**Still not mastering the use of pages and tabs…Part two of the fiction is available on the right hand sidebar.

Recently I found myself sitting at our local Human Society with these eyes staring a hole into me. I had promised my oldest daughter that when we got our apartment, she could have a cat. I’m not a cat person at all. In fact when we were at my sister’s house, I was attacked multiple times by her evil cat who used to lie in wait for me to walk by. But a promise is a promise, so I watched as my oldest tried out every cat in the place.

This cat jumped up beside me and began the staring game. She is far from the cute fluffy cat that my daughter was hoping to bring home. She is huge. Much bigger than Libby, our wienie dog. I tried to shoo her away several times. Even pushed her off the bench where I was sitting. (No biggie, cats land on their feet, right?) She answered that one by coming right back and proceeded to put her head in my purse. She fished out one of the kids’ toys that’s always hiding in there and began batting it out to bring to me. Becoming more annoyed by her persistence, I moved onto another bench. She followed and calmly sat beside me. She then began rubbing her head on my arm, leaning on me and then licking my arm. Ewwww…that felt gross.

I pointed out every cat in the place trying to get my daughter to make a choice, but this cat remained front and center. She wasn’t giving up.

The worker came in and inquired if we had found the cat we wanted. He took one look at Peggy’s display and almost fell into a fit of laughter. He explained that she had been there the longest and was always passed over because she seemed to have an attitude problem. She wasn’t unique or particularly pretty. She was just the one that was misunderstood and passed over. He pretty much begged me to take her as they had no hope that she would ever be wanted.

I understood Peggy right then. She had stepped out of her norm for some reason with me that day and I was not going to let her down. She’s been in our home now for a couple of days and as much as I hate to admit it…I really like this cat. With all the emotions I am going through, Peggy responds beautifully.

When I am sad she comes and just leans against me. She seems to talk through her meows and makes her presence just enough that I can pet her in comfort if I want to.When I do reach out and pet her head, she remains still and quiet and lets me work through it.

When I am angry she sits dead in front of me and pierces me with her eyes. She lays her ears back flat and her tail twitches as though it has a life of its own. It’s as though she is feeling my anger too and is content with staying in place and bearing it with me.

When I feel happy she finds a small child’s toy and brings it to me as an offer to play. I throw the item across the floor and she playfully jumps, bats it and brings it right back.

When I come home from being out, its hilarious to watch her and Libby (the wienie dog) fight for who greets me the first and the best. The display makes me embarrassed for both of them as they attempt to express how happy they are to see me.

Peggy is not misunderstood; she just was waiting for the person who needed her personality the most.

I’m still not a cat person, but we have an understanding and she swears she will keep my secret. Peggy is a therapist with a hairball problem.

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