The Cat in the Rain

                It was raining heavily. I could barely see outside my window. I could make out a dim figure of a lady sitting outside. She was alone and was sipping from a tea cup. The lonely figure intrigued me and despite the strong winds, I opened the window.

                There was something about her face that didn’t allow me to take my eyes off her. There were hard lines on her face. Lines of experience, maybe? Or even hardships? I couldn’t tell. All I knew was she was lonely and was staring at something outside my area of vision.

                 I stretched outside to find out what she was looking at. This was strange. There was a cat out there, getting drenched in the rain. “Why couldn’t the lady get him in? Was she so immersed in her thoughts, that she didn’t realize the cat’s distress? Or was it apathy towards the cat?” I wondered.

                Soon, a man came by. I hoped that the man at least will save the cat. But he just collected the cup from the lady and went back. I was annoyed by both their indifference and decided to shut the window. Just when I was closing it, the lady looked up at me and gave me a piercing look. I stopped in my action.

                The look asked me, “Why can’t you come down to rescue the cat?”

Often in the rain of life, we see young children crying out in the hope of rescue. We wonder why nobody is providing them a shelter. We feel sorry for them and wish that they could lead a better life. We are disgusted by the apathy of the society towards them. Next time before feeling so many emotions, just give a moment of thought as to why you are not stretching your hand out in support to the child.

- Benita Chacko