LET’S BE CREATIVE: January 30, 2025

By NANCY JANE KERN

FOR WHATEVER REASON Amber the cat wandered from a neighboring farm and picked our farm to live. Fortunately for us, her owner said we could keep her. She was a brindled black and yellow flecked short hair with a somewhat prickly disposition, and her yellow eyes (for which she was named) appeared red in the dark.

Mother had always dreamed of owning a Siamese cat and knew this meant Amber had some Siamese ancestry. Father was not happy about animals living in the house, and we don’t know how Amber managed it, but she finagled her way into the family and was allowed to come in and out of the house as she pleased. It might have helped that the old farm house always hosted mice and she was a good mouser. Anyway, there she was in her happy new home.

She was our first experience with a cat to play with and pet and we soon learned what Amber considered acceptable behavior. She often left her mark, and there are scratch scars to this day to prove it. At the time there were only we three little girls and we were expected to take afternoon naps. This was not a favorite activity for us, but we complied. One day there were some strange sounds in the bed, and it was discovered that Amber had crawled in and was delivering her kittens. There were already two damp little ones making soft squeaks. Now this was an interesting nap. A careful exit was made from the bed and Mother and sisters came to watch more kittens born. Amber knew what she was doing and licked and nursed each one. All were relocated to a box lined with old rags.

What an exciting experience. We learned how to carefully handle the kittens and Amber was okay with this as long as she could see them. She was an excellent mother and obviously had done this before.

We watched over the following weeks as the kittens’ eyes opened and saw how fast they grew. Amber was very protective of her offspring and her territory. We had another neighbor about a quarter of a mile from us who had a big dog, a Doberman, which would get into our cellar when the outside door was left open. Mother couldn’t believe her eyes the day she saw the Doberman shoot out across the lawn, with Amber on his back with all her claws sunk in tight. She rode the howling dog out of sight. He never returned.

Amber went on to have more kittens and finally produced one that looked like a Siamese. His coat was light colored with a few faint tiger stripes, he had dark points (ears, face, tail, and legs) and his beautiful blue eyes shone red in the dark. Mother was delighted, and sister Dona claimed him and named him Glitter for his sparkling eyes. He was very good-natured, tolerated our games, and soaked up as much attention as he could get.

Amber and offspring were well loved and she left her mark on all of us, not just the scars, but the whole process of life and how we should interact with our fellow creatures. We were so lucky she chose us.