Twenty inches of snow and still falling. The snowplow hasn’t made an appearance. A perfect Sunday morning to join my son’s church in worship on a live stream YouTube channel. My son is a talented singer and pastor, and I delight in the opportunities to be a part of his congregation even if only on-line.
I have my cup of coffee, wood in the woodstove, the church service is ready to begin, and my computer is on. Enter Mandy. Our number one house cat.
With twenty inches of snow outside, the last thing on her agenda is to go outdoors. Instead, she hops onto the table to check out my activity. Sitting on the corner of the table won’t do. She requires a view of the computer screen from the keyboard.
“Mandy,” I yell. “You’re ruining church.” Pushing her paw away only mildly annoys her. I dump her off the table.
The worship service proceeds with an uplifting song listing the fruits of the spirit: patience, joy, love, slow to angry, etc. A white paw snakes around the side of the screen and bumps a key which halts my video.
“Mandy!” I yell again. “Knock it off.” I push her off the table a second time.
Once I get my program back, the worship song continues as we celebrate the love Christians extend to one another.
Mandy tries another approach. She climbs onto the chair adjacent to mine and starts swiping at my leg. I realize she wants attention and temper my irritation. This works until she hooks my skin with a claw.
“Ouch! Mandy!” I bat her paw away with a magazine lying on the table.
Now a song upholding Christian faith and leading by example blares from my computer speakers. Mandy’s patience has reached a limit. She hisses and yowls at me
and takes another swipe. I bat at her with the magazine until she stops. She swipes at me until I stop.
Grumbling, I gather both cats and throw them outdoors into the snow. The wonderful worship service has come to an end.
I sit back down, but the atmosphere has changed. My lovely time celebrating God’s love has taken a sour turn. How do I reconcile my irritation with a little cat who only wanted attention?
I write about it!
Flawed characters create great stories. Since I have plenty of flaws to draw from, I can share this story with a personal touch. Look for a character in one of my books who struggles through a period of time with a pesky, but personable cat.
Then, I brought my cats back inside the house.
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