To infinity and beyond

OK so it started off as an ordinary walkies but things aren’t always what they seem. Today was something different, we went out into the garden and it was a lovely warm evening and the sun was shining and the birds were singing so mummy said “shall we go down the footpath today Jen?” Oh yes mummy I meowed and so she scooped me up onto her shoulder and off down the road we went. Sometimes I walk along the pavement and sometimes I hitch a ride, if there’s a few cars then I prefer to travel in style on mummy’s shoulder.

Once we were near the turning, which isn’t very far I meowed to be let down so mummy popped me on the ground and off we headed towards the footpath. I like walking along the footpath with mummy, we don’t meet many doggies here and it’s nice and quiet so we can enjoy ourselves without being interrupted, just the two of us together. There’s also lots of fun and interesting trees to try climbing, everything from trees so big I can’t even get my paws round a little bit of their trunks to little trees that can barely hold me up. So off we went, sniffing all the scents and listening to all the birds on the way, it was such a lovely evening that the birds and animals around us also seemed to be enjoying their evening too. There was quite a chatter going on. This time though as we got to the furthest point we’d been before, where one of my favourite climbing trees was we got there and the tree wasn’t there anymore! It wasn’t the only tree missing from the route, mummy said there were a few missing, the only signs they were ever there was some fresh tree stumps and branches piled up on the side of the pathway. “They must have been blown down in those storms Jen” mummy said but she also told me that the piles of branches will provide homes for some little animals and the leaves and branches will eventually rot away and provide nutrients for new trees and plants to grow from. Shall we find a new tree mummy I asked and so we just carried on up the path in search of a new climbing tree for me to explore. The ground changed from the hard kind of rocky surface which mummy said looked like I was walking on the moon to something softer, something less worn, there was grass and I could hear the sound of trickling water.

Mummy here…the footpath is a working footpath, used by a local farmer to access his fields and move cows and sheep around. It’s quite sheltered by the big trees so is often quite wet and churned up by the tractor and quad bike tyres and cow hooves. The farmer has laid some rubble (broken up bricks etc) along the worst parts of the path to reinforce it and fill in the deep track marks. Whilst it’s a bit craggy, it’s better than wading through squished up mud and preserves the path for everyone to be able to use. Anyway back to Jenny…

The sound of the noisy crows squawking from the tree tops was now far away in the distance, replaced by the much more tempting tweets of smaller birds flitting from tree to tree. I could smell the sweet smell of grass and feel the sun on my fur as we were no longer under the canopy of the big trees. As we walked up the path sometimes I led the way and sometimes mummy took the lead, we took it in turns as all good partners do.

I love trotting along in front, I always know that mummy has always got my back, if I was to go slightly wrong then she’s there to stop me running into something but my super blindie senses serve me well, I know to keep to the path and can tell if I veer off as the surface changes, I can feel the blades of grass at the edge of the path brush my whiskers or my fur and hear them rustle in the slightest breeze. I can also feel mummy’s guiding hands, somehow she kind of steers me, I’m not sure if she does it on purpose or if it’s just part of how we work together, perhaps by now it’s kind of second nature for mummy to move the lead a bit this way or that way to help me keep on track. We’ve been going walkies together for so long, every day for nearly as long as I’ve been part of the furramily, we don’t really think about how we’re doing it, we just do it, it’s like we’re one unit rather than a cat and her mummy. It’s a bond we have, I often wonder if every mummy and kitty has this type of close bond or if this is something extra special between me and my mummy. I’ve heard of humans talking about something called soul cats and wonder if this is what I am to mummy or if what we have is just normal and all cats and their humans have this close linked, entwined relationship.

We were having so much fun we just kept on walking and walking until we found a little clearing with a huge tree stump for me to climb.

Whilst I was testing out my tree trunk mummy looked off to the side and all I heard was “wow!” What mummy I meowed, “well we’ve walked a long way Jen I can see home way over there in the distance but the house looks so small from here. Do you think we should go back or carry on, we must be over half way along the path by now.” We had a little chat about it whilst I sniffed the breeze from my tree trunk and we had a little photo shoot and we decided to carry on. And so we did, off we went again but I hitched a ride for a bit as mummy said we needed to pick up the pace and muttered something about me slowing her down as I have to sniff and explore everything but I don’t mind I get a good ‘view’ from mummy’s shoulder and I get to chat to mummy along the way. But when I heard the familiar sound of tree leaves rustling above my head I wriggled to get down so I could explore some more.

We walked and walked and walked, the ground changed again under paw and there were new smells too as we went further and further along the path. There was crunchy leaves, soft grass, bare path, long grass, short grass but always a path to take us from one wood to the next, it was like our walk had chapters like a book mummy said. Each part had its own unique scents and sounds and each section was as pretty as the next. I could feel the dappled sunlight on my fur, it made my inner soul sparkle and my inner adventure cat tremble with excitement and anticipation. Come on mummy let’s go I meowed excitedly and slightly impatiently.

Still, we kept going, with mummy and I wondering where the next chapter of the path might lead us, how many chapters are there and where might we end up?

So for the first time ever on walkies mummy took out her phone, not to take a photo of me as usual but to look up where we were on the map, she had a rough idea where the path led but wasn’t quite sure as we had never walked this far before. There was another “oh wow!” moment. Mummy said we had walked a really, really, really long way but if we walked further and reached the end of the path that the only way home from thee was along a country road. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem as we walk to the other woods along a road but when we do that I’m safely tucked up in my backpack and as we didn’t plan to just keep walking all evening we hadn’t brought that with us. “There’s only one thing for it Jen, we’ll have to turn around and walk the same way we’ve just come to go back home.” Mummy called daddy to let him know what was going on and so he didn’t worry about us. “Take your time” daddy said “Enjoy the walk and I’ll see you when you get back, there’s no rush.”

So, we turned round and back we went the way we’d just come. “Get a wriggle on Jenny, let’s go! I know daddy said we could take our time but I know what you’re like ambling along, wanting to stop and sniff everything or climb every tree but we want to get back before dinner time at least so let’s pick up the pace and head back.” Mummy kept trying to give me a lift but I kept wriggling and squirming every time she picked me up so she gave in and let me walk instead, but with a stern warning that I had to be quick. So off I wandered this way and that, sniffing everything, checking out each and every tree, then I found another little stream so I wanted to check that out as well, “oh come on Jen, we haven’t got time for this, I know it’s a lovely peaceful walk but we can come back again to explore some more, we’ll bring you’re backpack as well, just in case.”

She did give in and we had a couple of photo shoots along the way and as we headed back towards our regular bit of pathway and walkies route I was leading the way and mummy said something that I thought was a bit odd, she said that she sometimes forgets that I can’t see and she wasn’t quite sure how I seem to just know the way even if we’ve only ever been down this path once before. Oh come on mummy I meowed, you should know by now that my super blindie senses more than make up for my lack of sight.

Then, before we knew it we were back home and mummy set about getting dinner ready, it had been an epic two hour adventure hike that we’d been on! I can’t wait to go back again and explore the path again, perhaps we might make it all the way round next time.

Mummy and I both slept well that night.

Oh and I nearly forgot…Happy birthday mummy.