The miracle that is Mirrie!
Tuesday September 12, we were driving home at the start of the peak rush hour (close on 5 p.m). Passing Police Park (at the entrance to Gower Street) in the middle of the rush of traffic, some tiny thing streaked past us, narrowly missing a speeding bus.
I thought it was a baby squirrel but Bert said it was a kitten - believe me, I just shut my eyes because I didn’t want to see it getting run over! It streaked again right in front of us… and went under a three-wheeler going in the opposite direction.
We halted our little red Maruti and gestured like mad to the three-wheeler guy who stopped.
There we were stopped in the centre lane, with the three-wheeler man on the opposite centre lane! Vehicles rushing past. Cars honking! Getting glared at by passing motorists!!!
The three-wheeler man got down, knelt and peered underneath.
A tiny mite of a kitten rushed out from underneath his vehicle and came under ours!
The gentleman driving the car behind the three-wheeler, who had also kindly stopped opposite owing to this drama in turn gestured wildly at us to say the kitten was now under our vehicle!
Three-wheeler man came across to ours – Bert told him, we are willing to take the animal in order to spare its life in this melee!
No kitten underneath.
After inspection, we all realised there was no kitten. The three-wheeler guy said it’s gone. It’s run off. We looked on both sides of the road. No joy.
The three-wheeler guy with his patient crew inside took off and so did we!
But I was restless.
I kept imagining the kitten under the wheels of a car or bus. Or hiding and getting caught under our own wheels.
Came home, looked for signs. Nothing. (Mind you that entire drama on the middle of the road couldn’t have lasted more than a few minutes). That night too, I kept thinking. Imagining the worst.
In the morning Bert heard a kitten crying in the vicinity of the parked car. He opened the bonnet and checked, and then crept under the car. Got our help Rams to do so too. We searched around in between flower pots and all else…. nothing! Our imagination?
Then finally, once again alerted by its cries we found the little mite in our smaller unused kennel, which is used to store some old machinery and stuff.
Games of hide’n seek began – milk kept in a shallow dish - no kitten, hiding, but the milk was later found to have been drunk. Same with food.
Two days of that. Our ‘Kella’ (dog) now beginning to hunt for prey. Said kitten relocated to a safer place on the side of the house.
Still, we were unable to catch it. It would just flash by and hide in the blink of an eye.
Again after another two days – finally, finally, she relocated to a back room beyond the kitchen, where our cats are fed. Hiding behind the shelves there.
The cats have accepted her. Still hiding and her food and milk given balanced precariously in between the shelves. Tiny mite is more outgoing now. Allows me to lift her!
Yes it’s a ‘her’. Reason for aban-donment-those who do have little care where they chuck them.
How she came home with us remains a big mystery! Obviously she latched on to some part of the car where she didn’t get squashed to death! (I shiver at the thought). Also think an Angel was in charge – or else … … HOW!! ????
The very synchronised sequence of events. For us to pass by, just at the time when tiny mite was on her suicide mission!
Kella has accepted her now. She now passes by her nose…..
The cats sometimes hiss and smack, only at times, when tiny mite doesn’t know her place, but are largely tolerant.
So that’s the story of “Mirrie” - the Miracle Kitten.