The Cat Who Talked a Lot

The Cat Who Talked a Lot

So God formed from the dirt of the ground 
all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air.  
He brought them to the Man to see what he would name them.  

Whatever the Man called each living creature, that was its name. 

Exodus 2:19

I am a cat lover who has owned cats on and off most of my life.  I am in an “off” period right now, but my last feline is never far from my thoughts.  Sapphire was such a happy-go-lucky kitty, and a real talker.  For those of you who are not cat people, I am not talking about meowing. Most cats meow.  Sapphire talked.

She would begin the day’s conversation very early – as soon as she heard my alarm go off.  She sat in the hall, chatting and cajoling, trying to entice me to come into the kitchen and feed her.  Thirty minutes later, she was in my office, perched on the floor next to my chair, nattering away about one thing or another – usually a request to have her face rubbed. While I was at work, she spent her day in the front window.  The minute she saw my car pull in the driveway, she jumped down, met me at the door, and launched into the dialogue all over again.  She offered comments, made demands, and asked questions.  There were distinctions that were clearly audible in her speech patterns.  Sapphire was my first talking cat, and she was fascinating to live with.

Interacting with my intriguing pet often took my thoughts back to the Garden of Eden.  God created Adam, set him in his garden home, then created streams of animals and birds – each one named by Adam himself.  Could he talk to them?  Was there a form of actual communication between man and the animals?  Did he have a little cat who asked questions and waited patiently for his reply?  Only God can satisfy my mental meanderings, but one thing I know for sure.  The day I set foot in heaven, I will have my answer.

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All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small,

All things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all.

God gave us eyes to see them, and lips that we might tell

How great is God almighty, who has made all things well.

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small,

All things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all.

The United Methodist Hymnal, No. 147