Mom told Dad that I need a playmate. I thought Fred was my playmate. I chase him through the house. I jump on him when he is trying to sleep. I bite his ears and his neck. What more could I need? Then she said I was mean to Fred. How could I be mean to my best friend? When I turn to ask Fred that very question, he wouldn’t look me in the eye. I was absolutely shocked when he added, “You do get a little rough. I am so much bigger; I don’t think it is fair if I fight back.” I realize in that moment that Fred is a better friend to me than I have been to him.

I know that the woman who lives next door has lots of cats. They often come over to sleep on our car and even the things that Mom puts out when we have a yard sale. I wonder if Mom plans to invite one of those cats to come live in our house. Since most of them are all grown up, I honestly don’t think they would like to start wearing a harness and live inside most of the time. I’ve never really tried to play with any of them. I guess I’ll have to wait and see. A few weeks later Mom and Dad are talking about a new batch of kittens from next door. One of them is a black-and-white tuxedo male kitten, and the other is a classic orange, black, and white calico female. Personally, I think I’d rather have a brother than a sister. Mom and Dad spend a lot of time discussing which of the two kittens would settle best in our house. Mom tells Dad that before she was born, her older brother insisted that if the baby was not a boy, he would trade her for the bull calf the farmer had next-door! The farmer thought it was really funny. Her parents didn’t see it that way. I’m not sure how they convinced her brother that keeping her was a good idea. Maybe they didn’t give him a choice. They don’t give me one either. They name her Harlequin because of the way her face is divided like a Harlequin clown. Her middle name is Sophia. Because they have a granddaughter named Harlequin, they decide it would be best if they refer to her as Sophia. I have a sister. Fred tells me I have to be gentle with her because she is still a baby. Some playmate she is.