My Old Darling

I've known Cleyre for a long time. She and her brother were left in a cat carrier on the doorstep some dozen years ago, by persons unknown. Whoever did that knew that cat lovers lived at the address, so it was not a pure abandonment. When I found the cats I had been out of the house for only a few hours, so it may well have been someone we knew. Both were too lovable to give away, so they're growing old in the very same house.

Cleyre's is named in homage to Voltairine de Cleyre, the great anarchist whose 146th birthday was yesterday.

This affectionate girl is known to sit at a window, watching sparrows and chirping back to them. She would sometimes stand on her hind legs, begging like a dog when she was a kitten. If I had had a digital camera at the ready at all times when I was one of her human servants, I'd have convinced the world that she's as cute as my new darling, Laura Earle. This time she even perched on my shoulder for a few minutes.

Cleyre looks good in her baby cradle, which fits her snugly. It was a pleasure to renew our old friendship when I saw her at my human friend's house.