THE RAINBOW

“No ! Not in my terrace ! “

“ Yes Memsaahib. She’s there – three , too small , dark . “

“ Can you take them away ? “

“ The mother won’t allow anyone to come  near them . Besides I’m getting late. “

Audacity at her very best.

“ Then  do something to prevent them from moving . I don’t want them in my house. “

Of all people on earth , why me ? Yeah ! Go ahead , try me.

I  am terribly scared of cats . Phobia . And this  foolish mother cat had to start her crazy family on my terrace. On the top of it , Jatin was having fun at my expense.

“ Are you sure you’re okay with my Delhi trip ? “ , he smirked. He would be away – I  have to handle the stray  cats alone.

Bending over my dahlias , I replied “ Are you going to cancel the trip if I ask you to ? No !  you won’t . But you want to earn some brownie points. I can see through your plans Mr. Husband. “

“ In that case , no use trying, eh ? “ and he laughed like a zombie.

After driving Jatin to the airport , I came back home. Had to complete the work at hand in a few hours and set on another assignment. As I flopped on the couch , I heard sounds from the pantry. I rushed in and saw that big fat mother cat. My kitchen was in a mess. How the hell did she enter ? Anger was replaced by fear in a second. I shouted. Like I never had in years.  Maybe she was as frightened as me. She jumped off the counter - spilling all that was there. Almost in my direction and  I yelled louder. She went past me , jumped out through the open window and everything was still again. I opened my eyes . Gone. I made sure I had sealed all doors and windows before sleeping that night. Maybe I should  ask the maid to sleep in the hall tomorrow onwards. The thought was discarded in a jiffy.

I never ventured into the terrace though.

The next morning , I sent the maid to the terrace to check if the cats were still there. She reported back that the mother was not there. One kitten had died.

“ Oh my God ! How ? “

“ They die. Just like that. Maybe it was weak. “

Weak.  

The more I thought about the “weak” kitten , the more I began empathizing with the mother cat. Maybe she wanted some food for her weak baby. I should not have scared her. I should not have …….

I sent milk for the other two kittens , again through the maid. I was less scared and more ashamed this time though.

In two days , one of the surviving kittens vanished. It  was  nowhere to be found. My maid told me that possibly, an eagle scooped it.

I did not know why the death of those cats caused such a tumult in my chest ….. I knew the answer after a little bit of thinking though.

 The mother almost abandoned the last of her kids. I never saw her after that mad encounter in my kitchen.

So there was just one frail kitten on my terrace. I went up there. It was barely breathing. Smaller than a squirrel.  Pity outscored fear. I gave it  water and then milk. It looked full. It was walking – just like a toddler . I smiled and came back to the house.

I never liked the idea of pets. But this kitten !  It needed help. A strange kind of a happiness enveloped me.

Jatin came back soon after. I told him about the kittens. He was kind of a surprised .

 “ At least you’ll get over your crazy fear” , he said. This time I joined him too.

The next morning I awoke before sunrise. Just as the sun rose , I went  up – to the terrace. May be its sleeping, I thought. I came back home. Jatin and I came up a little later in the morning. It was still sleeping . Little did we know that it was gone. Ants had set their path through its skin.

*****

“ Why us ? “ I wept as Jatin tried to console me.

“ No. It  happens. All will be okay. “

He added “ Someday. Someday honey …. “.

That gave me hope.

Someday. Once again. For good. A tiny pair of feet. To grace our lives.

Afterword : My blog completes three years on 26th May 2011. I have loved, cherished being here. And I'll be here in future. Amen ! Thanks to my readers - old and new - who have cared to be a part of "My Life and Times".