Calvin, the cat

I know that the only reason that Cindy sent this picture to me was because the cat looked like our former, dearly departed cat, Calvin. Calvin was a sweet cat with a good temperment. Calvin loved to follow us around the house, particularly when we were out in the yard gardening. If you dug a hole, Calvin wanted to help you dig. He would place his paw down into the hole to help. In addition, if I ever climbed on the roof to clean out the gutters, Calvin would usually climb up on the roof and suddenly appear alongside me. He would sit in my lap and allow me to pet him and we would watch the world go by.

When we first adopted Calvin and Maggie, they both quickly became pregnant with kittens. That was how we knew that Calvin was a 'she.' Calvin gave birth on Palm Sunday. Maggie gave birth on Easter Sunday. We had kittens coming out of our ears, about fifteen. Before we were able to adopt out the kittens, Calvin and Maggie mothered the kittens together in the greenhouse off the back of our house. One night there was a row in the greenhouse and I flipped on the light to see what was going on. As the lights came on, I was just able to see a large possum fleeing from the greenhouse, with Calvin in pursuit. I ran outside and checked in the greenhouse. Maggie was perched on top of the kittens like a mother hen. None of the kittens were injured. They were a good mothering team.

However, Calvin was definitely my favorite cat.

Personally, I think the mouse on the tree was added to the picture later. If a cat was next to a tree with a mouse perched that closely on the tree, you would soon find the mouse in the belly of the cat. I know Calvin was adept at critter-hunting and eliminating of varmints.