The Story of My Life
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I want to tell you the story of my life. I was born in a barn at dawn. There
were eight of us but I was the only one with spots. I was a calico cat. Soon
people came to look at us and I was the first to be adopted. I came to live with
an old lady in the city. It was a heritage building made into apartments, it was
warm and cozy. There were many window ledges for me to look out and my
old lady was very sweet. She gave me a bowl of milk every single day and she
gave me lots of treats. Soon I grew into a very fat cat. The years passed
quickly and we became best of friends. Talking and watching television and
going for naps. One day we went for our afternoon nap, the day passed, the
evening passed and the night passed. They found me beside her. She had gone
to heaven.
There was so much commotion that I ran away and went into the back of the
bedroom closet. I stayed there a long, long time until I was being dragged out
by my tail, I screeched and tried to scratch but I was put in a box. It was dark
and I was so afraid. Time went by, tick, tick. Then a girl was peaking into the
box at me. Hello pretty girl, she said. I heard people talking and they were
telling her that if they could not find a home for me that I would be put to
sleep. Hold on I wanted to say, I don't need any help sleeping. The girl had
tears rolling down her cheeks. She had a sweet way and lifted me out of the
box. Oh my, she said, you are a big girl. I was not a girl really, I was by this
time an old cat, 14 years old in cat years. We sat on the sofa and I was being
petted gently, I liked that, so I purred. Then, the girl said, I'll take her and
that is when she became My Girl.
My Girl lived in the same heritage building and her apartment was just down
the hall. It was sunny and bright and had many windows also. I soon realized
that I was not the only cat here. I was introduced to Violet Patches, also a
calico cat, years younger than me. And I was told that I had a new name, it
was Pearl Smudges. Don't laugh because it could have been Chocolate Peanut
Butter Parfait! At first, I did not like Violet Patches but in no time we were
friends. She was a very feisty cat, leaping and running all over the place. I
was amazed how high she could jump. I could not jump because I was fat.
At feeding time, a tablespoon of meat was put in my bowl and I gobbled it up.
In a moment it was gone. I gave My Girl the look, you know the look but she
only laughed. I went to check the bowl several times. Not until lunch, she
said to me. Then we played, oh it was lovely, there were balls and fuzzy mice
and this dangling thing that I loved. I knew I could hold onto it but it kept
getting away. Violet Patches kept stealing the toys and I wanted to chase her,
but I was getting tired, so I went for a nap on the bed where My Girl had put a
cozy blanket for me. I soon fell asleep and I had dreams of the barn where I
was born, I was kneading my blanket and drooling. I looked around but I was
alone. The sun was shining in and I stayed there all day forgetting about food.
Did I tell you I have no teeth.
We settled into a happy family and the years passed. I liked the summer when
My Girl would take us out in her small garden and we would sit in the sun. She
had two chairs in the beginning but had to go get another for herself. She let
us sniff the flowers and roll on her patch of green grass but she never took her
eyes off us. She always kept us safe, she even put up a fence so Violet Patches
could not run out. I would never run away, I was too happy to do that. We
liked to sit on the window ledges and watch the birds and squirrels, the trees,
the rain and the world passing.In the winter we tried to catch the snowflakes
that hit the window. It was a nice life. I loved My Girl and Violet Patches so
much, but things changed.
Violet Patches got sick, real sick, she cried most of the time. My Girl was
taking her to the doctor all the time and each time came home with a new
medicine to try. Oh, how Violet Patches hated that medicine, she would run
and hide. Often I wanted to stop My Girl but did not know how. Then, one
morning My Girl got the cat carrier out, she put Violet Patches inside and left.
When she came back the carrier was empty and My Girl was weeping and
weeping. I knew then that my friend was gone. I wrapped myself in my
blanket and stayed there for three days. I did not eat or drink. I heard My
Girl talking and she was saying that maybe she was going to lose another cat.
That day she came and sat on the bed beside me. She said, Pearl Smudges I
need to talk to you. You need to stop this, you need to come off this bed and
eat something, so come on, come on. She left the room. I thought about
that for a moment then decided that My Girl needed me.
It has been several weeks now since that sad day and we have settled into a
routine, we get up and have breakfast. I have discovered that I like tea. My
Girl caught me with my tongue in her cup so she now gives me a saucer of
tea. I have lost weight and eat good food but not junk. We play a lot with all
my toys. When My Girl leaves for work I go back to my blanket, the sun
comes shining in and I roll and roll, it is so lovely. Slowly, I am coming to
terms with the loss of my cat friend and I am determined to be the best cat in
the world for My Girl who saved me from being put to sleep, forever. I am not
sure how much time I have left, myself, for I am a very, very old girl.
_______________________
April 16, 2015
Poetry/Prose/Personification/The Story of My Life
Copyright Protected, ID 15-663-518-0
All Rights Reserved. Written under Pseudonym
Entered in, Million Dollar Poem Contest,
sponsor, Poet Destroyer
Third Place
___________________________
Update:
Pearl Smudges passed away in June of 2017, she was twenty years old, I
did not have to put her to sleep as she died in my arms with a sigh. I will
never forget her -My Girl
Copyright © Constance La France | Year Posted 2015
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