That same evening when mum picked me up off the pavement and took me home, I discovered curious animals called the Maine Coons. Boy, the house was full of them! But what exactly were they? They had bear paws and racoon tails and wore silky, long, deluxe coats, almost as if they were going to a ball. And like lynxes, they had whiskers on their pointy ears! At first, I was slightly afraid, but they looked at me so kindly that I thought I would try to charm them a bit. It never hurts, you know. So I crawled close to the biggest of them – the one that the others called “daddy”. He was at least 10 times bigger than me! Adopting the persona of a cute little kitten, I bent my head down and stuffed it into his thick fur.
And it worked! He leaned over me and licked my forehead and ears and gave me a kiss on the nose.
“I’m daddy Uddy,” he said. “Do you want to be my son?”
Of course, I wanted to! I hadn’t even known until then that one could have a daddy. My confidence boosted by the addition of an ally, I moved to the next “Maine Coon” – there were eight of them, all standing around me. The next one was a large tabby lady with a coat so long that it swept the ground. She was probably a princess. I buried myself in her silky fur, and she kissed me and hugged me tight, saying, “There you are, my son. You've come back! I always knew you would.”
I didn’t understand quite what she was talking about. I only later learned that she was mummy Tahiti and that her beloved son Maxi had crossed the rainbow bridge a few months before, so she had been waiting for him to return.
Given that my approach had been successful with the first two giants, I moved to the other ones and buried my head in their fur. They all kissed and hugged me in turn. I was so happy to be cuddled, especially after all the trauma the yellow monster had put me through.
That's how I got to know daddy Uddy and mummy Tahiti and all their daughters – my sisters. Ah, there was also an older gentleman called uncle Panda. I understood he was the protector of the family.
I no longer cared if they were bears or squirrels, or even lynxes. To me, they were simply my new family. They loved me and I loved them all within minutes of meeting them. From that moment on, I became a Maine Coon myself. Well, okay, a tiny, tiny one with maybe slightly shorter fur and whisker-free ears.
Later on, mum explained that my new family members were cats, the largest domestic breed. They came from far away, the state of Maine. There, they would use their large, furry paws to walk in deep snow; they would swim in icy rivers to catch fish for breakfast, and when they slept, they had to curl their bushy tails around their faces and shoulders to keep warm. Or they would curl their tails around their bums to create customised cushions to sit on. One cannot just sit in deep snow. What an adventurous life! I would like to spend time with them in the state of Maine one day. We would make a snowcat and compete who would make the biggest pile of snow!
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Lady Tahiti is a furbulous miracle to survive such a fall with no injury!! I love the way Mum thinks about her furbabies from their perspective not the humon view. You have a smart Mum Kitty Freddy & a pawsome family!!
Wonderful story! Thank you.