HOW the CATS SAVED CHRISTMAS

 How the CATS SAVED CHRISTMAS

“What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future.” – Agnes M. Pahro

Snow  started again. Edna Blatt hiked up her old fur lined boots one more time and kept walking. She had been to the corner market. Only place open on Christmas Eve.  The people who ran it were eager for everyone to get done shopping and go home, so they could lock up. Shelves were rather  empty. 

Edna  managed to get the last head of lettuce, stuffing in a  box, a can of cranberry sauce and numerous cans of cat food, and bags of cat treats. She also managed to acquire a small fruitcake. Last one, she was told. 

Snow was coming down more and more. Edna hurried along the silent street. No cars. No people. 

Just the quiet  fluff falling over her hood. She hummed a Christmas carol. A little out of tune. Her little house was just at the corner. Edna could see the porch light was on. She’d left the  Christmas tree on and all the house  lights on. She reached in her bag for  house keys.

No keys.

Edna frantically searched her bag, her pockets. No keys.Snow swirled... She was decidedly  a little miffed.

Simon

But she remembered there was always a window unlocked for her cats to come and go. All ten of them would be waiting up. She could see them through the window. They  were sitting on the hardwood floor, staring at her  with their big eyes. Tails swishing. 

Edna Blatt hoisted up her coat and unlocked the screen. Some of the cats yawned. Some of them stretched.  Edna shimmied her front half through the  window. It was a little bit smaller than she realized. 

It was then that she saw her keys. On the floor by the litter pan

She squirmed her way inside. She got stuck. It just dawned on her that if her keys  were inside then the front door would have been unlocked. Edna’s boots  waved about in the air. Half in . Half out. 

The cats circled around . Meowing. Purring. Bopping her head with theirs. They thought this was wonderful.

   Edna reached for the phone. It had been knocked out of reach. One of the cats twirled it’s long tail  around the cord and was presently dragging the phone around.  Edna called the cat over. She waved a can of cat food.   The cat thought this was a hopeful sign. In fact, all ten cats thought this meant  food was forthcoming. 

Edna grabbed the phone, untangled the cat and dialed her neighbour next door. Then she waited. Half in. Half out. The cats played with the cat food tins. Swish , swish went their tails and bopped Edna with their heads. Her lower half was freezing.

Eventually, her neighbour showed up. She giggled when she saw Edna’s feet sticking out of the window and pulled Edna into the house. (Remember, the front door was still unlocked.) 

Edna found her footing again. She retrieved her keys.

Edna put on some Christmas music. The cats liked carols. They liked to watch her sing. They thought it was strange, of course. She fed them and  made her dinner. They stared some more and bopped her with their heads. The purring was like music to her ears.

The cats stared at her. It was their favourite pastime.

And snow was still falling, when  bells all over  town began pealing at midnight. The cats  in their semi circle, their eyes  huge, on watch,  as Christmas  came in like a lamb…..

Spencer

                                 “Joy to the World….”

 Photographs 2021