The Guster is not a very courageous fellow. The saying, “Curiosity killed the cat,” almost doesn’t apply to him — that’s how fearful he is.
Until we brought him to his our new home Saturday night.
We didn’t really plan the move well. We thought we would take our time, but then when push came to shove, we had an empty gleaming apartment to move into and we didn’t want to do anything else.
We dropped everything, and brought the bed and the Guster over. Living there has been a little like urban camping — not much furniture, only the basics. Just what we need to survive: some food, a litterbox, a bed and Gus.
He was pretty upset and meowing a lot, but I could tell he was okay because we were there. He walked the perimeter of the house over and over sniffing everything. Eventually he took a sit on one of our familiar kitchen chairs and just watched us.
We went outside to sit on the stoop and enjoy a celebratory beer. Gus came along. He likes to come outside with us. He sniffed around… I went back inside for something and he followed me right back in.
Good Guster!!
We went back out to join Will. The Guster went back to sniffing the neighborhood. Will and I stopped paying attention for a bit… and then when it was time to come back in, he was nowhere to be found!
We called him over and over to no avail. Not willing to leave the front door wide open, we reluctantly turned in without our best furry buddy.
I didn’t sleep a wink. Every noise the new house made I was sur was Gus coming to the door. Eventually I put together a pile of blankets and tried to sleep next to the door so I could be sure not to miss him. Every hour or so I got up and tried to track him down.
Nothing.
The morning arrived, and we combed the neighborhood shaking our cat food and calling him. Nothing. Now, he’s not a young cat. He can’t scale fences and is terrified of anything new. I knew he couldn’t have gotten far, but at the same time I was sure that he might have been scared into running away by the howls of the neighboring dogs. Who knows where he’d end up??
Distraught, we asked our new neighbors. I made signs and we posted them throughout the neighborhood. With nothing else to do but try to ignore our heavy hearts, we went back to unpacking. It was lunchtime, and I made sandwiches in our new kitchen. Ham and cheese. Pretty good, though we hadn’t moved the toaster yet and toasted bread makes sandwiches better.
Sandwiches in hand, I went out to our stoop to call Will for lunch. He was out looking for the Guster again. I looked left and wonder where Will could be. I looked to the right and lo and behold! Who do I see cautiously walking towards me? No one else but the Guster.
I screamed and grabbed him and gave him the biggest hug he’d ever gotten. He was sleepy; just waking up from a nap in the neighbor’s overgrown yard and deaf to our pleas.
Cats. I swear they don’t care about anyone but themselves.
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