Saturday, January 9, 2010

The Tenth Good Thing about O'Henry

Oliver-Henry has been missing for almost six months. I believe he is well, and I believe I will find him. But I miss him, and I'm grieving, which reminded me of Judith Viorst's brilliant book about pet grief, The Tenth Good Thing about Barney. So here, not as an obituary, but as a refresher on who it is I'm looking for, and why he's so special:

The Tenth Good Thing about O'Henry.

1. The instant he arrived at my house, he walked right over, hopped up on the couch beside me, curled up and began to purr.
2. The instant my husband came home three days later, Oliver-Henry got off my lap, and went over to my husband, who really needed winning over.
3. Three of Oliver-Henry's multiple names start with “H” and end with “Y”, making him Oliver-Henry Harley Hershey Cat. (Take that, Duggars!)
4. As a kitten living in a barn, he got stepped on by a cow. He didn’t get medical treatment for his injuries, but he healed. And he got the ultimate revenge by eating a lot of cows my house.
5. His fur is the colour of chocolate.
6. His eyes are the colour of robins’ eggs.
7. Once, after he threw up in his kennel during a car trip, I let him out. I told him he’d have to sit perfectly still for the rest of the car ride, or for safety reasons, I'd have to confine him again. He settled into my lap and didn’t budge during the forty-five minutes it took to get home.
8. He couldn’t have understood me when I told him not to move, because he’s deaf. His deafness makes him fearless.
9. He loves to climb into the bottom of the refrigerator.
10.He’s going to come home to me in a very cool way. I can just feel it.