While I was living in the bathroom Mama would tell me about my soon-to-be siblings. I had heard them sniff under the door, and there was the occasional hissing. I wanted to meet them so bad, but I first had to clear the slew of parasites, worms, and fleas that were feeding on me. Quarantine was a good time for me to prepare myself mentally and physically to meet my new family. And to play with toilet paper rolls.
Eight years ago a mysterious delivery at the vet's office - a kitten in a box - while Mama was in the other room saying goodbye to her beloved old cat, Ramses. He had been diabetic for five years and doing well with his twice-a-day insulin shots. A big ginger cat - a Norwegian Forest Cat - Mama had brought him and his sister across the pond from Denmark to California. Ramses was not the most patient cat, and he grew more stubborn with age. His favorite treat was waiting after each injection, but he was not the most compliant patient. He would rush off, the needle still stuck in his neck, with Mama chasing after him, "Ramsey! Get back here!" That fateful day he was having bad seizures - his heart was enlarged and failing. Mama had made the hardest decision to let her boy go, and with tears racing down her face she rushed out the vet's office. A week later she returned to pick up the ashes. The vet shared the story of the mysterious drop-off. Her hands clasping the box with her boy's ashes she hesitated, "The kitten...can I see..."
"Her. It's a girl. She's a little shy", as he pointed to a small cage with a tunnel-like tube bed. Mama peeked inside the soft plush. At the end of the tunnel there was light. Bright green eyes peeking back at her. At that moment she knew she had to have the kitten. There was room at home. Room in her heart for her beloved boy and the kitten. She knew she had enough space for the both of them. Her heart exploded with joy as she brought Mina and Ramses home.
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