Photo-a-Day - April 2013 - Day 21: Fire

Photo-a-Day - April 2013 - Day 21: Fire

Christmas 1986 on Damuth Street in Oakland with my buddy, Si and my long hair.

 

 

 

 

Si came to me as a stray when I lived on Manila Street in 1980.  Originally, he was so skittish, even when I'd go to the door to feed him on the front porch, he'd run.  Slowly, he'd just move down the stairs and wait until I'd go back inside.

When I moved to Damuth Street later that year, I wasn't certain he'd stay with me.  I was amazed that my ex-, was able to entice him into the carrier and bring him to our new place.  The house had a cellar, where we opened the crate, as we already had two indoor cats.  For a couple days, I thought he'd gone away.  Instead, I found he'd discovered an opening to outside and, sure enough, he was there.  But he'd appear every morning and night as I fed him at the top of the stairs. 

Slowly, oh so slowly, I gained his trust, first being able to touch him, then pet him, then having him stand in my lap.  It took years where we'd spend time together on the cellar stairs with my other two on the other side of the doors.

The winter of 1983 was very cold and very, very wet.  As I went to feed Si one night, he looked sadly into the main house as I opened the door and I just couldn't stand it any more.  Trusting to hope, I welcomed in into the house.  Wonderfully, so did Pamela and Sidney, my two black cats.

I'll never forget that first night when all three slept on the bed with me.  Sweet Si gave a moan of pure pleasure, stretched, and rolled off the bed.  Oops!  I brought him back up and there were the four of us.  At first, he would still go outside during the day and come in at night.  As he grew older, he spent more time inside, only going out at sunset.  Even then, he'd be out long enough to sit on the porch rail and watch the sunset, then come back in.  Once I showed him, he could see the sunset from the back of my big rocker, he stayed indoors all the time.  Who know cats could be romantics?

In the winters, I'd light a fire in this wonderful 1921 Craftsman fireplace--I so loved this fireplace--when I'd get home from work on Friday night and keep it burning until Sunday night.  The three cats would do their classic rotation with one having first position until they'd get too warm, moving away and the next would take their place.   

I was blessed to have Si with me until 1997.  As best we could estimate, he was 20 years old when he passed.  Pamela had died a few years before in 1990 when she was 19.  Sidney passed away also in 1997 at 19 years old.  I often think he was so sad at losing his two best friends, Pam and Si, he decided to re-join them. 

Although I had other cats while living on Damuth, that house and my pure enjoyment of that fireplace will always also bring memories of Pamela, Sidney and the sweet Si.