"Be The Ball"
by Lee Bonde
“Ploink” the little yellow and green ball bounced off the bottom of the door frame as it came rolling in from the other room. Several pairs, well several single eyes, opened a crack from various parts of the sunny room as the ball continued to make its way into the room, heading right for a large black and tan dog that was stretched out in the center. The dog, Ash, managed to jump up and out of the way as a large black and white mass came flying into the room after it, the blur slammed into the door and ricocheted its way into the center, right where Ash had just been.
The dog, as well as several other of the rooms inhabitants, now had their eyes, both of them, wide opened as the mass continued to flounder around the room after the tiny yellow and green ball. Three cats, along with the dog, were soon displaced from their napping spots. Two grumbled their way out of the room while the third and smallest, leaped for the doorway, flying out almost as quickly as the black and white blur had flown in. Ash, shook her head, flapping her long ears back and forth before leaving the scene.
The ball finally came to a stop at the base of a tall cat tree. At the tippy top of the tree laid a cat, his front paws curled under him and his face stretched out in the spot where the sun hit the rim, his eyes still remaining closed. The black and white blur missed the ball and flew head, at least I think that was head, first into the base of the cat tree. It, or he, finally came to rest with his head on the floor and the rest of his body stretched up the spine of the cat tree, his one opened eye was very near to the yellow and green ball he had just been chasing.
The rocking of the cat tree still did not disturb the cat at the top. He too was black and white, though much more white with a few large black spots and not a blur at all. In fact he was still sitting in the exact same position as before, only a whisker or two swayed gently with the cat tree as the rocking turned to swaying, and now rested upon the floor once more. One eye did slowly start to open as an exasperated snort came from the heap of a cat at the bottom of the tree.
“Why hello there, Monty” said the cat at the top of the tree as he opened his other eye and slowly began to stretch his body.
“Hey Bob” answered the heap of cat at the bottom of the tree, still in the unusual position he had been in before.
Bob stuck his butt up in the air, his short tail sticking straight up, though it usually always looked like it was sticking straight up. Such is the nature of a very short tail. He pulled back from his front paws in a very stretchable stretch position. “What are you doing down there Monty?” He asked as he let up on his stretching and sat back on his rear to peer down at the other cat.
Monty snorted again and said “I was trying to get that ball.” If he could have made his eye bug out as he stared at the ball he would have just then.
Bob took one majestic leap and a midair twirl and landed on his feet in front of Monty. He touched the ball with delicately with one claw tip as he peered at the upside down cat and asked “this ball?”
Monty nodded, or at least he did his best at trying to nod as he was still upside down on his head. Seeing as how the nodding was a bit of a fiasco he rolled his body over to one side and finally sat up right, “yes,” he said, sounding rather dejected.
Bob nodded as he proceeded to pick the ball up, stuck to the tip of his claw as it was, and stare at the ball. “Seems like just an ordinary ball to me, are you sure you can’t catch it?” He asked as he tossed it gently to Monty who proceeded to try and grab it in midair but ended up missing and the ball hit him on the nose. “Ah” said Bob as the ball landed near his front foot.
Monty looked at the ball and then at Bob. Bob smiled and rolled the ball to Monty who even had trouble with that but Bob kept on smiling. Not the kind of smile you give to someone you feel bad for but the smile of a good friend. “Have you ever tried finding your inner purr? It can help you to be the ball?” Bob asked.
Monty looked at him shyly but was warmed by the smile. The question confused him though, you could always tell when Monty was confused, the normally half inch white stripe down the center of his face got teeny tiny and a little bumpy as he scrounged up his face, “I’m not sure what you mean Bob.”
“It’s a little hard to explain,” Bob said, he gazed up at the cat tree and his favorite sun spot “it’s a bit like sunning myself, that is my inner purr, if I transform that feeling I can be the ball. Do you see what I mean?”
“Umm, no” Monty gazed at his friend wondering if he hit his own head too hard or maybe he hit Bob’s and didn’t remember it.
“Well, the others know what I mean. Perhaps you could go on a mission” Bob said half to himself half to Monty as he was still gazing at his sun spot.
“A mission?” Monty wondered what that was and wait didn’t Bob just say… “The others can catch the ball?”
That brought Bob back to the conversation “oh, yes of course. In fact they are quite good at it. Ash can even catch it midair. Go on my mission Monty, first find your inner purr then how to be the ball from the others.” And with that Bob leapt back up to his favorite sun spot and settled down once more. The leap was quite impressive and would have impressed Monty quite a bit had he been paying attention but all he remembered hearing at that point was Ash, his favorite buddy. He would ask Ash!
****
Monty found Ash curled up like a cat on a chair in the next room. He hopped up beside her and proceeded to rub, purring loudly, all over her head. She lifted her head, letting out a giant yawn, and licked him on the forehead. Most cats might be bothered by some dog spit on their forehead but not Monty, Ash was a like a mother to him. He had curled up when he was barely bigger than her paw on top of her at night and slept soundly, listening to her breathing. He loved her more than his favorite salmon cake treats. Well almost more, okay maybe as much but certainly not more.
Monty sniffed her ear a bit, wondering what that delightful smell was and then head-butted her neck, rubbing all over her and the smell. “Bob said you know about balls, will you teach me?” he asked through all the rubbing and sniffing and carrying on.
“What?” She asked, sitting up straighter and trying to avoid his rubbing. “What exactly did Bob say?”
“He said something about a mission and told me you know about purrs and balls and catching them and stuff. Will you tell me how?” He eyed her as she moved away, he could still smell that smell and he wanted more, thinking she wasn’t paying attention he leaned in suddenly to rub on her.
She moved to the side easily and he nearly fell over as she said again, “Monty, what did Bob say exactly?”
Monty sighed as he nearly fell face first into the chair arm, she was always better at maneuvering somehow. Okay, he shook his head to try and clear it while he concentrated on her question, what did he say, oh yeah. “He said to go on his mission to find what my inner purr is and how to be the ball from the others.” Whew, there he remembered.
Ash nodded her head and said “Bob’s missions are very serious and they teach you some important stuff. You have to remember to stay on the mission Monty.”
Monty nodded, he didn’t know why he was nodding, nor why this mission was so important but he did trust Ash and if she said to do it he would. Now if he could just concentrate on her and not that delicious smell that was on her. He leaned in to try and smell the delicious smell in a more subtle manner but subtle was never really his strong suit.
Ash sat up and got off the chair nearly knocking the leaning cat over as she did. She looked around and then did a quick bunny hop over to her tennis ball and picked it up in her mouth. “Now, pay attention,” she said around a mouthful of yellow tennis ball fuzz. She quickly tossed her head back, releasing the ball so it flew up over her head. She watched it for just a moment and then snatched it out of the air before it had time to land.
Monty blinked, his jaw nearly falling open, which is a very, very silly look for a cat. If you have ever seen a cat looked shocked then you know how silly that look can be, if you haven’t well, it’s silly. “H-how did you do t-that?” Monty stammered through his very silly shocked look.
“First I thought of my… what is it, oh yes, Bob calls it my inner purr.” Silly, silly term for it Ash thought, why did she have a purr, oh well it works. “So I think about when my humans play ball with me, I feel it and then I count the spins on the ball I’m watching and then presto. Ball in mouth. It works every time.”
Monty watched as Ash tossed and caught the ball several more times. He still had no idea what he was supposed to be learning from all this. Could the humans playing ball with him be his inner purr? Well if it worked for Ash maybe it would work for him, but he still couldn’t see the ball spinning at all and wasn’t sure if catching it in the air was the same thing as catching it as it rolled about.
A small black-striped grey and white cat slunk by just then, trying very hard to blend into the background as she went. Ash spotted her and nudged Monty out of his thoughts, “there goes Ziva, go ask about her inner purr and how she catches the ball. Maybe she can give you more to go on.” Monty nodded slowly as he tried to push the last of his thoughts aside and focus on what Ash was saying. Right before all the fuzzies cleared Ash had jumped back on the chair and gingerly pushed him off with her nose. “You’re on a mission from Bob Monty, go to it.” With that she closed her eyes again.
***
Monty was plopped on the floor as her words settled over him. He shrugged and got up, sauntering after the other cat. He wasn’t sure where she went but she was usually in only a few spots and since she had just come from the bedroom there were only two more areas to check. As he entered into the kitchen he just caught a glimpse of the tip of her tail from the cat door. She was headed out into the cattery, and he would catch up to her there.
Monty made his way through the cat door and down the ramp that lead into the cattery. He found her perched in the corner on one of the cushy rugs just staring into the nearby tree. She was watching something, only her ear twitched back as he made his way to her. He squinted at the tree but couldn’t see what she did so he cleared his throat. Her ear twitched again but she didn’t move. “Um… helllooo” Monty said a bit annoyed with being ignored, just then a bird zipped out of the tree and flew off.
With a sigh Ziva turned from the tree to look at him, “what do you want?”
“I’m on a mission ", Monty said. “A mission from Bob.”
“Oh.” Ziva sat up and gave him her full attention, something she very rarely did unless he was looking as if he was going to pounce on her and she didn’t want him to. Come to think of it, she never wanted him to. “How can I help?”
Monty blinked, taken aback by her willingness to help, they didn’t exactly have the closest brother-sister relationship. “Well, Bob sent me on a mission to try and find my inner purr. He said if I spoke to everyone and found out theirs and how they manage to catch the ball maybe I can find mine to.”
Ziva nodded and pointed to the tree, “what you thought was me ignoring you earlier,” she looks pointedly at Monty who fidgets a little uneasily, “was really me tuning into my inner purr. My purr is birds, or more specifically bird movement. I like to watch them fly and move about it. Their chirps are neat too but I’m more into their movement, do you understand?”
Monty didn’t, in fact he so didn’t understand he was sure this was not HIS PURR. Birds were icky, they made annoying noises and one even pooped on his head once! No, no way a bird was his purr, nope but maybe she had a good idea on how to catch the ball. “Um, sure okay, now how do you catch the ball?”
Ziva squinted at Monty, she knew that tone, that was his I’m not really paying attention to what you’re saying cause I’m trying to figure out how to get you tone. She knew that tone so well, he used right before he pushed her away from the food bowl, or when he was trying to get her to look the other way before he stole her sunning spot, or when he tried to convince her that the humans had called her from a different direction so he could go get all the attention. Oh well if he didn’t want to listen to her that was his loss. “Well, the balls usually have a line of another color on them in the center, I just wait until I see that color and then I pounce.”
“Pounce on the color.” Monty said, more to himself than anyone else. He nodded, that was a pretty good idea and might work, how that combined with icky birds he had no idea but whatever floated her boat. Or made her bird fly in this case. He giggled to himself as he said “bye” and wandered off in search of one of the others. With all this help he may just become the worlds bestest ball catcher!
***
There were only two spots he could think of that the old man liked during the day. Either laying in Monty’s favorite chair, which he now put his front feet on and lifted himself up to peek under the blanket his humans had put there especially for him, nope no sign of him. He turned his head to the left to look into the darkened doorway of the bathroom where he saw the faint outline of a white cat with black spots. That was the second spot he had thought of, the bathroom rug, which he now made his way towards.
Snickers popped open one eye as Monty sauntered towards him, he stretched and moved into a sitting position before the younger cat made it all the way into the room. He liked Monty, but the young cat had an ornery streak and occasionally tried to take him off guard, he would be ready if that was the case.
Monty walked in and turned sideways when Snickers sat up. What is the old man thinking Monty was thinking to himself, wrestling time maybe, hmm, oh maybe it was the way I’m walking up to him. Monty turned and sat down very cautiously and then preceded to sprawl out on the tile in front of Snicker’s favorite rug. “Bob sent me on a mission,” Monty started, “he wants me to find my own inner purr and learn how to catch the ball. He thought you all could help by telling me how you do it.”
Snickers nodded slowly, he sat back on his rear in a more relaxed position as the younger cat really seemed to be genuinely interested in what he had to say. “Well,” Snickers began, “This here rug is my inner purr. It makes me so happy, comfy and warm and I love to lay on it. So when I’m playing with the ball and it is time to pounce I think about my rug and that gets me in the zone, you know what I mean.”
No, Monty thought, not really but instead of saying that he just nodded and indicated that Snickers should continue on with his story.
The older cat kneaded his rug a few times while purring, trying to show Monty just what he meant. He knew the younger cat didn’t really understand, he had that same glazed look he usually had when he didn’t understand what was being said but Snickers couldn’t think of how to put it any other way. “Then I just see where the ball is, I don’t think about where it has been or even where it might be going. I just concentrate on where it is right at that very moment and then I pounce!”
Snickers grinned a crooked little grin as he said the word “pounce” and it made Monty grin too. He wasn’t grinning at what Snickers had said but grinning as he thought of himself finally “pouncing” and subsequently “catching” the illusive ball. It was going to be such a happy day when he did that. He stood up and came nose to nose with Snickers who suddenly looked very concerned, Monty sniffed a bit and then turned to go, “thanks!” Monty called over his shoulder, he couldn’t wait to catch that ball!
***
Monty headed back out for the sun room and Bob. He did have one more cat he could talk to but she really didn’t care for him so maybe he would just say he spoke to her. Besides she rarely played with the ball, he doubted she was better than he was at catching it.
As he was strolling by the kitchen table where all the cats ate, he heard a distinct noise that he couldn’t quite place. All of a sudden a ball rolled in from the other room and in one swift move a large greyish cat with a white belly flew down from the table and snatched up the ball in one swift move. She sat and stared at the ball caught in her paw and then looked up at Monty suddenly startled like she hadn’t realized he was there. In one blur of a movement she was back up on the table and staring down at him with a low “don’t even think about it” kind of growl.
Monty blinked, several times he blinked. He blinked because he just couldn’t believe Marcie had actually not only caught the ball but that she did it so quickly, so perfectly, so… so unlike he had ever managed to! “How did you do that?” He pleaded up at Marcie.
Marcie rolled on her side and gazed down at Monty. He was not nice to her, not nice at all. He chased her around all the time. He was rude and crude and if he had a nice bone in his body he had never showed to her. “Why would I tell you?” She said back to him.
“Because, because…” she was right, why would she tell him. She had to tell him though, it was amazing and he needed to know her secret. Wait, maybe it wasn’t a secret, maybe it was just like all the others. “Because Bob sent me to find out what everyone’s inner purr was and have them tell me how they catch the ball so that maybe I can learn to catch the ball just like you did” he blurted out, please let her tell me, please please please please.
She gazed down at him. On one hand he did say that Bob had sent him to find out about catching the ball but then again he wasn’t usually nice to her. There he is though looking so sincere, is he batting his eyes, I think he is batting his eyes. She stared at him, yes I do think he is batting is eyes. “Are you batting your eyes at me?” she asked quizzically.
Monty blinked, “umm, is it working?”
“No.” Marcie snorted, “ Now tell me what Bob said.”
Monty stopped the eye batting seeing as how it wasn’t working and his eye now felt like there was something in it. He straightened up and very politely said, “Bob sent me on a mission. He said I should try and find my inner purr and learn how to catch the ball by asking all of you how you do it.” He added quickly, “I would really appreciate it if you would help me.”
Marcie twitched her whiskers at the last line. She rolled over on her back and stared up at the ceiling trying to decide. Finally she rolled back and looked at him. “Okay, I will tell you but only because of Bob’s mission.”
Monty nodded, he nodded a lot in fact, and he couldn’t stop nodding because he was so excited that she was going to tell him how to do what she just did. He jumped up on to the chair next to the table and then up on the table itself. He kept a polite distance and hunkered down to rest his chin on his paws to concentrate on every word she said.
“Cheesies are my inner purr. How I just love them, they make me feel so good inside. They aren’t just any kind of treat, they are the ultimate treat. I dream of them day and night, I can smell them everywhere, clouds are shaped like them and when I close my eyes I see them dancing just out of my reach.” She made yummy tummy noises as she rolled around on her back while she spoke. Finally she flipped over and snatched one up off the table and plopped it into her mouth.
She has lost it, Monty thought to himself, absolutely lost it. Here I come to her about catching a ball and she is talking about food. What is wrong with this cat and how did she ever manage to catch that ball before when all she sees is cheesies. Monty stared at her while his head continued to rant about her treat obsession in a not so nice tone until finally she picked up the ball and held it in front of his face.
“The one thing about catching this ball that nobody has probably mentioned is that you have to see the ball and listen to your breathing.” She said, Monty’s head continued to call her crazy. “See right there, are you breathing?”
“Of course I’m breathing or I would fall over dead, “ Monty said in exasperation.
Marcie rolled her eyes, one of them stayed on a cheesie while the other stared at him. “Not ARE you breathing but can you HEAR it?”
Monty was about to roll his own eyes when he realized he couldn’t. He was too busy ranting about the cheesie thing to notice anything else that was going on inside him. Hmm, maybe she had something there.
Marcie smirked, “now he gets it.” She pushed the ball over towards him and then swept up a big pile of cheesies and settled in to munch on her favorite treat.
***
Monty walked out into the sun room, the sound of cheesies being gobbled up subsiding in the distance. He found Bob at the top of the cat tree, his favorite spot. Bob opened one eye and upon seeing that it was Monty, stretched into a seated position and then made his way slowly down to the ground to sit in front of the younger cat. “How did the mission go?” He asked once he was seated on the ground.
Monty scratched behind his ear and looked askew at Bob. “Well,” He started, “it went, okay. They all told me what their inner purrs are and gave me info on how they catch the ball but…” he sort of trailed off at the end.
Bob’s ears tilted towards the younger cat, “but?”
“But I still don’t understand what my inner purr is,” Monty slumped to the ground resting his chin on the floor and looking very dejected.
Bob nodded slowly and then turned his head to look out the window, “your inner purr. Well, that isn’t something you can get from the others. They can only offer insight, you are the one that must find it. My inner purr is my sun spot, but do not get confused, it is not the spot per se, it is the feeling.”
Monty lifted his head a tad to look up at Bob. “Huh?”
“It is the feeling,” Bob continued. “When I am in my sun spot it is the feeling I get from being there…”
“Warm?”
Bob eyed Monty, nope he was serious. “No, no, not the feeling the body gets but the feeling you get inside, inside your heart.” Bob tapped his chest right about where his heart would be.
Monty stared at the tapping finger as it tapped on the other cats’ chest. Right about then Ash wondered into the room. Monty’s nose immediately started working and despite his interest in the tapping on the chest his eyes turned to watch the dog as she curled up on the couch in the sun. Bob turned to follow his gaze a peculiar look on his face.
“What do you feel when you think of Ash?” Bob asked.
“Huh?” The younger cat sat up.
“What do you feel in here?” Bob asked as he tapped the younger cat on the chest right about where his heart would be.
“It feels like an explosion of good and my chest gets tingly and it tingles all the way up to my head.” Monty said, his face melting into a smile as he continued to watch Ash.
Bob nodded, “no doubt because of how she raised you as a kitten.”
“She’s the best” Monty nodded rapidly.
“Mmhmm” Bob grinned at the younger cat.
“Wha… oh, is Ash my inner purr?” Monty looked surprised, why he was surprised is surprising to some, he didn’t realize how much she meant to him, despite the fact that where you usually find her you find him. Despite the fact that he searches her out to play with, rub on, sleep with, eat with, and generally be an all-around little nuisance to (well perhaps those are her words, not his).
Bob cleared his throat to break into the thoughts of the younger cat. When he had finally gotten his attention he said, “now, think about Ash for a moment and then build on that feeling, do you understand?”
“Um, build?” Monty asked.
“Yes, concentrate just on the feeling that you elicit when you think of her and then try and expand it inside of you.”
Bob made a gesture that seemed rather encouraging to the other cat so he closed his eyes and tried to do just what he had said. Slowly a smile started to creep across his face. Bob nodded knowingly, although Monty didn’t know he did it knowingly because he still had his eyes closed concentrating on the feeling.
“Now, keep feeling that feeling and slowly open your eyes” Bob whispered to the closed eyed younger cat.
Monty slowly opened his eyes. Bob watched his face for any change that might have occurred, when he was satisfied that the younger cat was still concentrating on his inner purr he tossed the ball he had hidden behind his back up into the air and quietly sad, “be the ball.”
Monty barely heard the last words through the awesome feeling that expanded and took over his whole body but something nagged at the corner of his eye. He looked up just in time to count one rotation of spin, find the green stripe in the center, know exactly where the ball was and hear one last breath before pouncing and catching the ball in midair.
Bob “whooped”, Ash opened her mouth and grinned, tongue flopping out and when Monty landed he tried to “whoop” too but was now to busy coughing as he had almost choked on the ball. Once most of the coughing was over he choked out “I..I d..did.. i… it!”
Bob smiled and nodded, but not the kind of smile and nod you do when you are ignoring someone but the kind you do when you are really happy for someone that just accomplished something. “Yes you did, you just found your inner purr.”
Monty’s coughing subsided and he had almost caught his breath, “thanks so much Bob, I couldn’t have done it without you!” Monty smiled at the distinguished cat, genuinely happy.
Bob smiled, “you did it on your own Monty, I just gave you a place to start. Now remember, if you sit and concentrate on your inner purr you will be able to develop it even further and you may even do more than just catch a ball.” With that Bob leapt back up to his favorite sun spot and snuggled down into his favorite habit of the day, sun meditation.
The dog, as well as several other of the rooms inhabitants, now had their eyes, both of them, wide opened as the mass continued to flounder around the room after the tiny yellow and green ball. Three cats, along with the dog, were soon displaced from their napping spots. Two grumbled their way out of the room while the third and smallest, leaped for the doorway, flying out almost as quickly as the black and white blur had flown in. Ash, shook her head, flapping her long ears back and forth before leaving the scene.
The ball finally came to a stop at the base of a tall cat tree. At the tippy top of the tree laid a cat, his front paws curled under him and his face stretched out in the spot where the sun hit the rim, his eyes still remaining closed. The black and white blur missed the ball and flew head, at least I think that was head, first into the base of the cat tree. It, or he, finally came to rest with his head on the floor and the rest of his body stretched up the spine of the cat tree, his one opened eye was very near to the yellow and green ball he had just been chasing.
The rocking of the cat tree still did not disturb the cat at the top. He too was black and white, though much more white with a few large black spots and not a blur at all. In fact he was still sitting in the exact same position as before, only a whisker or two swayed gently with the cat tree as the rocking turned to swaying, and now rested upon the floor once more. One eye did slowly start to open as an exasperated snort came from the heap of a cat at the bottom of the tree.
“Why hello there, Monty” said the cat at the top of the tree as he opened his other eye and slowly began to stretch his body.
“Hey Bob” answered the heap of cat at the bottom of the tree, still in the unusual position he had been in before.
Bob stuck his butt up in the air, his short tail sticking straight up, though it usually always looked like it was sticking straight up. Such is the nature of a very short tail. He pulled back from his front paws in a very stretchable stretch position. “What are you doing down there Monty?” He asked as he let up on his stretching and sat back on his rear to peer down at the other cat.
Monty snorted again and said “I was trying to get that ball.” If he could have made his eye bug out as he stared at the ball he would have just then.
Bob took one majestic leap and a midair twirl and landed on his feet in front of Monty. He touched the ball with delicately with one claw tip as he peered at the upside down cat and asked “this ball?”
Monty nodded, or at least he did his best at trying to nod as he was still upside down on his head. Seeing as how the nodding was a bit of a fiasco he rolled his body over to one side and finally sat up right, “yes,” he said, sounding rather dejected.
Bob nodded as he proceeded to pick the ball up, stuck to the tip of his claw as it was, and stare at the ball. “Seems like just an ordinary ball to me, are you sure you can’t catch it?” He asked as he tossed it gently to Monty who proceeded to try and grab it in midair but ended up missing and the ball hit him on the nose. “Ah” said Bob as the ball landed near his front foot.
Monty looked at the ball and then at Bob. Bob smiled and rolled the ball to Monty who even had trouble with that but Bob kept on smiling. Not the kind of smile you give to someone you feel bad for but the smile of a good friend. “Have you ever tried finding your inner purr? It can help you to be the ball?” Bob asked.
Monty looked at him shyly but was warmed by the smile. The question confused him though, you could always tell when Monty was confused, the normally half inch white stripe down the center of his face got teeny tiny and a little bumpy as he scrounged up his face, “I’m not sure what you mean Bob.”
“It’s a little hard to explain,” Bob said, he gazed up at the cat tree and his favorite sun spot “it’s a bit like sunning myself, that is my inner purr, if I transform that feeling I can be the ball. Do you see what I mean?”
“Umm, no” Monty gazed at his friend wondering if he hit his own head too hard or maybe he hit Bob’s and didn’t remember it.
“Well, the others know what I mean. Perhaps you could go on a mission” Bob said half to himself half to Monty as he was still gazing at his sun spot.
“A mission?” Monty wondered what that was and wait didn’t Bob just say… “The others can catch the ball?”
That brought Bob back to the conversation “oh, yes of course. In fact they are quite good at it. Ash can even catch it midair. Go on my mission Monty, first find your inner purr then how to be the ball from the others.” And with that Bob leapt back up to his favorite sun spot and settled down once more. The leap was quite impressive and would have impressed Monty quite a bit had he been paying attention but all he remembered hearing at that point was Ash, his favorite buddy. He would ask Ash!
****
Monty found Ash curled up like a cat on a chair in the next room. He hopped up beside her and proceeded to rub, purring loudly, all over her head. She lifted her head, letting out a giant yawn, and licked him on the forehead. Most cats might be bothered by some dog spit on their forehead but not Monty, Ash was a like a mother to him. He had curled up when he was barely bigger than her paw on top of her at night and slept soundly, listening to her breathing. He loved her more than his favorite salmon cake treats. Well almost more, okay maybe as much but certainly not more.
Monty sniffed her ear a bit, wondering what that delightful smell was and then head-butted her neck, rubbing all over her and the smell. “Bob said you know about balls, will you teach me?” he asked through all the rubbing and sniffing and carrying on.
“What?” She asked, sitting up straighter and trying to avoid his rubbing. “What exactly did Bob say?”
“He said something about a mission and told me you know about purrs and balls and catching them and stuff. Will you tell me how?” He eyed her as she moved away, he could still smell that smell and he wanted more, thinking she wasn’t paying attention he leaned in suddenly to rub on her.
She moved to the side easily and he nearly fell over as she said again, “Monty, what did Bob say exactly?”
Monty sighed as he nearly fell face first into the chair arm, she was always better at maneuvering somehow. Okay, he shook his head to try and clear it while he concentrated on her question, what did he say, oh yeah. “He said to go on his mission to find what my inner purr is and how to be the ball from the others.” Whew, there he remembered.
Ash nodded her head and said “Bob’s missions are very serious and they teach you some important stuff. You have to remember to stay on the mission Monty.”
Monty nodded, he didn’t know why he was nodding, nor why this mission was so important but he did trust Ash and if she said to do it he would. Now if he could just concentrate on her and not that delicious smell that was on her. He leaned in to try and smell the delicious smell in a more subtle manner but subtle was never really his strong suit.
Ash sat up and got off the chair nearly knocking the leaning cat over as she did. She looked around and then did a quick bunny hop over to her tennis ball and picked it up in her mouth. “Now, pay attention,” she said around a mouthful of yellow tennis ball fuzz. She quickly tossed her head back, releasing the ball so it flew up over her head. She watched it for just a moment and then snatched it out of the air before it had time to land.
Monty blinked, his jaw nearly falling open, which is a very, very silly look for a cat. If you have ever seen a cat looked shocked then you know how silly that look can be, if you haven’t well, it’s silly. “H-how did you do t-that?” Monty stammered through his very silly shocked look.
“First I thought of my… what is it, oh yes, Bob calls it my inner purr.” Silly, silly term for it Ash thought, why did she have a purr, oh well it works. “So I think about when my humans play ball with me, I feel it and then I count the spins on the ball I’m watching and then presto. Ball in mouth. It works every time.”
Monty watched as Ash tossed and caught the ball several more times. He still had no idea what he was supposed to be learning from all this. Could the humans playing ball with him be his inner purr? Well if it worked for Ash maybe it would work for him, but he still couldn’t see the ball spinning at all and wasn’t sure if catching it in the air was the same thing as catching it as it rolled about.
A small black-striped grey and white cat slunk by just then, trying very hard to blend into the background as she went. Ash spotted her and nudged Monty out of his thoughts, “there goes Ziva, go ask about her inner purr and how she catches the ball. Maybe she can give you more to go on.” Monty nodded slowly as he tried to push the last of his thoughts aside and focus on what Ash was saying. Right before all the fuzzies cleared Ash had jumped back on the chair and gingerly pushed him off with her nose. “You’re on a mission from Bob Monty, go to it.” With that she closed her eyes again.
***
Monty was plopped on the floor as her words settled over him. He shrugged and got up, sauntering after the other cat. He wasn’t sure where she went but she was usually in only a few spots and since she had just come from the bedroom there were only two more areas to check. As he entered into the kitchen he just caught a glimpse of the tip of her tail from the cat door. She was headed out into the cattery, and he would catch up to her there.
Monty made his way through the cat door and down the ramp that lead into the cattery. He found her perched in the corner on one of the cushy rugs just staring into the nearby tree. She was watching something, only her ear twitched back as he made his way to her. He squinted at the tree but couldn’t see what she did so he cleared his throat. Her ear twitched again but she didn’t move. “Um… helllooo” Monty said a bit annoyed with being ignored, just then a bird zipped out of the tree and flew off.
With a sigh Ziva turned from the tree to look at him, “what do you want?”
“I’m on a mission ", Monty said. “A mission from Bob.”
“Oh.” Ziva sat up and gave him her full attention, something she very rarely did unless he was looking as if he was going to pounce on her and she didn’t want him to. Come to think of it, she never wanted him to. “How can I help?”
Monty blinked, taken aback by her willingness to help, they didn’t exactly have the closest brother-sister relationship. “Well, Bob sent me on a mission to try and find my inner purr. He said if I spoke to everyone and found out theirs and how they manage to catch the ball maybe I can find mine to.”
Ziva nodded and pointed to the tree, “what you thought was me ignoring you earlier,” she looks pointedly at Monty who fidgets a little uneasily, “was really me tuning into my inner purr. My purr is birds, or more specifically bird movement. I like to watch them fly and move about it. Their chirps are neat too but I’m more into their movement, do you understand?”
Monty didn’t, in fact he so didn’t understand he was sure this was not HIS PURR. Birds were icky, they made annoying noises and one even pooped on his head once! No, no way a bird was his purr, nope but maybe she had a good idea on how to catch the ball. “Um, sure okay, now how do you catch the ball?”
Ziva squinted at Monty, she knew that tone, that was his I’m not really paying attention to what you’re saying cause I’m trying to figure out how to get you tone. She knew that tone so well, he used right before he pushed her away from the food bowl, or when he was trying to get her to look the other way before he stole her sunning spot, or when he tried to convince her that the humans had called her from a different direction so he could go get all the attention. Oh well if he didn’t want to listen to her that was his loss. “Well, the balls usually have a line of another color on them in the center, I just wait until I see that color and then I pounce.”
“Pounce on the color.” Monty said, more to himself than anyone else. He nodded, that was a pretty good idea and might work, how that combined with icky birds he had no idea but whatever floated her boat. Or made her bird fly in this case. He giggled to himself as he said “bye” and wandered off in search of one of the others. With all this help he may just become the worlds bestest ball catcher!
***
There were only two spots he could think of that the old man liked during the day. Either laying in Monty’s favorite chair, which he now put his front feet on and lifted himself up to peek under the blanket his humans had put there especially for him, nope no sign of him. He turned his head to the left to look into the darkened doorway of the bathroom where he saw the faint outline of a white cat with black spots. That was the second spot he had thought of, the bathroom rug, which he now made his way towards.
Snickers popped open one eye as Monty sauntered towards him, he stretched and moved into a sitting position before the younger cat made it all the way into the room. He liked Monty, but the young cat had an ornery streak and occasionally tried to take him off guard, he would be ready if that was the case.
Monty walked in and turned sideways when Snickers sat up. What is the old man thinking Monty was thinking to himself, wrestling time maybe, hmm, oh maybe it was the way I’m walking up to him. Monty turned and sat down very cautiously and then preceded to sprawl out on the tile in front of Snicker’s favorite rug. “Bob sent me on a mission,” Monty started, “he wants me to find my own inner purr and learn how to catch the ball. He thought you all could help by telling me how you do it.”
Snickers nodded slowly, he sat back on his rear in a more relaxed position as the younger cat really seemed to be genuinely interested in what he had to say. “Well,” Snickers began, “This here rug is my inner purr. It makes me so happy, comfy and warm and I love to lay on it. So when I’m playing with the ball and it is time to pounce I think about my rug and that gets me in the zone, you know what I mean.”
No, Monty thought, not really but instead of saying that he just nodded and indicated that Snickers should continue on with his story.
The older cat kneaded his rug a few times while purring, trying to show Monty just what he meant. He knew the younger cat didn’t really understand, he had that same glazed look he usually had when he didn’t understand what was being said but Snickers couldn’t think of how to put it any other way. “Then I just see where the ball is, I don’t think about where it has been or even where it might be going. I just concentrate on where it is right at that very moment and then I pounce!”
Snickers grinned a crooked little grin as he said the word “pounce” and it made Monty grin too. He wasn’t grinning at what Snickers had said but grinning as he thought of himself finally “pouncing” and subsequently “catching” the illusive ball. It was going to be such a happy day when he did that. He stood up and came nose to nose with Snickers who suddenly looked very concerned, Monty sniffed a bit and then turned to go, “thanks!” Monty called over his shoulder, he couldn’t wait to catch that ball!
***
Monty headed back out for the sun room and Bob. He did have one more cat he could talk to but she really didn’t care for him so maybe he would just say he spoke to her. Besides she rarely played with the ball, he doubted she was better than he was at catching it.
As he was strolling by the kitchen table where all the cats ate, he heard a distinct noise that he couldn’t quite place. All of a sudden a ball rolled in from the other room and in one swift move a large greyish cat with a white belly flew down from the table and snatched up the ball in one swift move. She sat and stared at the ball caught in her paw and then looked up at Monty suddenly startled like she hadn’t realized he was there. In one blur of a movement she was back up on the table and staring down at him with a low “don’t even think about it” kind of growl.
Monty blinked, several times he blinked. He blinked because he just couldn’t believe Marcie had actually not only caught the ball but that she did it so quickly, so perfectly, so… so unlike he had ever managed to! “How did you do that?” He pleaded up at Marcie.
Marcie rolled on her side and gazed down at Monty. He was not nice to her, not nice at all. He chased her around all the time. He was rude and crude and if he had a nice bone in his body he had never showed to her. “Why would I tell you?” She said back to him.
“Because, because…” she was right, why would she tell him. She had to tell him though, it was amazing and he needed to know her secret. Wait, maybe it wasn’t a secret, maybe it was just like all the others. “Because Bob sent me to find out what everyone’s inner purr was and have them tell me how they catch the ball so that maybe I can learn to catch the ball just like you did” he blurted out, please let her tell me, please please please please.
She gazed down at him. On one hand he did say that Bob had sent him to find out about catching the ball but then again he wasn’t usually nice to her. There he is though looking so sincere, is he batting his eyes, I think he is batting his eyes. She stared at him, yes I do think he is batting is eyes. “Are you batting your eyes at me?” she asked quizzically.
Monty blinked, “umm, is it working?”
“No.” Marcie snorted, “ Now tell me what Bob said.”
Monty stopped the eye batting seeing as how it wasn’t working and his eye now felt like there was something in it. He straightened up and very politely said, “Bob sent me on a mission. He said I should try and find my inner purr and learn how to catch the ball by asking all of you how you do it.” He added quickly, “I would really appreciate it if you would help me.”
Marcie twitched her whiskers at the last line. She rolled over on her back and stared up at the ceiling trying to decide. Finally she rolled back and looked at him. “Okay, I will tell you but only because of Bob’s mission.”
Monty nodded, he nodded a lot in fact, and he couldn’t stop nodding because he was so excited that she was going to tell him how to do what she just did. He jumped up on to the chair next to the table and then up on the table itself. He kept a polite distance and hunkered down to rest his chin on his paws to concentrate on every word she said.
“Cheesies are my inner purr. How I just love them, they make me feel so good inside. They aren’t just any kind of treat, they are the ultimate treat. I dream of them day and night, I can smell them everywhere, clouds are shaped like them and when I close my eyes I see them dancing just out of my reach.” She made yummy tummy noises as she rolled around on her back while she spoke. Finally she flipped over and snatched one up off the table and plopped it into her mouth.
She has lost it, Monty thought to himself, absolutely lost it. Here I come to her about catching a ball and she is talking about food. What is wrong with this cat and how did she ever manage to catch that ball before when all she sees is cheesies. Monty stared at her while his head continued to rant about her treat obsession in a not so nice tone until finally she picked up the ball and held it in front of his face.
“The one thing about catching this ball that nobody has probably mentioned is that you have to see the ball and listen to your breathing.” She said, Monty’s head continued to call her crazy. “See right there, are you breathing?”
“Of course I’m breathing or I would fall over dead, “ Monty said in exasperation.
Marcie rolled her eyes, one of them stayed on a cheesie while the other stared at him. “Not ARE you breathing but can you HEAR it?”
Monty was about to roll his own eyes when he realized he couldn’t. He was too busy ranting about the cheesie thing to notice anything else that was going on inside him. Hmm, maybe she had something there.
Marcie smirked, “now he gets it.” She pushed the ball over towards him and then swept up a big pile of cheesies and settled in to munch on her favorite treat.
***
Monty walked out into the sun room, the sound of cheesies being gobbled up subsiding in the distance. He found Bob at the top of the cat tree, his favorite spot. Bob opened one eye and upon seeing that it was Monty, stretched into a seated position and then made his way slowly down to the ground to sit in front of the younger cat. “How did the mission go?” He asked once he was seated on the ground.
Monty scratched behind his ear and looked askew at Bob. “Well,” He started, “it went, okay. They all told me what their inner purrs are and gave me info on how they catch the ball but…” he sort of trailed off at the end.
Bob’s ears tilted towards the younger cat, “but?”
“But I still don’t understand what my inner purr is,” Monty slumped to the ground resting his chin on the floor and looking very dejected.
Bob nodded slowly and then turned his head to look out the window, “your inner purr. Well, that isn’t something you can get from the others. They can only offer insight, you are the one that must find it. My inner purr is my sun spot, but do not get confused, it is not the spot per se, it is the feeling.”
Monty lifted his head a tad to look up at Bob. “Huh?”
“It is the feeling,” Bob continued. “When I am in my sun spot it is the feeling I get from being there…”
“Warm?”
Bob eyed Monty, nope he was serious. “No, no, not the feeling the body gets but the feeling you get inside, inside your heart.” Bob tapped his chest right about where his heart would be.
Monty stared at the tapping finger as it tapped on the other cats’ chest. Right about then Ash wondered into the room. Monty’s nose immediately started working and despite his interest in the tapping on the chest his eyes turned to watch the dog as she curled up on the couch in the sun. Bob turned to follow his gaze a peculiar look on his face.
“What do you feel when you think of Ash?” Bob asked.
“Huh?” The younger cat sat up.
“What do you feel in here?” Bob asked as he tapped the younger cat on the chest right about where his heart would be.
“It feels like an explosion of good and my chest gets tingly and it tingles all the way up to my head.” Monty said, his face melting into a smile as he continued to watch Ash.
Bob nodded, “no doubt because of how she raised you as a kitten.”
“She’s the best” Monty nodded rapidly.
“Mmhmm” Bob grinned at the younger cat.
“Wha… oh, is Ash my inner purr?” Monty looked surprised, why he was surprised is surprising to some, he didn’t realize how much she meant to him, despite the fact that where you usually find her you find him. Despite the fact that he searches her out to play with, rub on, sleep with, eat with, and generally be an all-around little nuisance to (well perhaps those are her words, not his).
Bob cleared his throat to break into the thoughts of the younger cat. When he had finally gotten his attention he said, “now, think about Ash for a moment and then build on that feeling, do you understand?”
“Um, build?” Monty asked.
“Yes, concentrate just on the feeling that you elicit when you think of her and then try and expand it inside of you.”
Bob made a gesture that seemed rather encouraging to the other cat so he closed his eyes and tried to do just what he had said. Slowly a smile started to creep across his face. Bob nodded knowingly, although Monty didn’t know he did it knowingly because he still had his eyes closed concentrating on the feeling.
“Now, keep feeling that feeling and slowly open your eyes” Bob whispered to the closed eyed younger cat.
Monty slowly opened his eyes. Bob watched his face for any change that might have occurred, when he was satisfied that the younger cat was still concentrating on his inner purr he tossed the ball he had hidden behind his back up into the air and quietly sad, “be the ball.”
Monty barely heard the last words through the awesome feeling that expanded and took over his whole body but something nagged at the corner of his eye. He looked up just in time to count one rotation of spin, find the green stripe in the center, know exactly where the ball was and hear one last breath before pouncing and catching the ball in midair.
Bob “whooped”, Ash opened her mouth and grinned, tongue flopping out and when Monty landed he tried to “whoop” too but was now to busy coughing as he had almost choked on the ball. Once most of the coughing was over he choked out “I..I d..did.. i… it!”
Bob smiled and nodded, but not the kind of smile and nod you do when you are ignoring someone but the kind you do when you are really happy for someone that just accomplished something. “Yes you did, you just found your inner purr.”
Monty’s coughing subsided and he had almost caught his breath, “thanks so much Bob, I couldn’t have done it without you!” Monty smiled at the distinguished cat, genuinely happy.
Bob smiled, “you did it on your own Monty, I just gave you a place to start. Now remember, if you sit and concentrate on your inner purr you will be able to develop it even further and you may even do more than just catch a ball.” With that Bob leapt back up to his favorite sun spot and snuggled down into his favorite habit of the day, sun meditation.