When I was 9, my mother remarried. We moved into her husband's house where he lived with his youngest son. And like a snowflake falling in July, my...
| In Memory > Destiny |
Destiny
When I was 9, my mother remarried. We moved into her husband's house where he lived with his youngest son. And like a snowflake falling in July, my whole word was completely out of the norm. Suddenly at the age of 9 I lived in a house, but not a home, surrounded by everything, but I had nothing. My mother drifted into her newlywed lifestyle, regularly forgetting that I felt absolutely lost and entirely alone. My newly acquired step-family lacked welcome arms and the new town we lived in seemed just as cold. After a few months my mother took notice that I was regularly depressed and thankfully came up with a 9 year olds greatest anti-depressant, a kitten. I fell in love the moment I held that furry little bundle of joy and she covered my face in kitty kisses; I had never seen anything so perfect. She was a calico, with white little boots and a matching tuxedo front. The most loyal of cats I had ever met, she would only allow me to hold her and would rush to sit in my lap. Finally I had something and how wonderful it was.
As the years went on I enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and with the title Marine under my belt I was deployed to serve my time in Iraq during the year 2005 (I was now 21). I remember hugging and covering my cat in kisses, how I would miss her. I served my time in Iraq, missing home, my family, my friends, and my cat.
After 10 months in Iraq I came home, greeted by friends and family, but my happy tears soon turned sour as my mom told me the dreaded news; my cat hadn’t come home in over two months. They last saw her July 29th, I came home Oct 1st just 3 days before my birthday. I felt like I was 9 again, lost and alone. For weeks after that I went on searches for my cat, calling every shelter and vet in the state, searching the web, and after 2 months my heart dropped as I knew I would probably never see her again.
With my recent deployment and the loss of my cat, again I went into a depression. February came and I needed to have a physical done to make sure I was still alright to serve in the military. I was assigned to a new doctor, one who knew nothing about me, and I remember being thrilled because that would be one less person to explain anything too, no personal questions.
At the end of the physical a nurse came in and started chatting with the doctor as I collected my things. Impossible to avoid, their conversation went something along the lines of, "Found any owners yet"? My doctor replied with a sigh and just shook her head while saying, "I don’t want to give them to a shelter; I would like to give them to someone who I know will take care of them". Perhaps she noticed me staring at them talk because suddenly my doctor looked at me and said, "You want a kitten?" I must have looked like a fool when I muffled out a weak, "Okay".
My doctor kind of laughed and gave me her address and directions to her house, she told me to come by later that afternoon. I went home, upset that I had said okay. There was no way I could love another cat as much as my lost one, no way. I decided I would show up to my doctor’s house to let her know that I had changed my mind and to explain that I wasn’t ready for a new kitten.
I showed up and she led me to the living room where I was told to wait before I could get in my piece about changing my mind. I heard her laughing in the other room and moments later a bright eyed orange tabby came rushing over too me, more like a dog than a cat, and then leaping into my lap, just crying to be held. I picked her up and she covered me in those same kitty kisses that my other cat had. I could feel the void in my heart slowly filling up with love again. I petted the 4 month old kitten and she lay in my lap purring away.
My doctor sat there explaining why she was giving away the kittens, I was barely listening, and I was too infatuated with this little creature in my lap that was making me feel again. It wasn’t until my doctor started rambling off dates that I looked up in amazement. “Not that it makes any difference, but my cat became pregnant with this litter July 29th.” I didn’t say anything about how my cat had disappeared that same day; I just sat there finding it ironic. “Funny thing, the kitten you are holding was born October 4th, first one of the litter. The rest came minutes later, but minutes later made it October 5th” She smiled sipping on her coffee not realizing that her small talk was hitting extremely close to home. October 4th was my birthday too and the tears came rolling down my face and I held onto this new kitten that would become my new pet to love.
Now some call it coincidence, some don’t care to listen, and others agree that it was destiny in my getting this new kitten. I never got a chance to truly say goodbye to my old cat, but deep down I just know this was a way for her to cover me in those kitty kisses, to leap into my lap, and to show that her love will always be with me.
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