The Black and White Cat

The whole family was playing around in bed telling silly stories before bed time one night. My five year old daughter started to tell us a story. She said "the kids at school all saw a cat get hit by a bus". I gasped and said "did you see it" she said

"no!" then started to laugh. I got quite mad that her teacher did not write a note saying the cat had been hit and the kids saw it in our parent teacher notebook. I still was curious why my daughter had said this so as we lay in bed. I ask "what did the kitty look like? what color was it?" She laughed and said "black and white". Then giggles "Just kidding!". I ask again "did you see the cat at the school" and she said "no". I drifted off to sleep quite disturbed about the image of kids seeing a cat get hit by a school bus.
Then two or so months went by uneventful. No talks of cats being hit by buses just of new friends at school. I wake up to get our daughter ready for school for my husband to drive her the short distance to the school before work. I give her kisses and say goodbye. I honestly usually crawl back in bed for a couple more hours after she heads out to school. But, today I saw that it was trash day and I had some to put out before they came. I was going to leave it for my husband to bring out when he returned from the school to take his work van.

I said "oh I will just do it". I walked outside and bring the trash out. I picked up a bottle that someone had thrown on the curb of our very busy street. Then on walking up my driveway I see a black and white cat. He is a good looking healthy cat with big eyes. He is just staring at me and not moving sitting up looking at me. I walk closer and say "hello", and closer "I hope they did not leave you behind. The family next door moved the weekend before. I had never seen this cat however in the months they lived there. I say "I hope they did not leave you behind". The cat is still just staring at me not moving an inch. I say to myself "oh, well" and walk inside my house.
I shut the door and think. "well, I better call animal control because he is just going to get hit with that street outside". My husband pulls into the driveway a few minutes later. I say "I think the people who moved left a cat". My husband and I walk outside so I can show him this cat.

We look all over and can not find him. He honestly had no place to go in that short time except my yard. The street too busy with morning commuters for the animal to try to cross. Then a fence he would have to climb.
Then my husband said "well, I saw a cat dead in the road on 10th street." I think how horrible and ask "what color?" He said "it was black and white". I ask "more black or more white?" he said "more white". I think "oh, this one was more black". He said "Well, I was driving the car and it was in the road!".

We head inside after looking for a couple minutes. I then say to my husband about our daughter talking about a black and white cat getting hit by a bus and how it was weird she joked of such a thing.
I talk about how my Grandmother saw auras and was quite odd and maybe our daughter had a vision. I suggest the idea it was a ghost cat! He said "maybe". Then I went on to say how it did not move or even blink and had a strange look to its eyes like it was staring at me. Maybe perhaps from another world the animal was looking at me from.
The as I kiss my husband goodbye for the day. I say "hey if you see that cat there just tell me" as he walks to the van. He then did something odd. He walked around the side of the house and got in his van. I think he too thought it strange and just wanted to be sure.

The things small children say are innocent and have meaning. My daughter never talked of morbid things and made jokes of it. She did tell of a black and white cat getting hit by a bus. Then months later a black and white cat visits me then disappears in just minutes later with no trace in almost impossible time. The same day my husband sees a black and white dead cat in the road just up the street. I will never know if today I was visited by a ghost cat that my daughter talked about.

By: tarrios@gmail.com