His Majesty The Cat

This picture is of Homer. He was a stray that my husband and I met soon after moving into this neighborhood. He used to come visit me when I worked in my garden or jump up onto my front porch swing when I was relaxing there. Then one day he brought some friends with him - four feral kittens and their Mama. I couldn't get too close to any of them without spooking them but one of the little ones was a little more curious about me than the others.

Over the next few weeks, we tried to look after this family of strays, along with some of the neighbors help. We would feed them and offered them some shelter in the garage. Only the little orange kitten would let me pet him, although another little one did once bring me a dead squirrel to thank me for feeding him.

Eventually we realized that we didn't have the resources to care for these cats and it was getting colder. Homer found a home with a neighbor down the street but we could not find one for the feral kitties. After much debating, we decided to take them to a reputable animal shelter. At the same time I made that decision, I also decided to take in the little orange cat. Our neighbor had already given him the name Bart (we think he is Homer's little brother) and it seemed to fit, so he kept it.

Now Bart is a member of our family and stays inside with his new brothers and sisters. Homer is happy living down the street and I still see him occasionally when I take a walk around the block.