A cat's 9th life

Night was falling, and the streets were already empty and quiet. Or, maybe, it only seemed that way? It was calm and silent, no one was around to disturb the lone passerby crossing the yard. Passerby? No, she was more than just a passerby, she was a dweller, deeply rooted in this place. It was a homeless cat, a creature who had roamed these streets for so long that her presence felt eternal. No one could quite recall when she had first appeared or was born. Had she been a stray kitten once, born in some forgotten corner? Some swore she’d always been there, as if she were as much a part of the neighborhood as the old oak tree or the rusting swings on the playground. Despite her age, she carried herself with a stately grace and majesty. Some people even saw the wisdom in her light and cloudy, almost blind eyes. Despite this, she was very tender and affectionate, comforting this cold and indifferent world with just her presence. If cats truly do have nine lives to live, this one definitely was living her last, ninth life. There was something about her that spoke of an old soul, a being who had seen and experienced too much to gain in a short time. This cat could do what few humans could — she could truly live in the moment. She could enjoy, really enjoy every second of her life and every blessing she’d received, no matter how small. At the beginning she was grumpy and didn’t let anyone get to her. But over time she softened, opened herself up, and was already fawning to the people around herself. This change happened really suddenly, as if she’d realized this was her final chance, her last life, her last opportunity to embrace the world around her, to give and receive all the love she could She had also learned to listen, to listen and understand, to truly hear the unspoken pain of those who crossed her path. A lot of people, when they were down or just had some trouble, accidentally ran into her. Sometimes they spoke aloud, other times, they simply sat beside her, their pain unspoken but understood. And if they spoke, she listened to them, to all of them. And listened so good that any sorrows or burdens flew away. If it didn’t work, she’d always found a way to show that she was with them and that she cared, and that always worked Everyone loved her, everyone respected her, more than any human. Every day someone brought her some food and water, offerings she initially pretended to ignore, as like to remind them she needed no charity. But eventually, she would accept them, gladly eating with a big gratitude. The children adored her the most. They even built a little shelter for her, so she wasn’t cold in winter and at night, she always slept there. But this night was different, she was awake and restless.She wandered the neighborhood, bypassing the playgrounds and parking lots, her movements deliberate but uncertain, as like searching for something or waiting for something only she could sense. But at some moment she just suddenly petrified. In the middle of the roadway, she froze, her body still as stone. She sat down, her cloudy eyes staring into the distance, unblinking No one knows for how long she’d been sitting there. But by morning, the neighborhood awoke to tragedy. The tenants of a nearby building found her on the roadway, her once-majestic form now lifeless. Found their beloved wise cat spread out on the asphalt in a puddle of her own blood, with her limbs broken and unnaturally twisted. And so ended the cat's wonderful 9th life.