"I have two pets, a cat, and a dog. My cat (Snuggles) is a Tabby cat, and my dog (Blue) is a German shepherd. The cat hates the dog, and the dog hates the cat. We divided the house: the cat lives upstairs, and the dog downstairs. They usually fight a lot. My cat now has a strategy; go in a room and trick the dog by squeezing behind the washing machine and growling at the dog."
by A.T.B., age 9, 4th grade

As I went through his backpack before school this morning I found this essay, among my youngest son's completed school papers. He wrote it as a submission for the local newspaper. Essays and drawings by local school children are published on the back of the color comics each Sunday in a section called, "Flying Horse." The topics are determined by the newspaper ahead of time. Of course, I couldn't help but smile at his words. He's a Writer. 'Cause I'm his mama, and I just know. He's a quiet observer and has an insatiable appetite for reading. Just today I had to tell him to close his book as he walked from his bedroom, down the stairs, to the main floor of the house. Headin' to Dog Territory. I also had to smile, because ever since Blue joined our household last January I've been writing about him "more than a little bit." Just ask my Tumblr and Twitter followers. They've been hearing about the Cat-Dog Relations in my household from the beginning. Also, for the record, Blue doesn't hate Snuggles. That big pup just wants to play with that striped cat…even if she's growlin', spittin', hissin' mad, his tail is still wagging and he's grinnin' as he woofs playfully at her sayin', "Won't you be my friend?!" Blue just thinks this is the longest game of hide and seek…ever…and that he's permanently, "It."

"Cat in the Sunshine", a poem by A.T.B.
http://my.opera.com/jbaird/blog/cat-in-the-sunshine

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© 2012 Janean Baird, Turquoise Tangles