Late in the Year

In honor of National Feral Cat Day, I’m featuring this photo of my favorite feral kitty, the one who taught me all cats do not begin life as pets and need to be allowed to find their own way in this human space.

“Portrait of a senior kitty”…this is a favorite of my black and white photos. Moses had been a feral kitty and against many odds lived to be 19. Aside from a strict adherence to twice-daily mealtimes, her one and only absolute necessity was a sunbath, preferrably al fresco, every day to help soothe the arthritis that had built in her somewhat hobbled hind legs.

I took this photo during the last warm day in November, just three months before she died. I’ve seen some viewers have a difficult time piecing the image together because her features are distorted by age, her eyes set deep, her cheekbones sunken, nose slightly flattened by dehydration and ear tips curved as the skin on those extremities begins to wither.

I’ve written about her for National Feral Cat Day on this blog as well.