Some days are next to impossible. But, all I need is a day at Tabby’s Place to set everything to rights again.
All I need is Marcia leaning her head on my arm and purring for an unusual amount of time…for her. Naturally, this needed to be and was followed by an unsolicited swat because I had the audacity to want to take a picture. She followed up with a hiss for good measure. Everything felt better than it had just moments before I had joined Marcia in her solarium.
All I need is Ruchi in a dapper bow tie. Okay, with or without the bow tie, Ruchi is enough to brighten any day. He gives the best purrs when given close hugs. And, there’s no one more fun to follow around while trying to take a picture when he is singularly focused on finishing off all of the half-eaten meals left by his lobby mates.
All I need is Neon Prescott. Yes, Prescott is always a neon bright delight in the lobby (or Community Room). But, one day, Prescott managed to dust the top of her head with yellow toner. No pictures because she had to be cleaned up before her eyes or mouth went neon too. So, with a minimum of fuss (always the case when Prescott fusses at all), her head was mopped off, dried up, and her face was firmly and happily planted in her dinner.
All I need is one hand on Ilya and the other on Luna. The tiniest creatures always give back the biggest love whenever they are paid appropriate attention. Petting in tandem on a nothing-special Saturday yielded dueling purrs that made perfect harmony. Suddenly, the day had spiff and sparkle and shine instead of, well, none of that.
All I need is a carefully selected brush and a visit to the sweeties in Suite E. Once again, bribing Davey with sink time got results. A cautious venture with Indie, while ensuring no other cats were too near, led to an unexpected revelation – he is happy to brush his own face. Hey, it’s something. And, it is enough of a thing to be cherished.
All I need is Bing, and Vinnie, and Gopher. They recently joined the class of Suite E after some cards and rooms were shuffled. I don’t brush any of these guys. Vinnie would be unhappy with me. Gopher would growl. Bing would minimally tolerate a tiny bit of brushing…maybe…hmmm. Best to stick with fingers lest the good thing we got going gets going wrong. Nevertheless, I need them all, and there they are, so all is well.
All I need is to move Juel to a clean spot. This, of course, needs to be followed by shaking poop (his) out of his bedding then washing hands of pee (also his) that soaked into the bedding. After that, the lovefest can and usually does begin. To be clear, a lovefest with Juel is also a bit of an ickfest. Telling him so and giggling while he licks my nose (ew) as I brush him is the highlight of any day. This is true even when the equally high highlight of kissing Anka on his head while simultaneously brushing him and giving him a squeeze treat has already happened on the same day. (Do not attempt this. Seriously. There is something wrong with me. Besides, Anka and I have been dancing this dance for almost 9 years now.) By the way, all I need is to kiss Anka on his head while simultaneously brushing him and giving him a squeeze treat.
All I need is to head down to Suite J in order to spend a few moments with one fragile little lady named Malora. She blows snot bubbles from her nostrils and gets food stuck on her face. One of her ears makes her look like she was a mini-flyweight class professional boxer in a previous life. In other words, Malora is about as perfect as perfection can be. Her very existence is proof that every day is the very best day, no matter what happens.
As it turns out, no matter what happens, all I need is a day at Tabby’s Place to put everything back into perspective. Life has challenges. So what? Without challenges life would be boring. Life gets topsy-turvey. Okay. So, enjoy the ride. Any time I get desperate for dull and forget to laugh at life’s rollercoaster, all I need is a little time with the wondercats of Tabby’s Place to remind me that everything, everywhere, always is going to be okay. The only other thing I need is you. Remember, the cats that you love are there for you too. And so are the rest of us: the whole entire Tabby’s Place family. In it for the cats. In it together. Yup, that really is all I need.