Bathing The Cat!
Jeanette Berry, November, 1996
This story begins back in the early
summer when a stray cat appeared at our house. Tom loved
dogs, but in all our married life he was never agreeable to
getting a cat. This cat, however, wormed it's way into his
affection. He'd be studying on the deck and the cat would
crawl onto his chest, stare into his face with soft golden eyes
and purr.
Soon we were feeding it. I
say "it" because we did not know if it was male or female.
We chose to presume it was a she. A friend was visiting and
he said, "That cat is a Russian Blue, a very gentle, expensive
cat." So I named her Bleu. Every morning Bleu was
waiting. On occasion, she would come into the house, laze
about, explore awhile and then want out again.
As Fall approached I proposed the
question: "What are we going to do about Bleu this winter?"
I decided I might as well face this head on, so we went to the
store and bought kitty litter and all the apparatus that goes with
a cat,---including a toy. Almost $50 later we were set.
Bleu came in and lolled at my feet.
I began rubbing her when I felt something---a flea. A big
flea. Out went the cat.
I began to question my cat-lover
friends how to get rid of fleas. Dip, sprays, pills,
collars, but the most common method suggested was a bath. I
thought, "Well, I could do that!" So I bought the shampoo
and when Bleu came to meet me after school, I picked her up and
began stroking her, using the shampoo. She liked that.
Then I put on rubber gloves for protection and decided to rinse
the shampoo off. That's when the fun began. She was
not about to let me get her into the kitchen sink, so I took her
to the bathroom and turned on the shower. By this time she
is terrified and I have lost any confidence I had, but she was
covered with shampoo and I had to get it off.
There were screams and yowls (from
both of us) and blood everywhere. She shredded the gloves.
During the final assault Tom walked in and began laughing at the
sight. The cat took off and I was left shaken and bleeding.
Bleu hopped from place to place
licking herself. She was making soggy wet places everywhere,
and foaming at the mouth from licking at the shampoo. She
waited for her chance and out the door she went. I didn't
expect to ever see her again and felt very badly about the whole
thing.
The next morning I called and Bleu
came dashing in just as always. She was dry and smelled very
good. She didn't seem to have any hard feelings over the
incident. I vowed that I would never try that again.
I wish that was the end of the
story. I decided to keep Bleu in the house all night since
we had everything to accommodate her. She wanted to sleep on
Dianne's chest, so she lured her into OUR room and shut the door.
Next morning when I got up she was ready to eat. After
eating she lolled around awhile then went to stare out the window.
When I opened a door she caught me unawares and dashed outside.
I have never seen here since. Here we sit with all the kitty
litter, toys, food, and scratches that are healing and wonder what
happened to her. Tom assures me she will be back.
Have you ever done something when
you meant well, but it didn't turn out quite as you expected.
This is a story about a cat, but I am aware that in principle, we
can do the same things to people; things we may never get the
chance to make right. What should you do?
1. Try to make it right, if possible.
2. If it is not possible to make something right, then learn
from it.
3. Remind ourselves that even smart people can do some dumb
things.
(Editor' Note: Just before
going to print the cat returned.)
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