The one that is tuned into something greater than yourself? The one that sometimes gets drowned out by cell phones, car pools, errands to run and alarm clocks? I received a call from a local shelter. They had cat food (dry) and cat litter for me! I jump in my car, I’m tooling down the road thanking God for this call and I pass a box (Jim Beam whiskey box) just sitting at the side of the road. It was all sealed up in twine. It looked really out-of-place.

The voice said: “Stop!”

I said in my head- “Can’t, places to go, people to see!” The voice again stronger said “Mary Anne STOP the car! I sighed, slid over the side of the road and backed up closer to the box. I got out, picked it up (heard the meows) and tears just slid down my face. Cats do not get any breaks around here.

Once I got to the shelter, I borrowed a room and opened the box. Inside is this adorable ((probably 7 week old orange kitten) and a mackerel tabby. I picked up the older one she is about a year old. She was friendly. I turned her over and saw evidence that she was nursing. The kitten in the box was way to old to belong to her- but somewhere, she has kittens. More alarmingly, she had poop dangling from her rear. I borrowed a warm rag and gently tried to release the pressure for her- she is stuffed full of grass and pebbles! She is bone thin- and out on the porch right now. She feels “pregnant” but for now, she will stay on the porch while I try to get her unbound up with Laxatone, Lactulose and wet food.  The kitten is in the bedroom in a cage- he’s a cutie- a long hair. I am thankful I stopped and at the same time sorry that I did because I really don’t have any room right now. For the first time, the mackerel who got spayed this morning is forced to stay inside a large dog carrier until I can figure something else out. My hope is she might accept Yin and Yang and they can all be feline friendly in the deck enclosure.

The two kittens who froze this morning and came back are now with Aurora! She accepted them with open paws. When I left her, she was cleaning them as they were nursing. Give that queen a big crown! Mother’s milk is so much better than what I could give them. I will keep checking on them- but the warming cave is sitting at 70 degrees so they are warm, warm warm right now next to mom’s belly.

Mike just shook his head when I came home with more cats. He said if he could figure out how to disconnect my cat magnet, he would do so. I told him he would also have to shut off that small voice in my head- the one voice, I know, belongs to God.