Then I Saw Her ...

It was a lovely evening. I sat at the side entrance to the temple kitchen watching the trees sway and dance in the breeze. Dinner wasn’t ready yet, so I sat on, enjoying the breeze.

Then I saw her. She was making her way through the plants and flowers in Head Nun’s garden. And she was beautiful. She had snow white fur and when she came closer, I saw that her eyes were a lovely shade of green. I also noticed she was wearing a silver bell on a red ribbon round her neck. I said a soft “Hello” and she paused, a little startled. She looked at me, smiled wistfully and before I could say another word, she turned and disappeared down the garden.

“Wait!” I cried and ran down the garden path after her but she was no where to be seen. Who could she be, I mused as I returned to the kitchen. I had to find out more about her.

The next evening, at about the same time, I waited at the kitchen door, hoping she would appear. And she did, moving gracefully around the flowers. “Hello again,” I ventured. Again she looked at me, startled and then ran off. I bounded after her but couldn’t find her anywhere. Wow, she really can move fast, I thought to myself.

I returned to the kitchen and bumped into Head Nun. “What’s up?” she asked me. I was bursting with curiosity, so I asked, “Head Nun, do you know of a white cat living around this area?”

“A white cat? Let me see … No, I don’t think so. Did you see one?”

“Yes, and she was beautiful!”

“A white cat? Oh, I remember now. I think you may have seen Xue or Snow as they called her.”

“Well, where does she live? I saw her just now and the evening before and I would like to make friends with her.”

"You do?” Head Nun looked at me strangely. “Vege Cat, if that was Xue you saw, she used to live in this temple a few years ago. She was a lovely cat, very sweet and friendly and we all loved her. Unfortunately, one day while wandering outside, she was hit by a car. That was a very sad day for us.”

“What? It couldn’t be! I just saw her!” I protested.

Head Nun shrugged. “Maybe you saw some other cat. By the way, Xue used to wear a silver bell on a red ribbon round her neck.” With that, Head Nun turned and went into her room.

A silver bell on a red ribbon! That cat was wearing a silver bell…Oh my God, did I see a ghost? But of course, isn’t it now the Festival of the Hungry Ghosts? A cold shudder ran through my whole body. I dived into my basket and remained there the whole evening, unable to move. I had seen a ghost or at least I thought I had seen one.

I couldn’t sleep the whole of that night. When morning came, I counted the days to the end of the Festival – 23 more days! I decided to steer clear of the garden in the evenings and went promptly to bed after dinner. 23 more days …..!