Eigo de Essay
The Gray Cat I was at a busy crossroads in front of the Shinjyuku West Exist with my husband and Tara, our old ailing cat. Tara was not in a pet carrier but just held against my chest. The next moment, the cat vanished into thin air. We frantically looked for Tara, and I found him at the bottom of the stairs that led to a closed pub. I picked him up and went up the stairs to realize that my husband was missing now. To my horror, my bag, which contained a phone, a train pass, and money was gone, too. I ran around among shoppers and business people with Tara in my arms looking for my husband. Then I realized I was again at the top of those stairs leading to the pub. A gray kitten was where Tara was before and looking up at me, meowing for help. I said, "What do you expect me to do? I have no money, no phone, and my hands are tied." Then I woke up. What a nightmare... I got out of my bed and started looking for Tara, who had been suffering from hyperthyroidism for almost five years. He wasn't in his usual place but was hiding behind the washing machine. I picked him up and brought him back to the bedroom. He was as light as a feather. The white and orange tabby who weighed 6 kilos at his prime was down to 2 kilos at that stage. Tara passed on the next day. His body was cremated, and I placed the urn next to the TV where he used to sunbathe. He had been with me for 15 years. Five months later, a friend of mine, who was in a volunteer group rescuing cats, got in touch with me. She said she could pick up a kitten at an animal shelter in Fukushima and bring it to Tokyo. She sent me a photo of the three-month-old male cat. Just like the kitten looking up at me in that dream, he was gray. My friend added that there was another kitten, a pale orange one, also looking for a foster family. Remembering the dream, I said I'd like the gray one. So here he came. I named the kitten Fuku after his birthplace, Fukushima. Fuku turned out to be a character, always stalks me and attacks me from behind. In my apartment, I feel like I were a gnu in a savanna, a prey of a lion or a cheetah. The dream was a nightmare after all.
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