Genesis
2nd January 2022. I will never forget the advent of Billy Cat. The cathartic cardboard cube sat on my coffee table. A good 60cm each side. Not a scratch. Not a bump. Silence. Mute. No single sound. Folding back the flaps of the box revealed a tiny feline face staring back at me. A couple of pounds of eight-week-old, mixed-race, kitten.
No hello meow, just a confident air about him as he scales my forearm, makes base camp my shoulder and proceeds to lick my ear. He is grooming me in both senses of the word. Seeking to influence and engage. Establishing commitment.
He spends the next month riding on my shoulder and we joke about him identifying as a parrot. “Aye, aye captain.” He enjoys the short time he is small enough to sit on my shoulder. “Human whispering” directions to me with his paw as he explores his new home on human-back.