When my parents first moved to Cordova, my sister Carrie came up for the first time during the summer of 2000. She worked at one of the grocery stores in town and a friend of a friend, that she worked with, had a kitten and couldn't keep her. One look at the kitten and Carrie promptly claimed her and brought her home. Carrie named her Bella. I don't know who started the nickname, but someone came up with Bella Che Paco. I'm not sure exactly what it's supposed to translate to, but this is what I came up with on my own (in Spanish)... Bella = beautiful, Che = hey, and Paco = cop. I think whoever came up with it, probably just liked the way it sounded.
I asked Carrie what she remembered about Bella from when she was a kitten. She referred to Bella as being a parrot kitty at times. Bella would perch on her shoulder a lot and also liked to sleep next to her shoulder. Carrie tells me that Bella had an interesting meow that sounded like a wookie call. I didn't realize it until just now, but I know exactly what meow she's talking about! She remembered that Bella also liked to sit on one of the chairs at the dining room table during dinner time. She never begged for food, she just liked sitting with everyone. One of her other favorite spots was the computer desk chair. She really disliked it when anyone would give her the boot, and even when someone was practically sitting on top of her, she still didn't move voluntarily.
Bella seemed to prefer men over women. Darius has never cared for cats, as he's more of a dog lover. He's even allergic to most cats, but for some reason Bella never bothered him. He really liked Bella, and she liked him too. Anytime he was sitting, she'd often seek his lap over anyone else. Bella was also attached to James before he moved away. I think she spent a good deal of time hanging out in his room.When we moved here last September, I wondered how Bella and the boys would interact. I wasn't sure how much tolerance she would have for Ben and Zach, but she did pretty well for an older cat. The boys weren't too fast at chasing her when they started crawling, so Bella didn't go to much trouble to avoid them. When they started walking, she had to speed it up and found it harder to park herself in spots to where they couldn't get her. On the occasions when Bella let them win, the boys were surprisingly gentle with her. They never yanked on her tail, or tugged at her fur. They mostly just liked to touch her a little, and it wasn't their actions that scared her off, but their squeals. I can't say that I blame her. They hurt my ears with some of the noises they make.
I think Bella's lasting impression on me will be butter. I'll never look at another stick of butter without thinking of her. Anytime butter was left uncovered on the counter, it was only a matter of time before Bella would get to it. Her tongue left a distinct pattern on a stick of butter, and it would make you stop and think twice before buttering your bread!Despite Bella's small frame underneath her gnarly thick coat, she was one tough Alaska cat! She spent a good amount of time outdoors, and was able to hold her own amongst stray dogs, crows, ravens, eagles, bears, and whatever else came her way.
Bella was a good cat. We miss her...Mom does too, even though she doesn't like to admit it!
The way to Cat Heaven is a field of sweet grass,
where crickets and butterflies play. A cat may be late getting to
Heaven...there is so much fun on the way!
But an angel will wait at the yellow front door, and
wait till a kitty comes home. And when she arrives, he'll give her a
kiss and some milk in a bowl of her own.
There are trees in Cat Heaven, trees made just for cats,
trees growing so green and so high. But, no one gets stuck in a tree
anymore--if a kitty wants down, she will fly!
And, oh all the toys, kitty toys everywhere, thousands and
thousands go by. There are buttons and baubles and small catnip
leaves all afloat in the sky.
There are angels, of course, with soft angel laps, where kitties can
purr loud and strong. The angels will rub kitties' noses and ears, and
sing them a Cat Heaven song.
And when cats are hungry, there is God's kitchen counter--all
covered with white kitty dishes, full of tuna and salmon and
mounds of sardines and wonderful little pink fishes.
The cats in Cat Heaven are so loved and spoiled, God lets them all
lie on his bed...He walks in his garden with his wonderful Book and
a kitty asleep on his head.
Then when a cat needs to, she may simply ponder and watch the
blue world deep and wide....she will watch the old house where she
once lived and wandered, and the people who loved her inside.
All cats love Heaven, they know the way there, they know where
the angel cats fly. They will turn past the stars and the moon and
the sun.....to curl up with God in the sky.
