To the editor:
Once upon a time, many, many years ago when I was just out of high school and enjoying my first job, a young man by the name of Bernie came into the office. During the course of our business transaction, he looked at me googly-eyed (at least that’s what my boss told me later) and said that his mother had always told him that when he fell in love, it would hit him like a ton of bricks, and that’s what had just happened to him, and asked if I would go out with him. (quite a line!) Well, probably very fortunate for Bernie, that ton of bricks missed me by a mile, and flattered as I was, I gently declined. With a tear in his eye, Bernie rode off into the sunset, surely looking for another ton of bricks.
One day, nearly a half century later, I logged onto my Facebook page and Wham! Bam! A ton of bricks slammed me so hard I almost lost my balance! There was a picture posted by Halfway Home Pet Rescue of the prettiest little Calico cat I have ever seen. I knew then I was in big trouble. I fell in love at first sight!
We had lost our cat a couple of weeks before, and I was so not ready for another one, so I ignored the tug on my heart strings. I have to admit, though, that I stalked HHPR’s website for two weeks, looking at photos of that little cat, and checking to see if she had been adopted, and finally, when those bricks hit me one too many times, I asked Norma if she was still available, and she was! At that point, I knew we were meant to be together. (sigh)
With stars in my eyes and the bricks still slamming, I filled out the application and went to HHPR and asked if I could adopt her. I did and we are having so much fun with her. I think my husband got hit with the bricks, too, because you ought to see the toys he keeps buying for her.
Seriously, though, the work that HHPR does for this community is so important that I cannot believe anyone would criticize its very existence. Do the critics realize how vital it is to keep the cat population down and under control? Can you imagine if HHPR were not in existence, how many more cats would be in flower gardens and roaming the streets?
These cats and kittens, who, through no fault of their own, are dropped off or abandoned, some abused, some starving, have a safe, warm place to stay until they can be adopted. You don’t have to be a cat lover to understand the value of such a place.
I know that if Halfway Home Pet Rescue had not been part of this community, my little Calico and I would never have met, and I may have never understood what it felt like to be hit by a ton of bricks! Oh, Bernie … I’m so sorry!
Joan Theriault
Caribou
