There are many charming towns and pretty villages spread across Northern Ireland. We visited a small town by the name of Blessington. The town is blessed with a lovely lake where many feathered species have made their home.
After driving for some time we reached our cottage in Wicklow County. “Baltyboy’s Lodge” is a wonderful, large house with a huge garden and a drive way.
We were welcomed warmly by the lady of the house, Catherine. She stays with her husband and five children. Can you imagine looking after the house, garden and five children? Catherine was always busy doing various chores. In spite of being busy she always had a lovely smile. All of us instantly liked her. She was very friendly, helpful and on her toes all the time.
We settled down in the drawing room warming ourselves in front of the homely, wood-burning fire. It felt warm and cosy and made us forget the freezing cold outside.
The door suddenly opened a bit and a lovely reddish brown cat entered the room. It stared at all of us wanting to find out who we were. Just then Catherine entered and introduced us to ‘Leo’.
The cat had become a member of the household some seven years earlier. Leo was very comfortable in the lodge. He had two places where he chose to sleep, lovely food to eat and lots of open space to play in. He always joined the family whenever they watched TV. He did not evince any interest in the programs but he liked to sleep or just lounge around in good company. He often went out to chase birds and squirrels. Sometimes he wandered off and visited the neighbourhood cats. He always returned by sunset and went to sleep in his bed. He looked happy and healthy.
But deep down, he was lonely and longed for the company of another cat. Many moons passed and he still remained alone.
One rainy day he ventured out and went to the barn on the right of the house. Lo and behold! He saw a beautiful black pussycat sitting demurely on a hay stack. At first he thought it was some illusion and refused to believe that a cat had come to the lodge. As he neared, the black cat gave a friendly ‘You look quite sweet’ purr. Leo could not believe his luck and lost no time in introducing himself.
He went closer and said, “Hello there, I am Leo and I live here, who are you?” The cat took some time to answer and very gravely replied, “I am ‘ Black Pearl’ and I am new to this place”. Leo approached her cautiously and gave her a soft tentative rub. They soon became friends and talked endlessly with each other. Pearl told him that she had left the previous owners’ house long ago as they were unpleasant folk. Since then she had been wandering around the countryside, trying to find some place to stay. Leo was moved to tears when he heard that Pearl had spent her nights all alone in the cold, rain and snow. She had rarely eaten any decent food, always rummaging in garbage bins trying to find something to eat. Leo felt extremely guilty and felt very sad for Pearl. Here he was, living in the lodge like a king.
Without batting an eyelid, he turned to Pearl and said, “Why don’t you stay with me in the lodge?” Pearl was so excited she stuttered,” It’s all very well for you to invite me in but what will the house owners say? I am not a pedigree cat like you; I have no papers, no ID and no reference from my previous owner. I am not sure they will take me in”.
Leo was not certain how to proceed and yet he wanted Pearl to stay more than anything in the whole wide world. He thought for a long time and decided to let her stay albeit without the permission of the house owners. He turned to Pearl and said, “Don’t worry about the owner; she is a very fine and considerate woman. I’m sure she will agree to your staying here. At an opportune moment I will ask her and I am very sure she will not refuse me. In the meantime please stay here in this abandoned tree house”. They climbed the tree near the barn and entered the tree house. The tree house was spacious and comfortable. There was a lovely bed with a pillow and a blanket. It had two huge windows to allow the breeze to flow in and the rays of the sun to warm it . It was big enough to house Pearl. The shelter was in fact very cosy. For the first time Pearl had a place of her own and she was happy to be sheltered from the rain and snow. She was so happy and grateful to Leo; she thanked him with a big hug and a kiss.
Leo went inside the lodge knowing that Catherine was away shopping in Blessington.
He quickly gathered some pieces of bread and chicken from the tray kept near the oven and took off. He went to the tree house to feed Pearl.
Catherine on the other hand was exceptionally busy with several guests in the lodge. She had no time to look at Leo or to play with him.
Soon after, the guests left the cottage and Catherine got back to her usual routine. In next to no time, she realised that a lot of food was disappearing from the store and kitchen. She asked all her children if they had taken any food from her storeroom. All of them said they hadn’t.
After a tiring day she was resting in the drawing room watching a TV serial, when she saw Leo stealthily carrying a large piece of meat. She was shocked to see Leo doing this. She decided to get to the bottom of this daylight robbery. She followed Leo from a safe distance to see what he was up to. Outside the tree house on the ledge Catherine could see a black cat waiting for Leo.
She saw both the cats happily devouring the food, having friendly fights, teasing each other and generally having a whale of a time. Leo was so engrossed with Pearl that he failed to notice Catherine. The lady of the house had never seen Leo so active and happy. The cats made an excellent pair and the sight touched her heart.
Finally Leo saw Catherine watching all their antics. Feeling terribly guilty, he hesitantly came down the tree and started to nuzzle her foot. Leo knew what he had done was wrong but felt good that he had made Pearl comfortable, safe and loved.
Leo mustered up all the courage he had and with great hesitation he turned to Catherine and said “Please meet my new friend, Pearl”. I welcomed her to the lodge and gave her a place in the tree house, all on my own. She has nowhere else to go and I have always wanted another cat to play with. Please ma’am, let her stay here with us”.
Catherine thought for a moment and said to herself, “Another cat to look after! Where will I find the time and energy? Soon, they will have many kittens. The lodge will be full of cats. What will the guests say? Some of them don’t even like cats”. She was caught in a big dilemma.”On one hand it will make Leo very happy but on the other hand it will be very hard on me,” she thought.
While all these thoughts were running through her head, she looked down to find Pearl looking up tenderly at her. “Ma’am, I know what’s going through your mind. Please allow me to stay here. I have nowhere else to go, winter is on its way and it will become very difficult to find food and shelter. I promise to stay in the tree house and never enter the lodge”. She continued, “by the way Ma’am, my previous owner had me neutered so you needn’t worry about me having any kittens.”
Catherine was extremely moved. In one magnanimous gesture she bent down and tightly hugged both the cats. She said “Okay Leo, have it your way. Pearl may stay in the tree house. But, there will be no more stealing food from my kitchen. Both of you will be fed outside at the same time. You may play with her as much as you want in the open field, garden and the back yard. You will return to the lodge at sunset and stay in. Pearl will follow all the rules of the cottage and cause no problems to either us or our guests”.
Since then Leo and Pearl have become inseparable and continue to enjoy each other’s company. Leo no longer steals any food and has become a well behaved, happy and mischievous cat. Pearl has kept her promise and always remains outside. She loves her tree house very much.
Captain's Corner 