A story about kittens

“What is that?”

This was the question I got back each time I texted the photo above- I was having such a weird start to my day I felt like I needed to share it as it was happening. Here’s how this went:

I start every day out the same: Mr. Franky stinker gets his long walk (bonus photo of the stink pants himself below). We were on our way to the dog park and as we were crossing Jessamine on Rose avenue we heard a high pitched cacophony of animal squeaking. It appeared to be coming from a small pink object on the sidewalk. I got concerned I was going to come upon a strange nest of mice behaving oddly.

Frank got more and more beside himself with excitement until we were upon it: what you see above. That is, a purse shaped like a miniature basketball filled with five infant baby kittens. They must have been within the first 48 hours of life as their eyes were still tight shut.

Someone had these kittens without the resources to care for them, could not come up with something better and so they tucked them into an eccentric fashion statement of a purse and left them on the sidewalk.

I called the local shelter and made arrangements to drive them over that morning. When I arrived I was greeted by one of my favorite types of people: the animal shelter worker whose face melts into loving softness at the sight of any furry being. I asked “Will they be cared for here?” She said back to me with deep, heart softening warmth “Yes, oh yes, we will take care of them.”

Bonus photo of lil Frankie

This story makes me think of all the pain and hurt in the world.

So much harm is done unintentionally and so much harm is done intentionally, I have been looking at the pain of the world from a very young age, and as I grow older it can at times seem as though harm is the thing humans seem to want most.

November 5th, 2024 was a day that broke my heart with the harsh reality of how many seem to want harm. A politics of harm was chosen that day and the rhetoric of the chosen party is “I will help you by harming someone else.”

I am not comparing abandoned kittens to the targeted actions against the many groups of humans that will certainly be harmed here as promised by the incoming figureheads. I am only saying that I am beholding this pain, feeling this heartbreak and wondering what on earth I can do to help the communities I care about so deeply.

I know that I will keep doing my work: keep supporting adults in their post traumatic growth by finding the parts of themselves they have abandoned (Internal Family Systems). I will continue to speak openly on my desire to see ALL people cared for and included. I will continue to stand for women’s rights to choose, the right of all people to seek care, including gender affirming care, that Black Lives Matter, Indigenous Lives Matter and Brown Lives Matter. I will continue to speak openly about the harm done by the colonial history of the united states.

If you are interested in working with your own abandoned parts I am here to support you. Book a connection session below to see if we are a fit.