The Cat
By Evelyn Frederick Moll

Slamming the door behind her, Erika ran down the driveway and onto the sidewalk. The chill in the air made her hesitate and think about turning back for a jacket. However, Michael’s angry face flashed before her and she continued on her run.
Their disagreements were getting more frequent and more intense. Today Michael had erupted when she had merely told him that he had knotted his tie wrong, again. She couldn’t understand why he didn’t appreciate her assistance. She was always making suggestions on how he should dress, do his job, and handle the finances.
Nearing the half way point of her morning run, she saw the tree stump that protruded from the water. The stump had caught on a bush which grew in a tiny crack in the cement wall of the canal. A small amount of debris had accumulated around the bottom of the stump. Leaves clung to the bush. A large fish swam lazily in the area. Ducks floated nearby.
As Erika got closer to the tree stump, she noticed something sitting on the top of it. A cat.
Stopping in front of the canal with the bush with the stump with the cat, Erika contemplated the situation with hands on her hips. A couple with two barking dogs, who were intent on getting a closer look at the cat, snickered as they passed. Dog lovers, no doubt. Erika couldn’t claim being either a dog lover or cat lover. Pets didn’t make much sense to her, but she was intrigued by the cat.
“Hey, it’s not my cat.” Erika exclaimed to the retreating figures.
The cat continued to sit erect, head tilted slightly, eyes closed. Facing the sunrise, he seemed to be dreaming.
“Cat.” Erika addressed the arrogant feline. “What are you doing? Don’t you see the potential danger? You could fall and be swept away by the current. Come. Jump here and I’ll catch you.” Erika stood on the edge of the canal with arms open wide.
The cat looked at her. He looked away and began licking his paw. He then proceeded to rub his paw on his face. He continued to preen while Erika tried to coax him to come to her.
While pacing back and forth and drumming her fingers together, Erika pondered a solution to the predicament.
Finally, Erika knelt on the edge of the canal. She again summoned the cat and told him to jump and she’d catch him. The cat ignored her and continued cleaning his shiny black coat.
Moving forward as far as she felt safe, Erika reached out to the cat and said, “Here kitty, here kitty.” She almost reached him, but he looked at her and pulled just out of her reach. The cat shook his head and turned to watch Erika.
“OK, this is it.” Erika balanced with one hand on the side of the canal and reached out with her left hand and grabbed the cat by the scruff of the neck. “Gotcha.”
Pushing up with the hand that was braced on the ground, Erika stood with the cat held firmly in her grip.
Erika admonished the cat. “You should never do that. Like I said before, you could fall in the canal and get caught up in the current. I’m not sure if cats get sunburned, but you certainly could get heat stroke. I see you have a collar and tag, so you belong to someone. Someone who is probably worried about where you are. Why, I don’t know. You certainly don’t seem to have any common sense.”
As Erika reached to check the tag, the cat hissed and wriggled wildly. As he was trying to escape, he scratched Erika’s arm. She released her hold on him. Standing still, not even attending to her wound, Erika was shocked that the cat could do this to her after she had helped him. The cat immediately leapt back to his spot on the stump. He briefly looked at Erika and went back to his primping.
Totally unable to comprehend the cat’s actions, Erika took a Kleenex from her fanny pack and cleaned off the scratch. She gave the cat the meanest look she could conger up and stomped off towards home.
She muttered to herself.
“I don’t understand. That stupid cat. So ungrateful. Didn’t he realize that I was just trying to help? I certainly know what’s good for him. He’s going to end up drowning in that canal. He listens like Michael.”
Standing still while a breeze gently brushed against her face, she quietly whispered, “Oh.”

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Previously Published:
Issue No. 11
The Pink Chameleon on Line
(June 2010 thru June 2011)