My Favorite Pet Ever.

I still, with fondness, remember the day when we first adopted my beloved Nala Jane. My younger sister and I were at Petco looking at kittens, and this black one suddenly jumped out at me. We asked someone if we could hold her, and he promptly took her out of her cage. With her in my arms, we called my parents and asked if we could adopt her. They said yes almost immediately, and after we paid sixty dollars, she was ours. “Umbreon” became Nala, and I became smitten.

 Fast-forward eight years and we are as close as we have ever been. She has this preternatural sense of whenever I lie down in bed, and oftentimes comes running to my bedroom in such instances. She then jumps up into my bed and I take my left arm and move it away from my body. Nala then proceeds to lie down in the gap created between my arm and body, purring all the while.

 Just a little while ago, I was away camping at Lake Casitas in Ojai with my dad and my mom said that, the entire time, Nala was pining for me, and protesting my absence by lying determinately in my bed for hours on end. When we got back, she was a bit standoffish with me, but quickly forgave my transgression by cuddling with me in bed as she always does.

 After having grown up with cats, I like to think that I know how they behave intimately. A feline is always in charge. However, Nala’s behavior towards me breaks this unbreakable mold. She often treats me the way a dog would, by frequently deferring to me, and loving me unconditionally and without end.

 My life would not be complete without Nala. Having her by my side if I am occasionally feeling under the weather is akin to having a lifejacket while stranded in a stormy, turbulent ocean after one’s boat has capsized.

 I try to pay it forward to Nala in small, but loving ways. I always make sure she has enough food. A brief while ago, I made sure she got a good dose of flea medication. Every morning, I scoop the poops out of her cat box. The only regret I have is that she is just a bit overweight, but this does nothing to detract from her pristine appearance and graceful presence. I have laughingly heard her called a “tuxedo cat,” because of her beautiful black coat and dainty white paws, or her “mittens,” as I like to refer to them.

 I am incredibly blessed to be so close to an animal in this way, and I look forward to the future with us together. My life would not be the same without my Nala Jane, and I surely know that her life would not be complete without me as not her owner, but as her companion.

Nala Jane