<div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif;color:black;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">The story is keeping my interest and I’m
empathetic to the characters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">I’m not sure what the relationship between
the cat Mom and the barn lady is. I suspect that she is more than just a
friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman"><font size="3">If you don’t explain<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></font><font size="3">why the woman is on the move, you are going
to get lynched. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">I suspect there is a domestic problem
behind all of this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">There is a story to be told about her
family relationships. And why shhe chose to stay with a friend rather than her
family in the first stages of her greiving and/or recovery from some trauma.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">I trust that all will become clear in
time. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></o:p></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">The
Ugly Barn Cat<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Marcia
J. Wick, the Write Sisters<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">May
2019<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Word
Count: 1135<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Born
in a barn, my cat mom abandoned our messy brood when we arrived early into the
world. Orphaned, we were likely to die without warmth or food or protection.
Fortunately, when the barn lady brought oats to the horses, she spotted our
perilous lot. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“Oh
my, kittens. I wonder where the mother is…<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">I
don’t think they’re being fed.”<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">One
by one, she lifted us into a slippery box. We scrambled over each other,
half-blind and shivering. Premature, our pink skin wasn’t yet covered with fur.
<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">The
barn lady carried us into her home and helped us feel our way to a water bowl.
Then, she placed us in a laundry basket heaped with warm towels from a nearby
dryer. The next morning, the lady returned with a milky substance in a bottle.
The enticing aroma created a frenzy of squealing and squeaking until each one
of us had nibbled the nipple. Our faces were splattered with crusty residue
since we didn’t have a mom cat to lick us clean.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Shortly
after we moved into the laundry room, a sad lady came to stay in the spare
bedroom in the basement near us. She slept and cried a lot like us; she seemed
to need nurturing as much as we did. From a distance, she watched as the barn
lady fed us, but she was reluctant to touch our matted fur or boney bodies.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“They
look more like rats than cats,” I heard her say. At that point, I didn’t care
what I looked like; I was happy to be alive.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">It
seemed I was always last to suck the bottle, so I learned to count to seven.
Then, a funny thing began to happen. Each day, my turn to eat came sooner and
more often. I moved up from the seventh spot to the sixth, then the third, then
second. I didn’t mind getting fed more but I wondered where my siblings had
gone. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Slowly,
I grew stronger although my legs were still spindly, my hairless ears twitched
in the cold, and my green eyeballs bulged out of my malnourished face. Because
my brother was stronger and looked more like a cat than a rat every day, he
pushed me around. He rubbed his new fur against the sad lady’s ankle, vying for
attention. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">The
sad lady also was growing stronger. She laughed on occasion and began talking
to the barn lady about moving on. The barn lady suggested her friend take one
of us kittens with her.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“I
can’t take care of myself, let alone a sick cat,” she protested. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">That
night, I slept in the laundry basket alone. I suspected my brother had sneaked
into the lady’s luggage so he could leave with her. The runt, I dreamed
of changing from an ugly barn cat into a beautiful feline with soft fur as
white as an elegant swan – then, the sad lady might love me. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">My
pink ears trembled in the morning when I heard the barn lady tell the sad lady,
“There’s only the runt now. Why couldn’t the one who was starting to look like
a kitten be the one to survive? The way this one’s eyes bug out and her ears
are too big, she looks like Yoda from Star Wars.” <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></o:p></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman"><font size="3">I’m a little confused here. Did the older,
healthier cat die? The talk about who was going to survive or not is what I
find confusing. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></font><font size="3">I had assumed that the
litter mates were being given away to new homes, one by one. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“Maybe
she’s a Jedi,” the sad lady joked. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">So, that’s
how I got my unusual name. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“I’ll
have to take Yoda with me,” my new mom announced. “No one else would want her.
She’s so messed up … pretty much the way I feel.” <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">My
thin hair prickled in excitement at her words. Only weeks old, I knew my new mom
needed me as much as I needed her.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">The
night before our departure, the barn lady decided I shouldn’t sleep alone, so
she selected three of the older barn cats to have a slumber party with me in
the laundry room. Smothered by a pack of unruly mousers, I didn’t get much
sleep.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">The
next morning, my new mom deftly rearranged luggage in the back of her hatchback
to make room for my cat box lined with towels. We headed south the first travel
day for a rest stop with family before our long journey west. When my new mom
lifted me out of the box to introduce me to her favorite aunt, she screamed and
dropped me back into the box like a hot potato.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman"><font size="3">I guess the sad lady prefered to stay with
a friend rather than her favorite aunt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></font><font size="3">So in her family</font><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><font size="3"> </font></span><font size="3">blood is not thicker
than water it would seem<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“She’s
crawling with fleas! Oooo! That wasn’t a good<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><font size="3"> </font></span><font size="3">idea to have her spend last night with the
barn cats. Now, what am I going to do?”<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><o:p></o:p></u></b></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">My
mom’s quick-thinking relative grabbed an old box of 2-in-1 flea and tick powder
for cats. Holding me in her palm, Mom peppered me with powder. For a moment,
the fleas stopped biting then my skin began burning like I was in a frying pan.
The fleas, reactivated, crawled desperately over my eyes and ears, as anxious
to escape the fire as me.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">I don’t want to sound ju judgemental, but
it seems to me these people are not the brightest bulbs.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">“Oh
my gosh, the label says ‘Not for use on cats under six months…’” They screamed,
“oh, no!” <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>If it weren’t for bad luck, she’d have
no luck at all.<o:p></o:p></u></b></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Next
thing I knew, we were in the car again, racing to an emergency vet who could
“dip” me while Mom’s aunt bombed her house for fleas. Why had I thought life
with a lady would be safer than hanging out with feral cats and huge horses in
a cold barn?<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman"><font size="3">After
my bath, my soft skin began to feel fuzzy, then furry. By the time we reached
Mom’s <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">Colorado</st1:state></st1:place></font><font size="3">
home for the holidays, I resembled a Christmas kitten, all white except for a
black smudge on my forehead which Mom said “looks cute!”<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">My
mom’s mom was allergic to cats, so I was relegated to Mom’s bedroom. Too early
for me to learn potty manners or clean myself after falling into the food or
feces, Mom washed me clean with a damp cloth and let me into the bed with her
at night. I didn’t talk much since there weren’t other cats in the house to
teach me. I adopted a chirping sound to indicate my excitement whenever I saw
my Mom.<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">Although
my life was getting off to a rough start, I wasn’t alone. My new mom spent most
of her time sleeping and crying in the bedroom with me. She didn’t go out
often. That suited me fine. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">As
the days grew longer, Mom perked up and played with me like a real kitten. I
was climbing out of the litter box one spring day when she announced to her
mom, “I think it’s time for me and Yoda to move on.” <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman"><font size="3">I
fell on my head and rolled over to hear more. “They’ve offered me a job in <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">California</st1:place></st1:state></font><font size="3"> and I’d
better take it. I’ve been moping around here for three months, long enough.”<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman"> <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">(To
be continued.)<o:p></o:p></font></font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3"><font face="Times New Roman">I assume you are going to get around
explaining what is going on with this vagabond woman. <o:p></o:p></font></font></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p><span style="text-decoration: none;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"> </font></span></o:p></span></u></b></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="yiv5805661354msonormal" style="margin: 1em 0in;"><font face="Times New Roman"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font size="3">Are you purposefully setting us up with <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></font><font size="3">a need to read on?</font></span></u></b><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">_______________________________________________</font></span></p><font face="Times New Roman" size="3">
</font></div>