Tabby’s Place has cared for dozens of paraplegic cats.

We have given love by the gallon to cookies-and-cream cats.

There have been a multitude of “Misters,” from Mr. Silverman to Mr. Grey to the matchless Mr. Man.

But we have never seen the likes of Colonel Mr. Peabody.

He can’t remember which branch of the military he served, only that his high rank has something to do with hugging shoulders.

He is not sure where the “Mister” came from, since he’s a casual guy who would rather go grab some nuggets than attend the opera.

He only knows that he is the original of his species … and so is everybody else.

How else can he explain the flights and lights of his life?

First came the car he never saw coming. One moment, he was a feral among ferals, un-neutered and always a little hungry. The next, he was airborne, with some unforgiving Buick breaking parts that would never mend.

A cat of lower rank might say it was the worst day of his life. But (a) no cat has ever ranked lower than Colonel, and (b) nobody, of any species, has ever seen life through Peabody’s eyes.

In Peabody’s eyes, his flight led to light. Had he not been wounded, he would never have been found.

But clearly, he is the original of his species, because somebody stopped for him.

Let’s stop right there. Do you know how rare it is for somebody to stop for somebody else?

But somebody did, for a cat without a name, and that means there is still light in this land.

Clearly, Peabody’s hero was the original of her species, too. She scooped up the cookies-and-cream crumbs and swept him to safety. She realized he could neither walk nor do the usual bathroom business.

But when she looked into Peabody’s eyes, light spoke to light, and “no” was not the answer. It was time for another flight.

I have always believed that cats know, but are not at liberty to tell, how the strands of miracles connect just a few inches above our heads. We use the word “coincidence” for things that outrank our understanding. Cats only smile.

The cat unlike any other cat smiled, and then he flew.

Some might say it was unfortunate that Peabody was born and injured many miles from Tabby’s Place. But Peabody would just wait to see what happened. And what happened is that a Tabby’s Place volunteer, who happens to be a pilot, who is actually an angel, happened to be in St. Louis.

Tabby’s Place staff member Drew, who happens to be a hero, who is actually a Valkyrie, joined the relay to collect the Colonel. As you have already guessed, they are both also the original of their species.

And in the flight of his life, one Mr. Colonel Peabody came home to a place unseen. Tabby’s Place was not a destination, but a destiny.

Tabby’s Place is filled with beings who have never been seen before.

We use the words “domestic shorthair” and “human being” because it would take too long to spell out everyone’s rank and radiance.

Peabody, being a casual guy, is content to let us call him by his first name. Actually, you can call him Peabody or Pea Buddy or Peanut Butter or Ingleborg, for that matter, so long as you hug him and let him hug you.

Let him hug you, until you remember your own name. Let him hug you, until you feel the heartbeat under all the flights and lights. Let him hug you, until you can translate “paralyzed” into “present.” You are here, together, two originals.

Also, let him hug you when he feels a little badly that he just went all Genghis Khan on you for expressing his bladder. He didn’t mean that. Well, he kind of did, but … hug?

There’s a reason Mr. Colonel Peabody was our “Mystery Cat” for Your Feline Valentine. He is the first of his species, and he will have the last word: you don’t have to walk to know that love goes the distance.

Colonel Peabody is also in need of his very first sponsors … will you be the original?