SUSAN LOESCH

CATS IN THE STACKS

It is Lady’s Day here in the library! Library Cat version, that is. Sweet little Hexie is auditioning for a spot on the Library Cat Staff, and by the time she had been here two hours she had nailed it.

It is a good thing I hadn’t planned to bring Barney today. Seems Mr. B. is going to be one to set his own work schedule. Again this morning he was nowhere to be found, choosing to rest, no doubt, after his busy day at work yesterday.

Barney excited everyone by eating treats out of Brianna’s hand. 

This is the first time he has done that, previously preferring to pick them up off the counter.

Eating treats offered by hand earns major Head Library Cat points!

He also let Patrick videotape him, to be included in a You-Tube video about our school. He must have felt like a real celebrity.

There was a crowd watching Brianna take pictures of Patrick filming him!  Such is the life of a star.

To cap the day off he joined our kindergarten class for their story hour.

I put his bed in my lap and read  Three Stories You Can Read to Your Cat, by Sara Swann.

My new definition of grace under fire is a cat who can stay calm in the midst of a storm of  eight little hands touching whiskers, feeling ears, holding tail and petting, all while listening to a story!

We made it through two of the three stories before they had to leave and will save the third for another story hour.

“We want Barney to be here all the time,” someone suggested. From the way he sat there, it seems like he might enjoy that.

This morning Hexie first met some of my older students.  I told them about her eyes.

Hexie has only one eye; her other one had to be removed when she was little and sometimes the place where the eye was gives her problems.

“Awww,” said one of my seniors. She is just like us.”

Her remaining eye is the most beautiful emerald green.

“The problems she has are not serious,” I told them, “They are just…”  I paused, looking for the word.

“Annoying,” said one of the kids. “I understand.”  That is exactly it, and they really do understand.

Hexie made herself at home, wandering the library, jumping up on tables, head-butting new friends.

“You will like it here,” one told her when they met.

She ate some treats, met lots of kids and teachers, and, finally, my fourth graders.

As she passed out head-butts, one of them told her, “You are a nice cat. We are going to be really good friends.”

So now we are close to having a full staff.  A Head Library Cat, Barney, a First Assistant to the Head  Library Cat, Tank, and an Assistant Library Cat, Hexie.

I think we will meet one more candidate, Shadow, a kitty as black as Footsie and as round as Barney and Tank.

He may join the staff, but the other three have definitely been hired!