I was going to write about how I had been running around and playing in some snow but despite mummy saying everyday “maybe tomorrow Jenny” there hasn’t been any. I’m so disappointed as mummy says she loves snow and wants me to experience the sound, feel and smell of it but I guess I’ll have to wait a bit longer. As it’s a new year now I thought I’d let mummy write something for a change, so over to mummy…
Hi everyone, Jenny’s mummy here. Jenny came to us at a time in my life when I needed something to care for, something that needed looking after. We had lost our old lady Misty and I hadn’t realised just what a large hole she left behind, being 26 she had, over the years needed more and more care on a daily basis and once she had left us I began to realise just how much I had enjoyed looking after her in her latter years. So myself and my husband began to think about a special needs cat as we knew we had the time and experience to look after a cat who might need a little more help in life. So along came Jenny. Well, we were mistaken in thinking that because she was blind she would need more looking after, that she would need daddy and I to teach her and show her how to do things, really it’s the opposite, she has taught us so much! In fact it was because of her tenacity that we went on to adopt two more special needs or as we prefer to call them perfectly imperfect cats Millie and Angelin.
Jenny is a very special cat, of course all of our cats are special and unique in their own ways but there is just something about Jenny that is extra special, her and I have a very special bond. She’s an inspiration, she’s a teacher, she’s inquisitive, she’s determined and she’s a challenge. She is a natural explorer, a very adventurous and intelligent cat and this was clear from the very beginning. Within a couple of days of arriving she was out and about exploring the flat and meeting her new family. She has a natural ability to work out how to do things and solve the ever present cat dilemma of ‘how do I get down from up here?’. Don’t get me wrong, there’s some things we taught her like how to get down from the top of the scratching post but once we’d show her just a couple of times she had it sussed and not only that but improved on our technique and made it her own.
The way she deals with her ‘disability’ and the way she lives life to the full never ceases to amaze us. I honestly never thought I would be ‘that mad cat lady’ taking my cat (let alone a blind cat) for a walk but with Jenny it just seemed the natural thing to do. Through doing this I have met so many people, adults, children (and other pets) and shown them that it’s ok to be different. A few weeks ago we had a lady from our development visit to pick something up and when she arrived she said “oh hello, I know you, you’re the lady who walks her cat” no-one round here knows me by name but they all know Jenny and the lady who walks her! That’s what Jenny does she brings people together, she lowers barriers, she changes perceptions, she makes people happy without even realising what she does…or maybe she knows exactly what she’s doing..
Every challenge she’s faced with she rises to – going for walkies no problem, climbing trees – she loves it, chasing prey just comes naturally. She’s lost her eyes but she hasn’t lost any of her zest for life or her instincts. In fact, I honestly think it has made her more resolute to prove she can do everything as well as, if not better than anyone else. I have never in my life met a cat so determined to challenge themselves, she actually puts her toys into places where it’s harder to find them, harder to retrieve them and harder to pick them up just so she can go and find them again. She climbs our cat scratching posts in different ways just to find a new route, make it that little bit harder. Who deliberately makes things harder for themselves especially when you’re already at what most people would thinks is a disadvantageous position already. Well our Jenny does just that. She’s not happy unless she’s being pushed to the very edge of her abilities, for her the only restriction in life is her imagination, she truly doesn’t see any limitations….which can be quite frightening for me when she’s in full adventure cat mode.
2020 has been a challenging year for many people for many different reasons and for some people everyday is a challenge regardless of a global pandemic. So this year I hope that by reading Jenny’s stories and adventures she can in some small way provide you with some light relief, a bit of a getaway from the every day but show in her own little way that it’s ok to think big and aim high. Who would ever have thought that a blind cat could climb a tree or hunt critters in the bushes? Maybe this year is the year to be a bit more Jenny, do something that you wouldn’t normally do, challenge yourself, teach someone something new, learn a new skill or maybe meet new people and spread a little bit of joy and happiness. Take a leaf out of Jenny’s book and embrace your differences if you have any because you can achieve whatever you set your mind to. You might think that she’s ‘just a cat’ but if she can achieve so much in her little life then so can you.
As Jenny sits here in the evenings snuggled on my lap fast asleep with her little paws and whiskers twitching away I hope that we have given her the ability to have happy, fun, imaginative and adventurous dreams. She is so comfortable here that she can sleep deeply and unlike when she was on the streets instead of dreaming of what might chase her (if she ever slept that deeply) now I hope she dreams of running as fast as she can through fields, playing and going on adventurers with her siblings, climbing the tallest of trees and stalking the birds and insects she loves to chase (maybe in her dreams she actually catches them too). To me her happy, smiling face whilst she’s sleeping says it all, she is happy.
This year is going to get better, I’m sure of it…we opened our 2021 page a day calendar and there on the front cover was a kitten who is the spitting image of our little blindie Angelin. That has to be a good omen, Angelin is such a sweet natured, kind and beautiful cat that she’s the prefect face of 2021. The only difference is that the kitten on the calendar has big blue eyes, we have always wondered what our blind cats would look like with their eyes and now we can at least see what Angelin would look like. Who knew Angelin had been off and done some modelling without us even knowing!
So from me and daddy, Jenny, Peppar, Millie and Angelin we wish you all an adventure cat style 2021. We will continue to think of new ways to embrace Jenny’s adventure cat spirit and keep challenging her (and the others) to be the best and happiest they can be and hope you continue to enjoy Jenny’s stories.
Jenny’s Story 