I woke up to a bit of a fuss and frenzy in my family house, now that was usual I just didn't understand why it had to be on a Monday morning though, don't this people have places to be? I finally dragged myself out of bed as the not so quiet whispers grew louder, I made my way to the veranda the source of the noise yawning and stretching all the way there but when I saw the reason for the noise it woke me right up
I had always loved cats from when I was a kid, my parents and siblings were however typical Africans steadfastly believing the animal had permanent ties with bad luck and ill omen aka juju. Oh well once they had said no the first two times I asked I stopped asking but what luck to have on a Monday morning.
So apparently the cause of all the morning ruckus was simple some cat which strayed around our house had given birth and seemingly died of complications so now we had a kitten on our hands.
I was excited and terrible at hiding it, my parents were only concerned on getting it off their property and so it begun.
The fight to keep this little feline, the expenses that my unemployed self couldn't shoulder alone, the incessant screams at the creature, the struggle to find an accommodation for the little guy when it rained and the non stop complains from my family members to anyone who cared to listen. Oh! and also the false smiles and tales told by visitors, strangers even passers by of their love for cats always ending in the ultimate rejection of the offer to take it off our hands.
Still Leo and I persevered as days turned into weeks and until that evening when my mom sitting on the same veranda step where we had found Leo said to me
'you have to sell this cat' because you will soon get a job and I can't take care of it, abi you want this cat to die in your hands.
Classic mum playing the emotional blackmail card, she wasn't entirely wrong to worry though but she wasn't right either, So apparently my uncle had promised that a job he was connected to was going pull through for me but I hadn't gotten any call not even for an interview, so I didn't see the point plus by now I was used to dealing with the disappointment of not getting hired so I didn't get my hopes up anymore, pessimist?
No but three years of job hunt without luck will do that to you
As she spoke further trying to sell me her well rehearsed reason I drifted off into thought
I had gotten used to having the little guy around but let's face it I was barely able to keep up with feeding him and what now happens if he falls sick
My unemployed self couldn't afford that and what's more I would make money from the sale and I could use a little extra cash at this point
With that realization in mind I smiled.
And so it was decided I would sell Leo.
