1.I'll never forget the first pet we ever had.My family and I had lived in an apartment forever,and it didn't allow pets. That never stopped my per-loving sister and me from begging for a pet constantly,though.
2.Finally one summer we moved into our own home.It was a small bungalow in the city.It took us awhile to get moved in and feel like we had ownership of the place.My mother,for example,continued to say,"Turn down the music;you'll disturb the people upstairs."Finally it dawned on us—the house belonged to us.We could do whatever we wanted,including having a pet.
3.Right on schedule,a cat showed up on our front steps.My sister and I were sunning ourselves on the steps and trying to decide what to do next during a rather boring summer vacation.The huge tabby—colored tomcat came and brushed his long fur against our legs.He never asked for any food,mind you,but just seemed to want to be petted.We learned later the cat was a Maine coon,so named because of its size and because some people in Maine evidently thought the large breed looked liked a raccoon.
4."This is a sweet kitty",my sister Denise crooned,scratching the cat's ears.Hardly a kitty at that size,I thought,but the cat just bellied up for more sunning and scratching as if he belonged with us.
5."We aren't keeping that cat,"said Mom."It's a stray;we don't know anything about it,and it's too big".The cat didn't seem to mind.He just sauntered away like he owned the whole neighborhood.
6.We saw the cat only occasionally during the hot days of August and the milder days of September,but when the rain showers of October came,the cat renewed its efforts to be adopted.Try to enjoy a fall evening with a cat the size of a small raccoon howling on top of your mailbox.Still,our parents wouldn't let us bring the car inside,which reduced Denise to tears.
7."The cat is wet and cold,"Denise cried."He needs us"
8.It was a rainy October.By this time the cat had spent several wet,cold nights outside.Finally our parents relented.
9.Dad said,"Okay,bring the cat into the porch for the night.But don't let it into the house."
10.From the way my sister carried on,I think my parents realized it was all smiles as she dried the cat with a towel,fed him,and then made him a bed from old towels.She would have slept out there with the vault if my parents had try her.
11.So,the next morning we packed the cat into the car for a trip to the veterinarian."If we're going to have a cat,we'd better make sure it's a healthy one,"our parents declared.
12.The veterinarian pronounced the cat healthy but was surprised by the cat's size."He must weigh more than twenty pounds",she said."I don't know that he needs that much food.Try feeding him twice a day,and see how much he eats."
13.It was Denise who finally named the cat."Let's call him Beau,"she said dreamily.
14.We often let Beau outside during the day,but he always returned when we called him."Beau! Beau!"we'd yell,then watch as Beau shot a straight line for home—in hopes of getting an extra meal.
15.In the evenings,Beau curled up with us on the couch.At night,when we stretched and turned off the television,Beau continued to head for the porch.He always slept there,even during cold,snowy December nights.Finally,Denise decided to cure Beau of his porch-sleeping habit,and she carried him to bed with her one night.Beau liked this even better.
16.But when Denise,who had read that indoor cats are healthier and live longer,decided Beau should become an indoor cat,Beau rebelled.Evidently he had only been looking for a place to spend his nights.
17."Why is that cat howling at the door?"my father yelled."Jason,put him outside".Even Denise didn't complain,for she couldn't stand the wild howls Beau emitted any more than the rest of us.
18.Denise fed Beau canned cat food morning and night,but he often begged for more when she got home from school."No,Beau,you can't eat now",she told the cat worryingly.Beau responded by heading straight to the door for a howl session.These invariably ended with one of us putting Beau outside.Later we learned that one of our neighbors had fed Beau when he was a stray.She didn't know that we had adopted Beau,so she continued to feed him whenever he came by.
19.Then Beau,who thought watching television was a bed habit,initiated games of hide-and-seek with us at night.Hopping off the couch,he crouched in the carpet in a playful position.Then he hid,often behind the couch,and waited to be fished out.His antics mobilized the entire family—even Dad—as we chased him around the house,searching and laughing.
20.Finally we had everything a family could possibly want—a house of our own ,a loving family,and our very own pet,at last.