Learning to Be Sassy
From Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Clever, Curious, Caring Cat
By Mary J. Staller

You know someone is very special to you when days just don’t seem right without them.
~John Cena

I was greeted by Pumpkin, my neighbor’s longhaired orange tabby cat, when I opened the door to get the newspaper. “How are you this morning?” I said, running my hand along his fluffy tail. “Sassy’s sleeping in this morning.” Pumpkin rubbed against my leg and then walked over to the long window. He stood on his hind legs and braced his front paws against the frame, peering into the living room.

“Hey, old boy, you can’t wait to see her?” Smiling at him, I shook my head. “Maybe today is the day she’ll be kind. Don’t give up on love, Pumpkin.”

Pumpkin lives across the street. He spends most days on my front porch, waiting to see Sassy, a shorthaired gray-and-white stray who purposefully walked through my front door one cold winter morning. At a mere six weeks old, she was dirty and sneezing from an upper-respiratory infection. Now, three years later, this healthy, little cat stays forever young-looking, having been the runt of a litter. She is the sweetest, gentlest, most friendly cat... except when it comes to Pumpkin. With him, she plays hard-to-get. (Keep reading)