I left home a few minutes early today. Because of this I stopped to get gas. Because of this I was stopped by a train. Because of this I got stuck at the end of a large group of cars. Because of this I turned east early and took a slightly different way to work. Because of this I was behind the car that hit the kitten that came out of nowhere.
I can still see the whole thing very freshly in my mind. He was orange. My only comfort was that he was left in the middle of the lane so the cars went over him instead of driving over him. And that when I went back to see if he was ok, he looked very peaceful. If he was a stray–which I assume he was, since he darted out from below the High Five mess–he may have been saved from a long, hard life on the streets.
But…
It is one thing to see death.
It is quite another to witness it.
Because you witnessed his death, he is now being remembered. His life and its untimely end is giving me paws (sorry, I couldn’t help myself), I mean, pause, to reflect on the special place cats have in our lives and our need to protect them and on the dangers of modern travel for which they have no real appreciation.
Thanks for sharing this experience and for the eloquent way you shared it.
“It is one thing to see death.
It is quite another to witness it.”
well said & very true.
-d.