I must start this confessional by saying that I have a feeling it’s going to be a long winter.

My name is Paisley. I’m self-sufficient, confident, and mostly keep to myself. My favorite activities include washing behind my ears, chasing my stuffed mouse, and taking long catnaps. The subject of my confessional: My (not so) top-secret rendezvous with Squirrel.

I first met Squirrel over a year ago on a bright summer afternoon; he was sunning on the outside ledge of my back window. It was infatuation at first sight. But as soon as he caught me staring, he leapt up and onto the fire escape, just out of my window view.

I laid low for a while at the window, watching the birds fly by. Then, there was that face again! I slowly peered back out; but he hopped on the fire escape again. We continued our game of peek-a-boo for another 10 minutes, until I’d had enough of his snubs and pawed furiously at the glass trying to get to him. I thought I saw him wink as he leapt off the ledge and disappeared for the rest of the day, and all that was left to see through the window were my tiny paw prints.

The following day, and the next, and the day after that, I came back at the same time and place. So did he. We continued this way for months.

We remained undercover until one morning when my people were sleeping in unusually late. It was one of those days (you know the kind, when you wake up on the wrong side of the litter box and want to tear up the side of the couch and climb the curtains), and as soon as Squirrel appeared I went wild. My people heard my claws pinging the window and jumped out of bed, figuring something was wrong (I rarely make a peep). They roared with laughter when they saw us playing our little game of hide and seek. Now they understood the mysterious prints on the window. I was mortified! Yet even though I knew I was caught, I couldn’t stop myself from coming back for our daily session, until the day the leaves fell from the trees and he was gone…this time I thought for good.

I didn’t see him once while the snow lay silent on the sidewalks. I determined he had moved on and found a new cat to play window games. But as soon as my people put tulips in the planter outside the window, he reappeared! And he kept returning, as long as the trees were green.

I haven’t seen Squirrel for a while now, ever since my people started wearing their coats again. I’ll admit that I’m a bit bummed. It’s okay, though -- I’ll keep myself entertained with my stuffed mouse, because I have a feeling I’ll get to play peek-a-boo with my friend again as soon as the coats get stored back in their closets.

-- Colleen Canney

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