..."lost & found..."

I know the blogging has been infrequent... having the fellers home has me behind....

I am a self proclaimed crazy cat lady... I have loved felines ever since I can remember... as a little girl I would drag home a stray and try to domesticate them... ask my folks about the yellow tabby with mange...

As a married couple our fist pet was a house cat named Pippy (short for Pip-squeak).  We lived in a TINY apartment at I-29 and Parvin in KC, MO.... I really wanted a dog, but what I got was the runt of the litter.  My mother in law had a litter of kittens that a friend had brought to their farm, she thought the runt would be perfect for me....

After we returned from our honeymoon on St. Barth's I made the drive out west to the farm my husband was raised on & brought the kitten home.  She made a great pet, moved 5 times with us including the 12 hour drive to Indiana where we have settled for the past seven years.  She would come snuggle when she heard my head hit the pillow... she would run to play hide and seek when I would put fresh sheets on the bed... she would sing for a nibble of tuna... she was good for my soul.  Pippy passed away at the ripe old age of nearly 11 during the winter of 2010.

I think the Lord knew I would need another cat in my life to fill the hole ... the summer before Pippy's passing a stray mama cat dumped a litter of weened kittens off at my neighbors.  As I would weed my hosta beds this little calico kitten would pop through the foliage and play with me....

She adopted us, choosing to crawl through the doggie door of our garage and take refuge from the male tom cats that inhabit our woods.  The neighbor named her Snickers, for her yellow, black, brown and gray patchwork of fur.  She had a litter of kittens that spring following Pippy's passing in our garage.  What fun it was for the boys to raise kittens.  I had Snickers spayed last fall .... and she flew the coop.

Literally and figuratively... I think the spay caused a hormone imbalance.... she's a bit nutty, and leaves for several weeks at a time.... just when I think the coyotes may have gotten her, she will show back up... usually at night when I am awake on the computer, a small lamp aglow... I'll hear scratch-scratch-scratch... and Snickers will be on the deck.  Some times she will have burs matted in her fur, paws dirty, voice scratchy from 'roughin' it.... other times she appears well groomed, I am suspicious that she is having an affair with another crazy cat lady....

When we returned from Yellow Stone she came around.... and has stuck around since. Maybe it's the milk I give her (once a month laced with de-wormer)...

I know it is only a cat (as my farm boy husband would say) but she reminds me of the Bible parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2015:11ff&version=NLT

When the son returns the father is ecstatic.... over joyed.... just as I am when my silly cat decides to stagger home...

This has me thinking about the Lord.... do I stagger away from my relationship with him?  Do I put other things above the Lord in my list of priorities? ....

When we return to the heavenly Father... He is over joyed... He is ecstatic.... He welcomes us with open arms, for we were once lost... but with Him we are found....