That night, Shiroko gave me everything

Grandma Etsuko kept a Siamese cat.

At first, it was a pair.
Shiroko (female) and Kuroko (male).

But Kuroko lost his life on the nearby train tracks.

Shiroko, who was left behind, was a very smart and beautiful cat.
And for some reason, she was very fond of me when I was in elementary school.

I used to sleep on the top bunk of a bunk bed,
and almost every night, Shiroko would climb up the ladder
and sleep next to me.

One night, she was purring right by my ear, almost a little too loudly, acting affectionate.

—That sound woke me up.

At the same time, I felt a cold, strange sensation on my leg.
When I touched it without thinking,

…it was a slug.

It seemed to be a "gift" from Shiroko.

I instinctively brushed it off with a "Yikes!" but
Shiroko was purring, looking somewhat proud and satisfied.

I still can't forget that face.


Eventually, Shiroko's belly grew large.

Etsuko prepared a small "birthing room" for her.
Shiroko liked it too and went in and out of it many times.

But, one night.

While I was sleeping, I felt a gentle warmth at my feet.
When I woke up—

Shiroko had started giving birth in my bed.
It happened in the middle of the night.

Though surprised, I laid down many bath towels and watched over her quietly.

Shiroko gave birth to seven kittens.

Strangely enough, only two were Siamese cats,
and the rest were all tabby-patterned.

I still remember the warmth of those little lives
and the air of that quiet night.

In her later years, Shiroko became a bit senile.

Even so, she spent time slowly,
and lived for eighteen years.

At the end, as if taking a nap on the veranda,
she quietly departed.

Surely, in the garden of Grandma Etsuko, whom she loved so much,
gently wrapped in ordinary flowers and plants,
dozing off into a slumber—.

🌿

——

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