PHOTOGRAPHY
Belly Rubs
What cat doesn’t love them?
Scooter is the middle of my three cats. The other two are his cousins and are domestic shorthairs. They all come from the horse barn where my wife boarded her horses.
His original name was to be Morrissey, but I vetoed that. My wife enjoyed his music, especially with The Smiths, but I thought he was an obnoxious prat. So we settled on Scooter — I think that was the name she wanted and used the other to make sure she got her way.
Complexity must be Scooter’s middle name. He’s very affectionate and demanding in his affection. He will wake me up in the middle of the night, so that’s can bink with me (bump noses) and get pets. He rolls on the floor, with his belly unprotected, wanting a belly rub. He jumps on your chest when you’re watching a movie and demands your whole-hearted undivided attention. He rubs his chin on your chin and gives little nibbles on your chin to show his love.
Yet, in a blink of an eye, his eyes become slits, and he turns into a killing machine. Or at least a biting machine. He could be rubbing and nibbling on your chin when he suddenly bites down hard. Or you could be rubbing his belly, with him loving it, when all four paws dig their claws into you, and he bites down hard. The worst one was when he bit my nose out of nowhere and left a bloody scratch of around two inches.
The worst part of it is I wouldn’t change him a bit. His love and affection have allowed me to continue through a tough time when my wife passed away. All of the cats that live with me are just as affectionate, maybe even more so, but Scooter is the only one that proves that love hurts.
Love hurts, love scars Love wounds and marks Any heart Not tough or strong enough To take a lot of pain, take a lot of pain Love is like a cloud Holds a lot of rain Love hurts Ooh, ooh love hurts
Paul Mansfield is a writer, a photographer, a guitar player, a philosopher — some he does well, some not so well, but he still tries them all.
You can follow him on Twitter @pmansfield.
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