A Cat called Henry

 I have just finished knitting 3 more barn cats and they are all sitting on my desk, here in my craft room.

 To make them seem just a little more real, I have decided to tell a story about each of them and so tonight I will introduce you to Henry.

 Now Henry was born  to a mother cat named Sarah. She was only a  year old when she gave birth to a litter of 5  kittens. Henry was  the only male and was a  rather ugly little fellow. The human fussed over Sarah and  seemed to feel sorry for her as she was so young and helpless with this her first experience at having so many mouths to feed.  She kept her warm  in a cardboard box filled with a soft blanket and little by little the young mother cat regained her strength. The kittens  grew  as well and entertained their human owner.

Sarah was a good mother and lovingly protected her babies.   The weeks passed by quickly and Henry showed signs of being rather  slow and afraid to move away  from his mother. One day as they were all nestled in close to their Mom, a stranger came to the house. She smiled and gently picked up Annie his sister and  cuddled her. He never seen Annie again and he missed her. He knew his Mom did as well  because  she went from room to room looking for her crying.  Only a few days later, another lady came to the house with her  two daughters. The little girls laughed and hugged each of the kittens including Henry, but Bess and  Laura never came back. They had been taken by the children. Again  Henry watched his Mom travel throughout the house  crying for her babies. She never did find them and Henry and Sue  snuggled even closer to their Mom, sharing their loss.

One day their owner took sick and  was taken away. She never returned and the house became very silent.  Another stranger came over to feed them and  they  watched as she sat and cried  in the big blue chair night after night. In time Henry, his sister and Mom were put into a cage and taken to a place called a shelter. He never seen his Mom and Sue ever again.   Henry was lonely and missed his Mom. He was scared and the metal cages made him shiver and  hiss  when humans approached him.   Time passed and Henry grew used to the isolation of loneliness.  He seen other cats brought in and then see them leave in the arms of loving owners.. but no  one ever looked at him. No one ever wanted to pick him up and in time he  lost his will to live. His became sick and  gave up eating. He no longer moved around in his cage . He  slept and dreamed of his Mom  and running and playing with his sisters.  It was only then that his tail twitched.

The caretakers had been watching him and he heard them say that  there was no hope for him. No one wanted him and now he was sick. They took him out of his cage and took him into another room and laid him on a table. Thinking that he was not aware what was happening,  they  walked away and shut the door intending to let the vet give him a lethal shot to put him out of his misery.

   As Henry lay there, he felt a cool breeze.  He slowly lifted his head  and felt  a whiff of  freedom. A  window was open and he knew that he had to use the last of his strength and go toward those unfamiliar sounds and smells.


Henry found his way to the old barn out behind Maggie's Raggedy Inn.  His instinct  kicked in and gave him the necessary courage and skills to fight his way back to health.  He learned to catch flies and  finally caught a small mouse which helped him develop his hunting skills.  Over the next two weeks, he travelled to the outskirts of  the city to find himself   in front of  that old barn.  Here he found other cats like him who had taken up living in the many corners of the isolated  old grey building.  Here he found hope and friendship. He shared an upstairs window with Tess, a wise old  cat who told him about life and how to make it in the big world. He shared his story and she purred with understanding, just like his mother had done. At night he lay close beside her and listened to wind blow through the old rafters. He gradually let go of his fears and knew that his  life ahead would soon be filled with the  possibility of maybe one day finding a home with humans who would love him as they had loved him and  his family a long time ago.

Homeless Cats

Here  in the Gaspe, January is always our coldest month of the year. We know what to expect and there is nothing we can do about it. Winter  coats, boots, hats, scarves and mittens are a necessity  in this climate.  Wood stoves are lit, furnaces are turned up to the maximum and  the electrical bills are high.  Such is life during the cold months and we do everything we can to keep from freezing.

Yet what about our four legged pets. Oh don't worry my cats. they are nice and warm inside, sleeping on the television or on the sofa. Rosie our dog has her own bed  and blanket. They hardly ever go outside except to do their business and then it is a rush to get back in the house.  Yes all three of them found a good home when they were abandoned.

Yet there are others who are not so fortunate, for they have been left behind and are left to try and survive the elements without any one to care for them. I found a mother cat and her maybe one of her kittens in my shed recently.  They must have been abandoned.

Sadly, I imagine that the house where they used to live, no longer opens and lets them in to its warmth. What must they think as they sit there day after day in the cold, waiting  for somone to come back and let them in ? They must remember  how warm the inside feels as the bitter winter  wind  nips at their ears and the burning sensation of flesh freezing causes them to suffer. Yet they wait because they know somone once loved them when they were kittens. They remember the warm touch of someone's human hand  that stroked their backs. They remember the laughter as they tried to chase a piece of crumbled paper that their owner threw across the floor. They remember being wanted and  cannot understand why no one lets them in anymore. They had tried to listen to all the nos of what they could do and couldn't do. They learned not to scratch the furniture. They try to remember the last time they were let out and saw the car driving away.   They remember that their owners always came back so if they waited long enough, they would surely come back again. But it was so cold waiting and they had to find shelter in an old wood shed. They would listen though just in case they returned and opened that door  to the warmth of that house.

 This is where I came in, because I own that wood shed and I know their owners are not coming back. I know the awful truth; they have been left behind  because they were not wanted. Kittens are so cute, but like all of us, they grow older and  become real cats.

 I live in a very small house and already have three animals to care for as well as a neighbour's dog whose owners are so busy with their children's lives that they forget what a dog needs... food, water, a warm shelter when it is freezing out and love and understanding.   This is what all animals need and in return they give you more love than you will ever get from any other source, for they forgive you for ever mistake you ever make. You know the old saying, don't sweat the small stuff, well animals really live this way. They do not care whether you are rich or poor, big or small, having a bad hair day or  that you just look really stupid in that crazy purple sweater.  They watch and listen to all you have to tell them. If you need a mid-day nap, they do not mind and will join you.  Eating alone, they will share your meal with you... on the floor is fine with them.  All they want in return is for you to care and love them.

 And so I began to feed them in that shed and brought out pillows and warm milk and cat food. Yet one night when it was really cold, I brought them in because  Pierre my partner said it was too cruel to let them suffer like that. So now I have 4 cats and a dog. I made an appointment to take both of them down to be fixed so there will be no more babies left  behind.  Yes it will cost money that  I do not have to spend, but I will find a way to manage.


Life is simple.... you get what you give in this world. 
Kindness matters.
Animals have feelings and a great capacity to love and trust... help make this world a kinder safer, more responsable world for them. 

 Pass on the message. Thank you!




 

An Interesting Conversation

 Hi everyone.. here it is January and a new year has started. The weather here in the Gaspe is incredible. It is like spring today with the sun so bright and temperatures warmer than it should be. I am so grateful, although I do feel bad for other places that are having a  colder than usual winter.

 Today I would like to tell you about a conversation I had when I went to my local yarn store after work on Thursday. I had been knitting a pair of my wool felted slippers that I sell in my Etsy shop and of course with only two more rows to go, I ran out of yarn. That was on Monday and all week I looked at that slipper wishing to find  a little more of that colour,  somewhere in the house. I searched everywhere in  all my hiding places that I keep yarn. Yes, under the bed, in my clothes cupboard, under my work desk, throughout all the storage containers and baskets in my craft room, but not one little bit of green yarn did I find.

 So Thursday after work I headed down to the yarn shop which is only open three days a week, as the owner has to work at another job to  keep herself going.   She hopes to one day be able to support herself but for now, not enough people are knitting I guess.  Unfortunately, we are all caught up in the race to earn enough money to pay our bills, with little time left over to pursue our creative interests

 Whe I entered the yarn shop  there was a woman sitting back knitting in a cozy rocking chair. I thought she was a customer, but no she was replacing the shop owner for the day. I told her she looked so peaceful and relaxed and  I could tell she was happy, enjoying the clicking of her needles, lost in her thoughts.  As we began to talk , I realised that we had been in the hospital together 21 years ago when we had our babies.  We both agreed that  time had passed so fast and then  she began to tell me a bit about where she was in her life. It was one of those moments that is life changing, I guess an ahhhhh moment like Oprah says.

She had just quit her job... imagine in this economy quitting a job. It was not just an ordinary job as she  walked away from a position  in a hospital that paid her a big salary, pension plan, complete medical coverage, that had been part of her life for 25 years. She was too young to retire but she made a choice to change her life. She had 3  girls   all planning soon to go to college and University and a husband who had a regular job without any benefits.

 How I asked did she have had the courage to make such a decision?  she said it  was a choice she made for herself and her well being. She could no longer stand the craziness of her workplace, nor the demands that  were against what she felt was right for the businesses clients. It was all about results and no longer about the people  that they were serving. So she left and walked away from what we all   have to deal with  and strive for in our present jobs.... security. 

 I looked at her  in amazement... as she stood in front of me with a smile that expressed  a feeling of peace with herself and her decision. She said that she had no regrets and had never been happier, nor felt better healthwise. She said that she had got back her energy .... something that she believed was gone forever. It had been a year since she had made the decision and somehow they were okay financially. She had found other part time work here and there and her family was happier. She said she  was still able buy what she needed but she  had gotten rid of the clutter that filled her life.  Life in all its mystery,   just brought her what she needed and  her family did  not feel deprived. Most importantly she said that she never had  to sacrifice her need for yarn which brought a smile across both of our faces.

 I left that  store with a new found energy.....  life is about choices and  I guess we have to find the courage to take the steps towards finding the right path  for our own lives. To make  the changes that will bring us to the place we want to be, we have to walk away from what we have, or  who we are with,  or  what we are  doing.

 I came home and  picked up my knitting needles and finished that slipper. As I sat  there knitting , I thought about what changes I will have to make to get to where I want to be... hummmm!!!!

Just Another Day in December

Here it is December 4 and I have  decided that I am going to work on Christmas presents today. Although I have many other things to do, I am going to take advantage of the fact that I am alone and do not have to go anywhere. It snowed yesterday and I feel like it is a snuggle in day.

I am going to put on Christmas music and work on making  hand made journals for everyone in my family. I think I have a bout 30 to make and it will keep me very busy all day and I know I wil not get them all done. I want to look up old pictures of  everyone and put them on the individual covers.  I  will also cut up old leather coats to use as binding for the covers to make them look a little more rich looking.  

As I look through the old pictures, it leaves me sad for sure because I realize that nothing in life stays the same. Mom used to say " we are here today and gone tomorrow" and how true it is as I look at this picture of her standing in front of  her Christmas tree. She so loved Christmas and enjoyed  wrapping and making each person's presents special. She took pride in her tree and had all the family over on Christmas Eve after we all went to church.  We would all have a big lunch of meat pie and white sugar cookies. Of course there was her fruit cake but I never could understand why the others all liked it with all those raisens and peel fruit. 

 After eating, we would open the gifts which took forever because each family brought over their gifts for everyone else. We were about 20 when we were all together.Then Mom brought out the Christmas stockings for her own  children. She had 8 of us and went through alot of trouble... along with Santa of course to fill them with little treats and treasures.

The years  have passed and both Mommy and Daddy are gone as well as my two brothers Hurd and Royden. I guess all this is to say that we have to make the most of today in all of our lives because life is so fragile and tomorrow is promised to no one. I will try and make this Christmas special for my daughter who will be home for such a short time from University. Since I still live on Mommy and Daddy's land right next to where our house was, I will continue the tradition and have all my family over on Christmas Eve after mass.. and yes I will have meat pies and white sugar cookies.. but sorry  no fruit cake!!!

A Thank You is Always Nice

 Like many of you, I have a shop on Etsy where I sell some of the things that I make. I started it last October and it has become a wonderful place which provides me with a reason to make things. I was blessed or maybe cursed with a very vivid imagination and as a child I was looked upon as being very different from the other 7 brothers and sisters.  I would spend my time drawing, writing  and sticking picture cutouts in a copy that I proudly carried around everywhere with me. I learned how to knit very young and used to sneak in the back kitchen to try and sew on an old Singer pedal sewing machine.  I was happy in my own little world of creativity.

 Today as a  very grown up girl (53), I am still happiest when I can find the time to  slip away into my craft area and knit, sew, paint, write and imagine all the things that I could make if I only had time ( see I work full time at a very stressful job). Sometimes I think I am a little crazy because I love making dolls, cats and little critters. Each one of them is special to me and I treat them as if they are a real little soul.

A few weeks ago, I sold one of my cats with her baby to an Etsy buyer and tonight I received a message from her that almost brought tears to my eyes.  Hey, maybe I am not crazy after all  if I can bring a smile to another  person so far away.

Message....

Hi, Maggie! We are going to have two extra guests at our dinner on Thanksgiving- along with myself, my husband Joe and our 10 cats at the "children's table", we are inviting our new mama and her baby kitten.They have brought such joy and laughter and reminders of rescues that they belong here in our home.I will never part from them-and since my beloved cats are getting old and their passing will be an unbelievable pain-but my mom and kitten will always be with us. I am getting emotional...I know that I will be adding another of your fuzzies to my gang.A few remind me of certain special kitties in my life...Happy Thanksgiving to a new and dear friend-from all of us here in Chicago.It's cold! Need some more warmth around me at night...we have to stay in touch....Luv, Donna and my cast and crew!

Another Girl

I couldn't help myself and so I  knitted another little doll. I guess I am like a bad kid  playing dressup with dolls that I make myself. I  love mixing the colours and the different yarns to see what she will turn out like.  Even though they are small, they still take about 5 to 6  hours to make and all the while I am imagining her completed.

 The say that when you grow up, you  must put your childhood toys away. Well for me at this time in my life, I have taken my toys back down and am enjoying the playtime once again.  Life is serious for us grownups as we face many challenges and responsabilities. From the time we leave our parents house, we are confronted with a lot of choices and  then we settle down and bring up our own children.  That stage of life is fast paced and we juggle many different obstacles. There is little time for play except if it is with your children and then all of a sudden they are gone. You are left with the void of  their needing you for the everyday things. That's when you look around and find yourself  alone and you turn to your long forgotten toys.

 Don't get me wrong, my daughter is still my main focus even though she is away at University. I talk to her everyday and am always there for her no matter what her latest crises might be, like losing her bank card and not having any money on her.  Not much I can do with her ten hours away, but I am here and  I try to help her figure out how to get out of her  dilemena.

 But in the quiet hours at the end of the day, there is time to imagine and play a little before bed. There is still a time to be that little girl again and play with all the bright colours and imagine a world where life is about having fun. It is a chance to create a little time for me.

Halloween at my House

Well Halloween has come and gone and once again it was a lot of fun. It was also a lot of work. I like to tell stories and so I have been doing the story telling on Halloween night for many years now because I like to give more than just a bag of treats.

Willamina is the witch that comes to my house every year with her gang of goblins I suppose you could call them. Usually she is a bad witch but this year I wanted her to be a good witch so I made her out of a sheet of plywood and painted her. Her friends are made of pillows and broomsticks and odds and ends that I have collected over the years. My friend Pierre has been with me for three years now and although he helps me with all the decorating, I am sure that he thinks I am a little crazy.

One of the nicest visitors I had this year was a young woman who brought in her little girl. She had come to my house many times as a child herself and was now bringing her own child. That definitely made feel better about all the work that I put into it and the reason as to why I do it.

Children are the reason why we do so many things and although we are all grown up, I think that we all remain childlike inside. That is why we must take the time to do the little things and have as much innocent fun as possible. My Mom was 82 when she died and one of the nicest things that she left us was her openess and desire to do the little extra things to make people laugh and have fun. For many years she would dress up for Halloween and sneak over to my house pretending to be a bigger child; yes she was short and could get away with it. Many times I did not know her and we both would laughed at her fun. I still miss her as you can see.

So here are some of the highlights of Halloween 2009. Too bad that you missed the witches brew and muffins!