You may be familiar with the old campfire song or the weird
cartoon of the same name. We had a similar experience this last week. While
Fergus took about a week to get back to us, he did come back.
(Funny Canadians)
It started Sunday night when Eliza opened the screen door
and Fergus shot right out into the backyard and became the subject of a parable
of sorts Mike wrote a few days later when it seemed like maybe the cat would
not come back.
Ever since he was a kitten, Fergus has hated being trapped
indoors when he could see the amazing world outside. He resented that his
owners kept him penned in when all he wanted to do was chase the birds, roll
around in the dirt, and explore what lie on the other side of the neighbors’
fences. Patiently, he waited for one of his people to leave a door unattended
so he could jet out into the yard. His people had taken to locking the big
slider and going into the back yard by way of the garage. He especially
resented seeing them dining in the back yard while he remained cooped inside,
and he would push and claw at the screens, testing for some weakness in the
protective cage.
He had escaped several times already when someone’s
attention had lapsed just enough. Sometimes his escapes lasted for only a
minute or two before one of the family trapped him or shooed him back inside,
but more often lately, he had learned exactly where to run to when he got out
of the house so that he could escape capture. The last few times he had
escaped, he managed to spend hours exploring the yards of the surrounding
neighbors. He ended up bringing some uninvited passengers that bit both him and
his family once they did succeed in luring him back home when he finally got
tired or hungry or wanted their company.
One fateful night, a family member opened the slider screen,
and before anyone could react, he was out the door, around the side yard, and
over the fence. Try as they might, his family would not stop him from making
his rounds. This time, he decided to explore new territory across the street,
where he had only ventured once or twice before. His family searched for him in
vain, because Fergus never came back home that night. His family searched the
neighborhood, contacted animal control, and prayed for his safe return, but
they could not prevent Fergus from his escape efforts and experiencing whatever
natural consequence came from him leaving the safe place they had given him.
And so ends the parable. Make of it what you will.
Fortunately for us, Saturday morning Landon heard Fergus
meowing outside in the front yard, and the cat did come back. He seemed none
the worse for wear, but he has developed a few different behaviors. He clings
to Mike like white on rice and generally wants to be around us a lot more,
although he still wants to get out if he can. We treated him with flea killer
as part of our efforts to get rid of fleas generally in the home (more on that
later) and put his collar on him. Try as we might, we know that this tale will be continued.
While that was the big story of the week, we did have other
goings-on.
Mike had frequent meetings and classes at school this week, he
sent in a revised paper to be considered for publication, and he has also
started a new entrepreneurial venture: Advance Tutoring Camarillo. If you know
of anyone needing tutoring, pass the word along. He has over 25 years of
experience (can you believe that? He’s ooolllddd!) in math, English,
Spanish, college entrance exam, dissertation writing, and other academic
preparation. Contact him directly at the form on his website
or view his Thumbtack.com profile.
Hallie has also ventured into the job market, landing one job
at a local school district and another at a local retailer.
Mike attended the LA Temple on Thursday with a brother in
the ward who is a shift supervisor. He invited Mike to consider working at the temple
on a regular basis. We can’t make it work right now, but it’s something he
would like to do in the future.
Also on Thursday, Landon had a jog-a-thon fundraiser where
the kids ran laps and earned money from pledges to get funding for a part-time PE
teacher. Landon even contributed $25 of his own money to the effort.
On Friday, Eliza had her closing IEP meeting/parent
conference. The little chatterbox no longer needs speech and language services.
Oh, and here are some samples of this week's creativity.
Some kids build cities. Ours, marauding hordes. |
And rocket-powered crocodiles. |
Ha ha. Where around here are we going to find the first two sections? |
While Mike taught on Friday night, Hallie took the kids to
practice at church for their Primary program this Sunday.
On Saturday while Mike taught, Hallie and Liz took the kids
to see Meet the Mormons at a local
theater. They seemed to enjoy it.
On Sunday, the kids had their Primary program at sacrament
meeting at church. Landon showed off his emerging reading skills in his part of
the program. Hallie showed that she has the skills to wrangle some beautiful music
out of those squirrelly little ones. Grandma and Grandpa M. and Uncle Shad,
Aunt Carly and the kids showed up to lend their moral support. After church,
the kids chatted with Grandma and Grandpa D. via Skype. Thank goodness for how technology closes the miles!
1 comment:
Yay Eliza!
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