by Carrie Shaffer

Created on: April 05, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

You could say that my cat Sky is my soul mate-cat: I took one look at her photo on the Internet as a 2 month old kitten and knew that she was my missing feline half. Once she was in our home the bonding between us occurred quickly and deeply, and she provided me comfort, company and love while my husband was away at work putting in long hours on a project. For many months it seemed she was my only company except on the weekends, and she would look into my teary eyes with a knowing and empathy that made my heart ache. She too had had lonely nights, for the breeder who raised her until the age of six months at the time she came to us had put her in a kennel each night instead of letting her sleep where she wished or create a bond with the humans of the house. She had known loneliness too.

Now we have a new job, are living in a new country, our sister to the north, Canada, and Sky has a new furry friend to keep company and contend with. His name is Aston, and he's now six months old and another member of the Ragdoll breed. Aston is special in his own way; he's a beautiful specimen, he could be a show cat with his perfect markings, and other than his flight up to us has had an un-traumatic kitten hood. He has no baggage in other words. He's a ham, a charmer; his constant purr is his PR, and he has a much flashier personality than Sky. And of course he's still a fluffy adorable kitten so he's hard to resist cuddling and cooing him. He and Sky have a love/hate relationship, and though they make great companions and playmates, Sky's submissiveness usually means she gets bullied out of the prime sleeping spots, has to wait to eat, and gives way when push comes to shove. It also means she gets less affection from me.

Last night I was getting dressed and ready to go out for a couple hours on the town with my husband and Sky was perched on top of her tree where she could peek around the corner into the bathroom. I had chosen black as my outfit, a sweater with black knit pants, and was carefully going through the process of rolling the ever-present cat hair off of the fabric. I had already done my makeup and had put my hair up in a clip so this was the last step, then I would be ready to go do some errands before picking up my husband at a pre-arranged time. Sky watched all the while and as always I was aware of her loving presence.

As I walked from bath to bedroom though, Sky jumped to my side of the bed. That meant only one thing. It was a rare moment when she was being forthcoming enough to ask to be pet, was doing so in the only way she knew how to get some much-needed affection. I sighed but was touched and yearned to pet her too, but thought of what it meant as she had habits in her affection process that were predictable. I would have to re-roller my clothes, re-apply my makeup, as she would undoubtedly lick it off. Her kneading would possibly result in pulls on my knit clothing. My breasts were tender from premenstrual swelling and her 13 pounds would cause soreness if she laid on them. Not to mention that I would miss my errands and possibly be late for my rendezvous with my husband. All this ran through my head as I looked at her beautiful eyes and hopeful gaze up at me and I thought to myself....worth it?

Absolutely....and lay down on the bed.

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