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| June 18, 2016 |
Nine years ago today, I walked into the local humane society and met a tiny, frightened black kitten they had named Bridget. She was crouched low and hiding under a chair, wide-eyed and unsure of the world. I knew immediately that “Bridget” wasn’t her name. My cats have always been named after queens, and while Bridget may be a fine name, there’s never been a Queen Bridget. Elizabeth was out—my sister’s name. And I could never reuse Victoria (aka HRH if you were reading this blog all those years ago) , the name of my beloved cat who had passed.
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| June 19, 2016 |
But Queen Isabella of Spain? That felt right. Regal, bold, and destined for her own kind of adventure. So “Bridget” became Isabella, and Isabella became mine.
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| June 20, 2016 |
At the time, I was navigating one of the loneliest periods of my life. A dear friend had died the year before, and I was living 1,200 miles from home, trying to find my footing again here in Vermont. What I didn’t know then was how much this tiny creature would help me heal.
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| June 21, 2016 |
That first week, Isabella mostly hid under the bed. She cried when I left the room. She was timid and unsure. But even in those early days, something began to shift. By the second day, she was climbing onto the bed on her own. By the third, she was letting me pet her. A few days more, and she was confidently dragging toys into her bed and meowing nonstop when I dared to be in another room.
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| June 21, 2016 |
She was skittish, yes—but she was also vibrant and curious, funny and affectionate. She claimed her favorite sleeping spot on a neck massager under the bed, only to sneak onto my chest in the middle of the night. She was a chatterbox, a cuddler, a clown. And most of all, she became the best antidepressant I could have asked for.
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June 24, 2018
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Isabella gave me something I didn’t realize I needed: the daily rhythm of care, companionship, and connection. She reminded me to laugh. To be present. To love again. In those earliest days, when my world still felt uncertain and dim, she brought joy back into the corners of my life.
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| June 24, 2016 |
Today, Isabella is no longer that tiny black fluffball with the wide eyes. She’s older, wiser, still chatty when she wants to complain, still cuddly in her own way—and still the queen of this castle. For nine years, she has been my companion, my comfort, and my fiercely affectionate shadow.
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| June 25, 2016 |
Happy Adoption Day, Isabella! You saved me as much as I saved you.
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| May 22, 2024 |
To see Isabella’s journey over the years, visit the archive of blog posts about her here:
Long live Isabella, queen of Joe !
ReplyDeleteAmerican friends, do not launch a new war like in 2003 in Iraq.
ReplyDeleteSpeech by Dominique de Villepin (French Minister of Foreign Affairs) at the United Nations, February 14, 2003 :
"... In this temple of the United Nations, we are the guardians of an ideal, we are the guardians of a conscience. The heavy responsibility and the immense honor that are ours must lead us to give priority to disarmament in peace.
And it is an old country, France, from an old continent like mine, Europe, that is telling you this today, a country that has known wars, occupation, and barbarism. A country that does not forget and that knows all that it owes to the freedom fighters from America and elsewhere. And yet which has never ceased to stand tall in the face of history and before men. True to its values, it wants to act resolutely with all members of the international community. It believes in our ability to build a better world together. "
How often do you take her to the vet? Does she have any cat friends?
ReplyDelete