By Nigar Ataulla
Ginny was a little girl and lived in a big town. She loved animals, and wherever she went she would look around for cats, squirrels and birds and would stop to say hello to them.
Ginny lived in a house with a big backyard and a little garden in front. Every day, all the neighbourhood cats would land up outside her home when they spotted her coming from school. Ginny would serve them saucers of creamy milk. Some cats lived in houses next to Ginny’s, while others were stray cats, who wandered about homeless in the streets.
Ginny loved them all very much, and her dream was to have a little house of her own when she grew up, with a special room for cats, where any cat could come and stay, eat and sleep.
After Ginny’s mother went to heaven, she stayed with her father and sister. Both grown-olds (who, if you know what I mean, are very different from grown-ups) did not know head or tail about paws and claws. Ginny’s mother would allow kitties to sit on the kitchen table and watch her making pancakes. But Ginny’s father and sis did not allow the kitties to even step inside the house. Like all other grown-olds, they thought they were always right and claimed that the kitties would mess up the house. Ginny dearly loved the cats and was sad that the kitties couldn’t any longer come inside her house.
Sometimes, Ginger, Ginny’s favourite tom-kitty, would crawl up outside her bedroom window on cold winter nights and meow, hoping that he would be let in. But Ginny could do nothing as the grown-olds growled if she dared ask them to let Ginger in. Often, she quietly opened the fridge in the middle of the night and kept out a saucer of milk for Ginger on the window pane.
Ginny secretly hoped that one day all the cats of the area would come into her house and have a big kitty party! That day soon came as Ginny’s dad went out of town for a few days. “Wuppy!” squealed Ginny as she and her toy Teds set off to the baker’s to fetch muffins, sandwiches, milk, lots of cream, kitty biscuits and kitty cakes. And, guess why? Ginny and Teds had planned a surprise kitty party for all the neighbourhood cats!
Ginny’s other toys, Dundi, the water-filler, Ronald, the baby rubber, Shelly, the sea shell, Tango, the baby crocodile, Felicia and Fanny, a couple of silly mice, jumped out of the toy cupboard to help Ginny. They were really excited”they had never seen a Kitty party before. Felicia and Fanny put up balloons inside the dining room, and Dundi filled all the kitty cups with creamy milk.
But how would the kitties know about the kitty party? Tango, the baby croc had a brilliant idea! Ginny had a little bell, gifted to her by her mom. Tango put the bell around his neck and crawled around the garden and in the streets, tingling the bell, announcing to all the kitties that there was to be a party in the afternoon in Ginny’s house just for them.
Ginger was the first to come to Ginny’s house. He was so excited to enter the house for the first time that he leapt into the larder and curled up around the honey pot. “Hmmm, so warm!” he meowed. Ginny was thrilled to have Ginger with her and gave him a hearty hug.
In a few minutes, Triggy Tom, the fat brown cat, rushed in.Just as Ronald was laying out the pink kitty cup cakes and scones, through the window jumped Glassy and Greeny, the two very naughty street kitties.Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Guess who it was! Prim ‘n Proper, the Persian cat from the big house down the road. She was dressed in a white skirt with a pearl necklace around her furry neck. She lived with Dame Rich Witch, who wanted everything in her house, including her kitty, to be prim and proper, and that is how the latter had got her quaint name. The lady had taught even her cat to knock on doors before entering, which is what she did that day!
Sharp at 12 noon, dressed neatly in a suit and bow-tie, Purr-Purr-Perfect, the big cat from the other side of the road, walked in. He taught “gazing at mouse holes” in the neighborhood kitty school. After having eaten the proverbial hundred mice, he now planned to do penance for his sins by sailing to the Holy Pussy Waters, where he would take a dip in the river and vow never to eat a mouse again! He jumped on the table, blessed Ginny with his paw and looked around and asked if everyone was there.
“Wait, Satin, the black garbage kitty has not come,” meowed Glassy, who was as gossipy as ever and kept a careful eye on who did what. Just then, through the chimney, a black kitty covered completely in coal, tumbled down, looking very sheepish. That was Satin! “Ohhhh, Satin, go take a bath, you dirty little thing!” meowed Glassy.
Satin had never taken a bath in her life, so Ginny wiped her well and powdered her and then she looked fresh as a flower. She had never before eaten from a plate, for she would always jump into rubbish-bins to hunt for fish bones and leftovers. You can well imagine how thrilled she was to see a plate specially set on the table, along with a giant bowl and a cup of creamy milk, just for her!
When all the guests had arrived, the kitty part began. Everyone took their seats at the dining table and then joined their paws together and Teds said a little prayer thanking the Lord for the food they were about to eat. Then, they began munching on the delicious cakes, biscuits, cream, milk and scones that Ginny had so lovingly put together. Ginny put on a delightful song to amuse them. ‘Pussycat, Pussy cat Where Had You Been?”, it rang out, and after the kitties had eaten their fill they all held paws and danced to the same song, over and over again. Never before had they had such fun as at their first kitty party!
The sun was setting and it was time for the kitties to go home. But Ginny told them that they could sleep over if they wanted to. “Wuppymeowwwwww” squealed all the kitties in delight. They rushed together, as if in a race, to take their places on the warm sofas, beds and carpets that Ginny had spread out for them.
Ginny made creamy coffee for all of them, and after kneeling down together, they thanked the Lord for the wonderful party, after which each one of the kitties gave Ginny a little peck on her little cheek to say how thankful they were to her, too.
Ginny was the happiest little girl in the world that day! And now she’s waiting for another weekend kitty party, when the grown-olds in her house are out of town again! I do hope that happens really soon, don’t you? Wuppymeowwww!
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