bunty, Babli and
Prince Goldie haven’t yet understood how to talk in the English language.
My mind began to race. Here was my cat – my quiet,
independent cat casually holding a conversation with me as if it was the most
normal thing in the world.
“Don’t tell me you weren’t giving me hints when you kept
asking me if I wanted more food or whether I liked the new scratch post.”
I laughed at myself. Could this be true that I was having a
normal conversation with my cat?
“Well you could have saved me a lot of time by having spoken
a lot earlier, Mini!”
And so our friendship began.
Over the next few weeks, we had many conversations and I
learned a lot about Mini than I ever could have imagined. I learned how Mini’s
biological mother had been captured soon after her birth. Mini had opinions
about almost everything- her favourite spot in the house, the perfect kind of
sunbeam, her favourite channel on TV and even the perfect music that she liked listening
to! I was astonished! All of this was happening right beneath my nose!
Our bond deepened in a way that I never thought was
possible. It was as if I had always been with this insightful and wise
companion who only now opened her mouth to let me in on all her secrets.
There were times when she even helped me to navigate my
life, offering sharp advice on how to deal with problems and people in my life.
I had never realised that cats were so sharp to notice everything until Mini
pointed it all out.
She began to open up about how she had a huge crush on
Prince Goldie when I brought him home, several months after I had adopted her
and she was smitten by his charm, charismatic personality and handsome looks.
In turn, Prince Goldie reciprocated her love at intervals.
With conversations woven into our daily lives, life began to
get a lot more interesting and full of curiosity and adventure. Of course with
all this new attention showered on Mini, I felt sad to sideline Bunty, Babli
and Prince Goldie but Mini had stories about them as well!
1 Comment
Gripping read.Thankyou.