“Kitty and Kooper”
“A Liberty Realized”
Several weeks ago, our next-door neighbor was detained at work and called my husband Dave to walk her dog Kooper. He agreed and off they went. Kooper leading Dave on the best paths through the neighborhood. Nearing the end, Kooper stopped at our back gate and asking with his eager brown eyes and a wagging tail to enter. “Why not?” said Dave. He is probably lonely from being in the house all day.
So Dave opened the gate and Kooper raced in. Ruled by his need to sniff, Kooper paced the yard inspecting a pile of wood, then stepping up into the flower bed, next sticking his head inside several bushes to detect the information of the familiar or of strangers.Each leaving its own aroma behind similar to a human’s fingerprint.
His sturdy little body stood tall as he marched around the yard like a battle-tested soldier displaying his medals with confidence and dignity. A resolute stride for a serious puppy.
And why not? He’s a dog, a white Maltese, a superior being, yet kind to the deserving.
Soon he was to smell trouble as out of the pet door dashed our cat Kitty. A blue-eyed Siamese with her mother’s black coat mixed with her father’s tan fur. Princess Kitty carrying royal linage in her blood.
She sees Kooper and with one sleek movement ascends to the top of the patio coffee table and inches to the rim to peer down. Kitty makes it a regal habit to perch herself up high over her assumed enemy. Her point of supremacy.
Her black fur stands high, with an arched back, her face muscles tightened. She hisses a high-pitched meow command. “Who dares to trespass?” Now in the world according to Kitty, the space beyond the closed gate belongs to dogs. They have the neighborhood and all the park to explore. Consequently, she only has is her one sliver of land in which to reign which is now being sullied by a foreigner.
Her claws visible brace the table’s edge as she crouches into position. She catches my eyes to register a glare of disgust. How did this happen?
Kooper looked up from his business of exploring the patio to eyeball Kitty. He knew from past encounters her hostile temperament, so he just ambled by her and continued surveying the plot.
Boundaries long and narrow, pavers instead of dirt, potted plants that required he stand on his hind legs to sniff, and two small patches of a garden with dirt and several cushioned patio chairs with tables. “Adequate yet typical space for a cat” was Kooper’s assigned assessment, but the rebuff by Kitty lingers.
Kooper gives a little gruff to say, “There is no reason for her to be harsh. I like cats. I would be her friend if she knew how to have one.” Pushing his back leg forward in line with his front leg, Kooper presses on.
Meanwhile, Kitty’s anger grew as she continued to add to her list of invader dog grievances. This courtyard is modest enough in size without this creature invading my space. She pulled tight on her muscles resulting only to make herself appear smaller.
Suddenly a most unexpected turn of events.
Kooper stopped in front of Kitty’s perch and peered up as Kitty continued to scowl down. He stretched his body as far as his one-foot height would allow and stood tall on his hind legs with his gaze fixed on her. He pushed his nose towards Kitty and prepared to sniff her.
Kitty scratches the top of the table as she prepares to react. While there were so many responses I expected from Kitty but not what she delivered. Just leaning a little further down and for a brief moment in time they sniffed each other.
Meeting each other halfway, nose to nose, and for one second the earth stood still as two enemies discovered a surprise.
Sniffing passed the fur to detect their commonness because they are not just a cat or a dog but equal members of the same animal kingdom, part of the same creation, and full of goodness. Then Kooper drew away and continue his inspection. Kitty moved to the table’s center. Her eyes bright, her muscles softened as amazement swept her face. She looked at me and held my gaze.
If cats could smile, she would have because cats only offer their nose to another animal in friendship. A look of amusement settles on her face. “Meow, he sniffs the same things I do!”
With the anger gone, odd as it may seem, the yard had grown large enough to share. Now her realm no longer threatened but enhanced. Room for two.
Eventually Kooper plopped down at Dave’s feet. He was ready to go home. Dave opened the back gate, and they left. Kitty jumped down from her perch and sauntered to the wooden gate to gaze through the small slat. She waited… wondering when Kooper would return.
In honor of Independence Day, these two loyal Laurelwood citizens remind me of the words of George Washington, our first great patriot and President from his famous “Farewell Address.”
A speech given to warn the nation to be wary of those who by their words would separate our country into sectional differences. “You cannot shield yourselves too much against the jealousies and heart burnings which spring from these misrepresentations; they tend to render alien to each other those who ought to be bound together by fraternal affection.”
“For our liberty is found in the unity of government which constitutes you one people. For it is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence.” For, to George Washington, our founding father, above all else, we are Americans united in purpose.
Be guarded against those who whose words would divide cats and dogs and various groups of people against a peaceful co-existence…
…neither group must be the enemy. If we honestly believe our motto, “In God we trust,” then let us confidently embrace His words to “love one another as we love ourselves.” With the intention that this is our first and best liberty.
Happy Independence Day this July 4th.
Kathy and Dave Benedetto, Storyteller and Editor
and Kitty, both Princess and Patriot, with Kooper, her new friend and compatriot.
From The Kitty Chronicles July 2021 for those who chronically love kitties and puppies.
