A Little Bit of Joy

A month and a half ago I shared the sad news that we had to say goodbye to our beloved Tiger. Honestly, we weren’t sure we wanted to be pet parents again. There is a sense of freedom from that responsibility, especially as they age. But as he aged, our love for Tiger would have made us go to any length to keep him…if he hadn’t been suffering. Loving a pet is way too temporary. But it’s still filled with a lot of joy that makes that love worth giving.

A few weeks after Tiger’s passing, we thought that maybe we’d consider getting another kitty or two at Christmas. But the house was so quiet without him. And so we took a trip to PetSmart where they had pet adoptions. None of those kitties were what we wanted, but then at that moment, we wanted another Tiger. Of course, he is irreplaceable.

We talked to one of the foster moms and told her what we were looking for in a cat or cats. She took our name and number and then we forgot about it.

Then one really tired day, I decided to try to nap. I ended up praying more than sleeping, and in the middle of my prayer, my phone jingled. That foster mom texted to say she had three siblings that were very sweet and did we want to meet them?

Did we? We weren’t really ready. But we figured, why not?

So we drove 30 minutes to her house to meet them. They were really sweet. They just rested on our laps and purred. Still, after spending an hour with them, were we ready for that commitment again?

We went home to think about it for a day. It took half a day. Maybe less. Yes, we wanted two of them.

But the night before we were to adopt them, I still wasn’t sure. Felt a little panicked! Was I really ready to no longer have a floor that didn’t need sweeping twice a day? Not to mention the expense of two. I found out later that this feeling is not abnormal. I think we can all second-guess change. Even good change.

The morning we brought them home, God gave us another joy. A double rainbow outside of our kitchen window. Another reminder of His love for all of us!

We brought them home and it took a day for me to fall in love. Well…not love the way I loved Tiger because I don’t really know them yet. But after six days with them, they’ve definitely wrapped their little paws around our hearts. And we are really glad we decided to adopt them. Two of them! They’re so fun to watch as they play, though sometimes life is easier when they are napping!

Kaelee races around here like a bandit, and she’s unafraid of anything! She’s a little scary as she’s tried to get around my legs and dart out the front door. She can be told twenty times a meal to stay off the table, but unless she has a good distraction, she doesn’t listen. Now Kody thinks the table is a good idea too, but he’s a lot more mellow. I’d say she’s the alpha when they fight. He’s more skittish. But he’s still recovering from surgery, so that might change.

In any case, I am finding that God has a way of giving us a glimpse of His unconditional love through the love of pets. All three of our past kitties gave that kind of love, and Kaelee and Kody are already super affectionate and want to spend time on our laps. They just enjoy being with us, and how many people do you know that you can say enjoy you 24/7? Even I get tired of me after a while! 🙂

So our life is going to be full with these little ones for however long God gives us. And I have to think that since they came to my attention as I was asking God for something specific, that this was His answer. It is actually a perfect answer, and completely unexpected.

But God’s blessings often are.

~Selah