New beginnings

Dear Brent and Alex:

For the last couple weeks, after you both are in bed, we've been going outside and tending to a litter of kittens and their mother that have been coming around. I make them a huge pan of food and we sit painstakingly still in front of it and wait as they slowly found the nerve to get closer to us.

We made a lot of progress in the last few days - not knowing why we were even doing it, just going with the flow. There are four little kittens with four distinct personalities. The one that has always been the bravest, we named Merlin. He (or she) is black and white, just like his mom, and has gotten to where we can carry on as usual, swinging and talking and laughing, and he never flinches. The others eventually follow suit, but they are still a bit skittish.

Last night I thought I'd see just how far he would let me get. I perched myself on the ground in front of the pan and waited. After calling them, Merlin poked his head out from behind the shed and pranced down to get a better look. He took a couple minutes to think about things, but still came to eat soon enough. I slowly leaned foward, wiggling a finger into the food and talking to him. He stayed. I balanced a glob of turkey-flavored goop food on my finger and placed it near his nose. He ignored me, and kept eating. So I figured I'd go for it, and tried petting him slowly. My hand touched between his ears and I expected him to bolt away. He never moved. So I sat there petting him, not softly even. He let me rub his shoulders and pat his backside. By this time Einstein had joined him, and she even let me gently pet her for a moment before stepping back to politely ask me to stop. She's one of the two calico colored ones, with tan spotty rings around her eyes that look like perfect spectacles. The other calico we named Glitch - she's the runt and the most skittish for now.

The fourth one we call Bo. He's moody and some days will show very little fear, while others he stays a bit flighty. Last night he did eat, but kept a glare toward me in a definite 'not ready to be touched' stance.

I got a little braver, and picked up Merlin to put him closer to me, but still where he could eat. He didn't mind at all. Eventually I tried putting him on my lap, and he stayed for a second before bounding off to join the others for their nightly outing on the shed roof. They climb a ladder to get up there and play around each evening while we panic watching them.

So, tonight we're going to see if Merlin wants to join our little family inside. We think he'll say yes, and if so, I wanted you to know his backstory. He seems perfectly brave and sweet and I think he can handle the two of you just fine.

Love,
Mom