Pets — our wild auxiliary children

Get a pet, they said… It will be fun, they said. I guess the fun rests firmly on the beholder. As the days go by with our family the past couple years have been a rollercoaster of emotion where our pets are concerned. Being a pet-loving man, blessed with an equally pet-loving wife, our home has always been filled with an abundance of furry little friends. Our girls have likewise learned the value of pet ownership and have become accustomed to considering our pets members of our family. Our outlook has made it difficult at times as our four-legged family members cross over to a heavenly realm.
With the loss of our second cat in less than a year, my wife and I decided it was time to take a short break and not adopt another immediately. Although valid in thought, our follow through simply failed to take hold and we found ourselves loading up the girls for a short journey to a friend’s house who just happened to post a picture of two beautiful baby kittens on social media she hoped to rid herself of. Looking at each other, shaking our heads in disgust at our inability to remain strong, both my wife and I looked forward to the smiles and excitement which would soon be emitting from the girls.
As we imagined, the girls’ excitement was unable to be tamed as they held their new kittens and loaded them up for the short drive home. Now, almost a year later, the girls continue being good mommas to their cats and the duo of furry felines have found their place in our family. This all brings us to a event which occurred the other day.
As we all must, and few like to discuss, good ol’ Dad had to take care of some personal business in the bathroom the other day. As I sat contemplating, I don’t know, probably the meaning of life or something important like that, I was at ease. The quiet solitude was welcome, and I really couldn’t get much more relaxed. That was until one of our furry little family members decided that I had relaxed enough, and it was time to rock Daddy’s world.
There I sat, minding my own business when from under the door, a black, furry creature flew directly towards my feet. The surprise caused me to look down and what did I see? A large black spider. Anyone who knows me fully understands my intense dislike of spiders so as you can imagine I was no longer in my happy, quiet, place of solitude. Then out of nowhere, the long grey arm of Mia, the cat extended under the doorway, sweeping from side to side, to retrieve the spider, she had so easily hurled at Daddy. Doing my best to put the last thirty seconds into perspective, I realized the spider was merely a Halloween prop so breathing became easier.
Mia was able to grasp the toy spider and pull it back outside my safe space and I again began to relax, although saying some choice words to my lovely pet from under my breath. Just about the time I re-composed myself fully the entire scene played itself out a second time. Yes, she threw it at me again, I jumped, voiced my displeasure, and decided if I were to survive, I simply needed to wrap it up and go back to the living room. I can’t say for certain, but when I exited the bathroom, I am relatively certain Mia was smiling, maybe even chuckling a bit as she lay watching me walk by.
Life, my friends, is filled with a wide array of humor and sadness, joy and fear, as we make our way. Although frustrating at times, the inclusions of others whether furry or not can make our journey a little bit more palatable at times and can truly give us something to talk about, laugh at, and remember. In the end, I wouldn’t change a thing, pets have added so much to our life. They help us open ourself to the possibility of humor even where fear seems the only option.
Richard J. Stephens lives in Carter County and is the father of three little ladies ranging in age from 9 to 29.