Editor:
In early January 1996 I was in Sweet Home, doing door-to-door deliveries. I started walking up the driveway to one house and, as I got closer to the door, I looked up and there she was: the most prettiest little kitty I had ever seen.
She was just sitting quietly on the railing, looking so sweetly at me. I was completely mesmerized by her. The very second I laid eyes on her, it was instant and total love. I had never felt love at first sight before until that very moment.
I started talking to her, and then I went to gently pick her up. This little kitty didn’t even know me but she allowed me to hold her, and she even started purring right away. I could tell that she wanted some love. I talked to her for about a minute and then I gently put her back on the railing. I had to say goodbye to her. After all, she wasn’t mine.
So with a tear in my eye, I left. I continued with my deliveries, but I just could not get that sweet little face out of my mind. I think about 15 minutes went by and then something just all of a sudden told me that I had to go back and see her again.
I also wanted to tell the homeowner that they had a real pretty little kitty. When I went back, she was then sitting in the driveway.
As I got closer to her, it was like she was telling me, “Hey lady, why did you leave me?”
I picked her up out of the driveway and put her back on the railing of the house. I knocked at the door, and a lady came to the door. I apologized for bothering her, but I had just wanted to tell her what a very pretty little kitty she had.
What she said next just totally shocked me. She said that I could take her if I wanted her. I absolutely could not believe what I was hearing. I now, all of a sudden, had the chance to have this beautiful cat in my life.
I told the lady I would love to have her. The lady said her name was Mandy, and she was about 5 months old. I thanked the lady, and assured her that I would take the best care of her. I had other cats at home, plus dogs, and I knew how to take care of this precious soul. I decided right away to keep the name Mandy, because she really did look like a Mandy, but I decided to spell it “Mandee.”
Mandee sat quietly in my lap in the car, all the way to the vet’s office in Albany. Then I took her home to meet her new family. I counted back five months, and decided that Aug. 2 would be her birthday. I’m a firm believer in having indoor-only cats, and Mandee lived happily with my husband and me for all of these years.
My precious little girl just passed away on Saturday, July 5, 2014, at the age of almost 19 years old. In less than four weeks, she would have been 19.
I miss her with my whole heart and soul. I’m just so very thankful that I was in Sweet Home that day, and that she was sitting on that railing, for me to find her. I shudder to think what her life would have been like outside, if we had not found each other that day.
God brought Mandee and me together that day, and I will never forget our beautiful and magical first meeting. That is something I will hold dear to my heart forever. I miss my little girl terribly, but I know that we will some day be together again.
Kathy Melson
Albany