Bath Time With Harry

As I run the bath and wait until the water warms, Harry, my orange and very mischievous kitten, boldly climbs into the tub backing up as the water gets closer, until finally he has to jump out. The bath is drawn and I climb in to have my only moment of relaxation for the day. As I am settling into the warmth of the bath Harry quietly slides himself, a dark shadow, between the two pieces of bath the curtain. Slowly I start to let myself relax: the soft sound of the dripping water is beginning to calm my nerves, the warm water slowly moving over me starting to calm my spirit, a slight poke at my toe… I open my eyes to see a suspicious orange paw darting out from behind the curtain and playfully swatting my big toe before disappearing again. I try to ignore this slight distraction, closing my eyes and sinking deeper into the soapy water. The poking persists for another minute or two and then stops.

My mind starts to slip away once again to that far away place where nothing matters except the calmness of the bath. “Plunk”. I look up to see Harry sitting on the edge of the bath, his head and ears looking downward towards a bar of soap that is slowly making its way back to the surface. When it reappears he lowers himself to the water and nudges the soap along the edge of the bath until the soap has floated off to area where it is no longer safe for him to keep poking. He looks up at me. “Meow?” he says inquisitively and then turns his attention back along the ledge he is sitting on. His gaze quickly shifts to a jar of soap scrub. He walks carefully along the ledge, stopping once he reaches his target. He stares for a few seconds, considering, and then gives it a little jab with his paw. The scrub slides along the porcelain ledge and comes to a stop right before it curves downward into the bath water. Harry is still intently focused on the jar. He moves towards it again and makes a few fake attempts to poke at it, making the motion, but not actually connecting with it. Finally he connects and the jar falls over the ledge into the bath. He jerks forward peering over the edge to see what has happened. Again he lowers himself to the water and tries to poke at the jar, but this one sinks. As it hits bottom of the tub Harry gives it a few more moments of consideration before refocusing his attention on a bottle of shampoo.

I am now swimming with random objects, (or having to adjust because one of them has sunk and is now jabbing into my leg) but I try not to let this divert me from get some much needed relaxation. I drift back into my state trying to take in the aromatic smell of the bath salts and feel the warmth of the candles set out by the bath (on the far side where Harry can’t reach them). I start to drift away, dreaming of a place where nothing but calm exists. A meadow. A soft breeze gently swaying the long grass intermingled with lightly colored flowers. The sun is brilliantly shining overhead when I am confronted with a random spray in the face. I open one eye trying to remain relaxed and there he is looking perplexedly at the water occasionally poking it with a paw and then not liking the sensation of wet shaking it off violently…Bath time is over.