Thursday, November 22, 2012

Kitty-Cat Lost and Found


Barack Obama Cat Jordan rests after his four-day walkabout


Over the past weekend, Jim and I went through what some would call a minor event, but animal lovers understand how heart wrenching the experience really is: Our younger fur-son, Barack Obama Cat Jordan, went missing for four days.

Our own little Obama is a beautiful black-and-white tuxedo cat that first walked into our house at 10:00 p.m. on November 4, 2008, exactly one hour after the human Barack Obama was declared the first African-American (who is also half white, don’t forget!) President of the United States. What else could we call the little cutie that our other two cats introduced to us as their own newest ‘resident-elect’ but Barack Obama?!

I confess that since he joined our little family on the very night our president won his first-term election, I entertained several weird ideas about what would happen to our own Obama if the human one had lost this year’s election. As far as everybody in our house was concerned, it was no contest. We wanted both Obamas to stay exactly where they’ve been for the past four years.

Fortunately, the feline Obama reappeared in our kitchen late Monday evening just before midnight and promptly attacked the food bowl as if he hadn’t eaten a thing during his four-day walkabout. He then proceeded to crawl into my lap and soak up as much mommy-love as he could get for the rest of the night.

Since he’s usually pretty quiet--one "meow" is a Shakespearean soliloquy for this quiet cat--I was delighted to hear the long conversations he shared with me through that first night back home. I assumed he was sharing every detail about how he’d spent the previous four days. Unfortunately, I don’t understand Cat and he simply will not speak English, so the language barrier prevented me from comprehending the bulk of his report.

Sadly, when daybreak arrived, he disappeared again, only to show up late the next night. Once we realized this kind of behavior was threatening to become habit, we decided to lower the boom and shut the cat door for the next 10 days. A veterinarian in Georgia once told me it takes that long for cats to imprint a new home, so they wouldn’t be so apt to take off for parts unknown, especially a former home--or for strays like our cats, a previous life.

Of course, this edict was not passed down without protest. The first time Obama and his older ‘brother,’ Punkin, discovered they were locked in, they made their feelings very clear. But it’s for their own good. Still, no matter how much I explain that to them, they refuse to accept my wisdom. Typical children!


Unhappy about being under 'house arrest' with his 'brother,

Punkin Cat Jordan wants to go on walkabout too
 

Perhaps it’s fitting that I share this story on Thanksgiving Day. Jim and I believe in giving thanks every day of the year, and as vegetarians, we never gorge ourselves on turkey, or any meat at all. Instead, we try to spend our lives showing consideration for all the wonderful creatures on our beautiful planet, and for our earthly home as well. And we try to use our blessings to help build a society without poverty or war in which everyone is able to enjoy at least the basic benefits of prosperity and peace.

1 comment:

  1. P.S. from Debbie,

    Shortly after I posted this article, Obama-cat began to alternate between jumping in my lap for lots of mommy-love and running back and forth to and from the back door with the impassable cat dooor. He punctuated this activity with lots of crying. At one point, he went to Jim's bedroom door and screamed till 'daddy' woke. I finally told Obama to leave daddy alone, so he returned to bother me some more.

    The poor cat wants out for the day, but that's how he went astray in the past. He needs to be more deeply imprinted with a sense of home, so he won't travel so far. Otherwise, he could wander just a block away and be run over by a car traveling the 5-lane boulevard; or he might meet a dangerous animal, such as a pit bull or a coyote. Those are just two of the real dangers in our small city in the middle of the southern Arizona desert.

    So, Obama-baby, please stay home for a while. We promise you'll be loved and pampered, and you'll survive your next term and many happy years into the future.

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