I wasn’t going to highlight any particular pet, but I have already done it before, so see no reason to stop now. When I was working at Niota Elementary School in the northern part of McMinn County, I would sometimes go and work in the summer, trying to get the library up and ready for the new school year.

On one particularly hot July day, I drove up right in front of the school. When I walked to the front door, there was a plaintive meow on the sill of the teacher’s lounge window. Sitting there was a half-grown silver and gray striped cat. It had to be broiling out there but there she sat as though waiting for someone. I assumed she’d figure out where she belonged and be gone by the time I came out.

She wasn’t. The cat was still there, still waiting. I had asked inside to the few people working there if they knew anything about her and all they said was that she had shown up the day before and they had given her a snack. On the way out to the car, I stopped, scratched behind her ears and heard her purrs. That is a cat’s adoption weapon for sure. She was skinny and starved for affection and I couldn’t resist.

I put her in the car with me and we drove home. The two male cats were less than tickled, but my husband is a ‘more the merrier’ type of guy. It hadn’t been that long since we had had to put down several older cats and he was more than happy to open the home to a new kitty.

When we took her to the vet for shots and spaying, we were told she was a calico, so her name became Callie. What a sweetheart! She loved on us and loved on the dogs. She tried to love on our two male cats, but most of the time they only wanted to chase her all over the house, giving her almost no peace. I figured as she got a bit older and bigger she would get tired of the harassment and let them have it, but she was just too sweet, I suppose. The thundering of cat paws and some squalling would interrupt my writing or reading. I began to feel sorry for her again. The fur-boys were unmerciful.

Sadly, we decided to find a home for her. One that was a lot more sedate than ours. By now, school was well underway and I put a picture of her in the teacher’s lounge. The new English teacher saw it and was very interested. With heavy heart, I took her to school the next day and it was love at first sight. The teacher took her into her arms and Callie began purring. As I said, she had a very adoptable purr.

Callie had a very quiet and loving home for the rest of her life and we got periodic updates about how she was doing. She had a long life, passing only a few years ago. Still, she left footprints on our hearts. Callie also became a supporting character in my fantasy, Realms of the Cat. Appropriately, she had the part of Queen of the Cats. Definitely a queen.

Susan Kite is the author of six published books, the latest Moon Crusher, is available at https://www.amazon.com/Susan-Kite/e/B00J91G0ZU She is also a proud member of Author’s Guild of Tennessee.