Oh and Dad, I still believe in euthanasia.

A Poem by John_Cox

Story from childhood with a symbolic message. Deals with abuse.

One day, I think I was about ten, I was playing in the yard. Digging with a spoon and filling up a dump truck. A cat with a leash walking up the sidewalk stopped and sat watching me in front of our house. It was a mandatory outside day. Where either my mother was tired of the kids or my fathers day off coincided with my time out of school. When I noticed him, the cat standing there looking at me, Pretty tall for a house cat but way to thin. He could barely stand, so he sat. Even his shadow shook under the weight of the sun. His hair was mostly missing. What was left stood out in sprigs from his black skin, like new weeds in a burned over field. Just living remains of a cat,
with a worn out leash still connected. I thought cats hated the leash. I walked toward him. He just sat still and watched as I picked up the chain dangling from his neck.
I turned and went into the house, he followed me, never complaining, to the kitchen.
My father saw this and began:
"Get than disgusting animal out of my house, If he makes a mess I'm gonna kick your a*s. Now stay outside and play like I told you to!"
Then he laughed and sat back on the couch changing channels. Guess some things are funnier when they are true. We walked past the couch, the a*s kicker just sat. As we went through the front door. He didn't look at my father and neither did I. I heard the lock click so I kept walking right around to the back yard and door, my silent ghost in tow. I was determined to help my best friend out. Outside the back door I dropped the leash and told fluffy to stay and be very quiet. He did as instructed. I snuck in and brought out a bowl. I slid it in front of fluffy and filled it with water from the hose. He just stared at me, deep black eyes like pools of crude. Well next I guess is milk, I dumped the water and made it back in and opened the fridge. My fathers voice startled me from my work as he yelled:
"Get outta the damn fridge, you just ate. If I have to get up you're not gonna like it!"
I turned bowl half filled and sprinted out of the house milk sloshing out but mostly on my shirt so I had a little luck. I slid the bowl in front of his face again still he wanted nothing to do with it. Well I decided he must just be hungry, cats eat tuna I'll get him a can. I got to the door and touched the knob as it was flung inward and open
my father just standing in the doorway looking down at me:
"I told you to stay out and play, what the hell are you doing?"
I stammered as I began "F-F-fluffy is hungry..."
"Who the hell is Fluffy?"
"My cat dad, I found him outside, he's my best friend."
Fluffy said nothing as I tried squeezing past as he looked down as if on ants.
Bang, a flash of white then red. I was sitting now my ear burning as he closed the door and I heard:
"Get rid of that damn animal, it looks sick"
And the door clicked shut and locked. I sat for a while looking at fluffy letting my head clear, my ear felt like throbbing fire. After some thought I stood up and led fluffy to the side near the tool shed.
I said "Goodbye Fluffy I love you." and started crying.
I hit him in the head with a brick, he didn't make a sound, just fell to the ground and bled. So I dug a new hole with that old rusty spoon and buried my friend, chain, brick and all next to my fathers tool shed. At dinner he asked me:
"He boy, what happened to that old cat?"
I said he ran away, excused myself from the table and went to bed and cried.