From the Archives: The Day Mimi Became “One of the Girls” in 2010

September 9, 2023 Bernadette

Mimi tries to fit in with the Golden Girls.

I thought I’d share this separately from my other “from the archives” posts because it was such a special event. The date this actually happened was September 12, 2010, and it’s a sweet memory to see my three tri-color girls again, and Mimi so young. It’s also a surprise that it took Mimi three years to accomplish this! I always sensed she felt she was going to end up back outside. I guess she finally realized she was staying.

Once upon a time, Mimi was not the queen of the household, owner of the human and supervisor of all that was and wasn’t in her realm. Though a six-time mother, she was a junior member of the household, very junior compared to the older girls.

Here, the “Golden Girls”, the “Tri-color Trio”, my three most senior kitties, Kelly at 17, Peaches at 20 and Cookie at 18, have their dinner on the cabinet in the middle of the kitchen while Mimi longingly, or slyly, I wasn’t sure, looks on. She was about five years old. Apparently, she had a plan.

Mimi was relegated to the floor with her kids so that I could watch the three senior girls eat their dinner and assess their appetite and eating habits as I did daily to ensure they were eating well. Peaches, fighting kidney failure, definitely needed the supervision for her occasional struggles with acid reflux, one of the side effects of the condition. Kelly was timid about the kids and preferred being with her fur sisters, and I was happy to ensure she ate in peace without being nudged out of her dish by a three-year-old. Cookie didn’t really need the supervision but she kept an eye on Peaches and so she got to eat next to her; besides that, Cookie was my girl and that was reason enough.

Mimi didn’t hear the part about the age category but decided she was special too and should eat in the place of honor with her sisters instead of on the floor with the kids. Sometimes, she had had enough of those kids. And then there was Dickie who was with us then, who could hoover up anything faster than anyone, and then start charming each of the other cats for what was left in their bowl, with great success.

So Mimi began appearing on the cabinet at meal time, waiting for her portion. Mimi never asked for anything, she was always grateful just to be here. It took me a few days to catch on as I tried to convince her they were getting the same food she was, not realizing it wasn’t the food she was after, but the status.

Mimi is tiny and quiet but she is also persistent, and one day I decided yes, indeed, she was special. Because she is. I hadn’t wanted to crowd the older girls, but they didn’t miss a beat, apparently agreeing that Mimi was supposed to be there.

It became clear to me later that this was not random, this was very intentional, and likely all four girls, and probably all four cats in the house, knew why. Shortly after, the losses began when we lost Peaches in October 2010. The following year Cookie developed kidney failure, Mimi kept an eye on Cookie the same as Cookie had done for Peaches, and then she also monitored and supported Kelly when she was left without any of her older friends.

And now Mimi keeps an eye on me. And shares her status with a few new girls.

Mariposa ate there only briefly when she first emerged from the upstairs, in December 2018, but Mewsette and Bella still eat on either side of Mimi at each meal.

And now it’s just Mimi and Bella.

. . . . . . .

Photos “From the Archives” and “Vintage Photos”

Photos pulled “From the Archives” were taken by one or another digital camera of mine between 2002 and, well, yesterday, but usually they are older than that, and I had never had the chance to feature them. Vintage Photos are from my film archives back to 1983 when I purchased my Pentax K-1000 camera. They’re a fun way to “introduce” other members of my feline family who came and went before I began blogging, and to illustrate my feline family in general from days gone by.

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Feline Photographs from Portraits of Animals!

black cat with colors — Mimi tells us to “Remember to Dream”.

Mimi reminds you that dreams do come true, so it’s advisable to remember to dream every day, no matter the circumstances, so the universe will know what dreams you want, and when they do come true, you’ll know what to do. Read more, and purchase.

Copyright

All images and text used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission, although links to your site are more than welcome and are shared. Please ask if you are interested in using and image or story in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of an image or a product including it, check my animal and nature website Portraits of Animals to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.