A little over two hours ago, my cat (that I've just named now) was run over by a car. She was bounding across the street to greet brother coming home when she was struck, and killed. It seems kind of shallow to be so upset over a cat with so many more important problems in the world, but she was something I really loved. And when love it taken away, it always hurts. I was blessed with Bella's love for about a year. That's a lot of love that was taken away from me, so the hurt is proportional. I decided to name her Bella simply because she was beautiful. How Bella became our pet is really quite a story, and I'd like to jot it down, if only for myself, before it fades away in my mind. I hope you enjoy it too.
The first time I saw Bella, was very early spring of 2009 in my backyard. At first I thought she was just another stray cat, and didn't really care about her. I was never really much of a cat person, considering my face blew up whenever I came within ten feet of one, but I made a kissy noise anyway to see if I could call her over. To my surprise she started to come towards me, but stopped about half way before about facing and running away. After that I never really beckoned her again.
As spring went on and I'd have tea out on my deck in the mornings, Bella would come closer and closer. Eventually she let me start petting her. Before long, she was meeting me out there every weekday morning to have our breakfast together, and on weekends shed sit outside my screen door and wait for me to wake up. She was beginning to grow on me, so I bought her some cat food. It was the least I could do after she'd been waiting for hours.
Before long that wasn't enough. She'd constantly be at my door meowing for attention. I'd open the screen door to pet her, and she'd stick her paw in to prevent me from closing it- because she wasn't done with me yet. In the beginning of July, she disappeared for a few days, only to reappear with 4 GORGEOUS kittens. Two were white & pointed with blue eyes, and the other two were black with white paws and green eyes. My mother and I decided to tie yarn to our lawn furniture so the five of them would have something to play with. They had a ball. The kittens were too cute to be strays, so we gave them to a shelter, and they were adopted instantly. They offered to take Bella too, but I declined. I would miss her face at my door too much.
My mother went on vacation in September, and that was when my brother and I let her in the house for the first time. She was a perfect lady. I'm almost convinced she was someone's cat before ours; she just knew how to behave in a home. She let us pick her up, hold her like a baby, kiss her paws, and kiss her face. Even though I've always had really bad allergic reactions to cats, around her I never got more than a runny nose. Once my mom returned home, we showed her how well behaved she was in the house. She let us get a bed and food bowl for her so she could spend nights. A neighbor of ours arranged with a shelter for her to be spayed and vaccinated for free. She had moved in.
I'll never forget the first night she found my bed. I sleep in type of bunk bed that has the dresser and desk underneath, so she had to climb up a ladder to get to me. I just remember being awoken one night in December by little footsteps on my legs. She curled up right next to me, and that's the way it's been ever since... until today. She'd lick my face, like a dog, to get me up every morning- always about five minutes before my alarm went off. She'd even groom my hair. She was trying to take care of me.
When ever you talked to her, she'd meow back.
This morning we went through the same routine. We usually let her outside when everyone was out of the house. Before I let her out I always give her a kiss on the nose. I'm so glad I did that today.
I probably seem like some kind of crazy cat lady, but I hated cats until she came along. She came to my door every day until I loved her. No person has ever worked that hard for my affection in my life. I just think there's something to be said for that.
If you take anything from this post, which probably has a TON of typos since I'm crying as I write this, just appreciate the people (and animals) in your life that love you. If you love someone, tell them. Never go to bed angry, work things out. Life is so incredibly fragile, and it can be taken away at a moments notice. Death is all around us, it's only a matter of time before it comes into your life.
Rest in peace Bella, I love you so much.
-MK
