Gary and Morris and the Twelve Days of Christmas

A blanket of white snow gently covered the property at the Hervey Foundation for Cats. It was two weeks until Christmas and you could feel it. The air was crisp, the neighbourhood quiet, and the sky was as bright a blue as you could possibly imagine. As smoke gently wove itself out and around the chimneys of the houses along the road, two cats sat inside The Foundation with their wet little noses pressed against a cold window. The two cats, Gary and Morris, were pondering over the idea of going outside. 

“Looks cold,” said Gary.

“But it’s so beautiful – it’s almost… serene!” said Morris.

“Looks cold,” said Gary.

“We could go make a fort or set up some nests inside the shed!” said Morris.

“Looks cold,” said Gary.

They weren’t getting anywhere.

Just then, Marjorie, their human, and the director of The Foundation, was walking up to the building after a trip to the grocery store. Morris saw an opportunity and took it upon himself to go see just how cold it really was.

The door swung open and Marjorie, with bags in both her arms, entered the building with a big, “Hello!”

Morris wanted to bolt outside but his paws couldn’t get enough grip on the linoleum floor. Like a Flintstones character, he was stuck running in the same place for about two or three seconds until his little bean-shaped toes connected and he was gone out the front door.

Marjorie looked down, then outside, only to find a very freaked-out Morris standing paw-deep in the snow. His face looked like he was overcome with shock.

“Morris you silly boy! Come back inside before you freeze,” she said.

Morris made a sound similar to a frightened eagle then ran back inside as quickly as possible.

Gary, still sitting at the windowsill, had seen it all go down and was laughing quite hard.

“I told you it looked cold,” he said.

“You might just keep it to yourself!” said Morris, who was trying to lick all the snow off his fur.

“I have some good news for you boys,” said Marjorie. “We are going to be doing something very special this year to celebrate Christmas.”

Gary’s ears perked up and Morris stopped licking his back long enough to listen to what she was going to say.

“I know you two would likely rather play outside, but it is too cold for right now. That’s why we have decided to bring all Christmas fun inside this year! We are doing our very own 12 days of Christmas right here at The Foundation!”

The cats looked at each other and while somewhat excited, they weren’t totally sure what the 12 days of Christmas were. To them, it sounded like 12 days of what the humans do on Christmas morning.

“As you may know,” said Marjorie. “The 12 days of Christmas are a fun way to ring in the holidays while really feeling the festive spirit. Since we love you boys and all the other cats here so very much, we are going to have our very own feline-themed 12 days!”

Gary and Morris were now very excited. 12 days of cat-inspired fun? That’s right up their alley, after all, they are cats.

 “That sounds exciting,” said Morris. “As a cat who has had his fair share of the limelight, I love attention. 12 days of celebrating me sounds great!”

“They aren’t celebrating you, ya weirdo,” said Gary. “It’s for Christmas, for all the cats here. I think. So, it’s for the cats, and Santa Claus is part of it too. You know, the guy we met last year with Terrance?”

“Right,” said Morris.

“Yeah. Santa is a big part of it as well,” said Gary.

The two cats then saw a piece of ribbon flash a reflection onto the wall and completely forgot about what they had just discussed. After chasing the reflection for a minute or two, they decided to grab lunch.

The next morning, Gary and Morris awoke next to their favourite window with Christmas music playing throughout the shelter – specifically the Carol of the Bells.

“What is with the music?” said Morris.

“Looks like this could be the first day of Christmas,” said Gary.

“And it’s snowing outside!” said Morris.

“Looks cold,” said Gary.

The cats got up and followed the music into the main area of The Foundation where they saw something amazing! It was a massive, Christmas-themed cat tree! The thing must have been 15 feet high with sloped sides, plenty of landings and places for cats to jump in and through, and it was all carpeted too!

“A local carpenter dropped this off as a gift for all you wonderful cats!” said Marjorie as she addressed all the kitties in the room. “This is our new Christmas cat tree!”

Marjorie and a few volunteers had just finished setting it up and some of the cats were now climbing on it. Gary and Morris looked at each other and then flew over to the tree. It had numerous layers, some inside, and some out. A cat could walk up the sides and squeeze in at the top of each slope. They could enter the trunk from the bottom or drop down it from the top. Under the sloped sides, attached to the trunk, were a series of platforms where each cat could sit and relax. It was perfect. 

“This tree is so much fun!” said Gary.

“I haven’t laughed and had fun like this since I was a kitten and my owners made us a cat house out of old boxes!” Morris replied.

“What an awesome gift!” said Gary.

The cats barely had time to talk before they ran off again. They chased after the other cats, climbing the many platforms and racing up and down the carpeted sides as if they were flat.

Marjorie and the staff kept the holiday music going and started to set up decorations around The Foundation. The rest of the day went by in a blur as everyone was enjoying themselves and feeling the holiday spirit. Time flies when you’re having fun!

The next morning Gary and Morris awoke to the sound of jingling bells. Tons of them. They couldn’t figure out what was making the sound, but they sure wanted to find out. As quickly as they could, the two cats ran downstairs to see what all the commotion was.

“Oh, my goodness,” said Gary. “Everyone has bells on.”

“What on earth?” said Morris.

Just then a shelter volunteer walked over to the cats with two bells in each hand.

“Hey boys!” they said. “Marjorie came up with the idea of two little bells for the second day of Christmas! Here you go!”

They bent down and attached two little bells on a small collar to Gary and Morris.

“We sound like Santa’s reindeer!” said Morris. “Remember when we met them last year?”

“I do! And we do sound like them! Let’s go join that big game of tag going on in the living room and join in the chorus of jingly bells!”

The cats bolted into the main space and played tag with the other cats for a while. The sound of bells filled the house with Christmas cheer as they darted around the furniture and the massive new Christmas cat tree from the day before.

After a couple of hours, the jingling bells became a bit much and the volunteers went around removing the bell collars from the kitties.

As the sun began to set, the house grew quiet. Most of the cats had fallen asleep already, including Gary and Morris, and Marjorie was just about to go to bed. She shut the lights off around The Foundation quietly reciting the words, “On the second day of Christmas, Mar-jorie gave to me: Two little bells, and one giant Christmas cat tree…”

The next morning Gary and Morris awoke once more to Christmas music. This time it was Paul McCartney singing something about having a wonderful Christmas time. They got up, stretched, then headed down to grab some breakfast.

“How’d you sleep?” said Gary.

“Not bad,” said Morris, who accidentally pushed his face too far into the water dish and was now soaking wet.

“Nice,” said Gary. “I wonder what’s in store for today.”

“This way, guys! Come check this out!” said Bill, one of the older cats at The Foundation.

“What’s going on, Bill?” said Morris.

“New heated beds!” he replied.

“Oh wow!” said both Gary and Morris at the same time.

They followed Bill down the hall to one of the bedrooms where they found a whole bunch of brand-new heated beds!

Marjorie was still setting some of them up with the help of another volunteer.

“Looks like there are 20 in total!” said the volunteer.

“Not bad!” said Marjorie. “What a fabulous donation to make!”

Bill looked at Gary and Morris and explained that it sounded like the beds had been donated.

“Yes,” said Gary. “We all just heard her say that! It’s great news!”

Bill then reminded Gary and Morris there were new heated beds and said they should follow him. They thanked him for his help then made their way over to the new beds.

“It’s like a sauna on here,” said Gary, who was sharing a heated bed with two other cats named Stephen and Blossom.

“Good company too!” said Blossom, whose stomach was gently pressing against the side of Gary’s head.

“Yes. Morris. How is yours?” asked Gary.

Morris was already asleep.

“I’d say that’s a good sign,” said Stephen.

Gary gently tried to move Blossom’s stomach away from his face.

After that, the cats spent a few more hours on the new beds then followed Marjorie around for the rest of the day. They loved their human and since it was so cold outside, she was the most interesting thing going on until bedtime!

The next morning the cats woke up to Frank Sinatra’s Winter Wonderland alongside the smell of bacon and eggs cooking. After some long stretches, a bit of chatter, and a yawn or two that lasted much longer than anyone expected, Gary and Morris headed over to the kitchen to investigate.

Once there, they saw Marjorie and volunteers cooking and eating breakfast while taking turns singing lines from the song, doing their best Frank Sinatra impressions.

“…walking in a winter wonderland…” crooned one of the volunteers. The rest of the group applauded and laughed.

“Very nice,” said Marjorie. “Who wants more eggs?”

Gary and Morris looked around to see if there was another Christmas-themed day ahead of them. So far there weren’t any signs. Just humans eating and singing.

Marjorie noticed the cats from the corner of her eye and turned around to face them.

“Good morning Gary and Morris! How was your sleep?”

The cats walked over and snaked through her shins.

“Today is the fourth day of Christmas, and I wanted you two to know that we have some very special new soft cat perches. They are all around the house! Go have a look!”

The cats got excited and ran into the living room. There they were! Each window had a new soft cat perch. They were carpeted and each one had a very soft, velvety blanket on it.

“There are more! All over!” shouted Bill, from the perch one window over.

“Let’s go see!” said Morris.

“How many more could there be?”

The cats ran room from room around the house looking to see if each window had a new soft cat perch, and lo and behold, they did!

After getting to the last room on their checklist, Gary and Morris both grabbed a seat on one of the perches near the back of the house, looking out into the wilds behind the property.

“I hope our woodland buddies are okay in the cold!” said Morris.

“Their species have survived winters for thousands of years,” said Gary. “They are fine!”

Just then, Stephen and Blossom both squeezed onto the perch beside Gary and Morris.

“New perches hey guys?” said Stephen.

Blossom’s gut just happened to be pressing against Gary’s head.

“Do they just appear wherever you go or what is going on here?” asked Gary.

Morris shrugged.

Over the next few days, the cats learned that every morning brought a new and wonderful Christmas surprise.

On the fifth day, a new sponsor signed on with The Foundation. This one was offering as many cat toys as they wanted, and on that day, each cat received what can only be described as five goofy things.

Some had feathers, others had googly eyes. Some had springs, and others made lots of noise. It was a blast and each cat felt spoiled beyond their wildest dreams.

On the sixth day of Christmas, Marjorie invited every volunteer who had worked with the cats over the years to come over for a day of food, fun, and play! They spent the entire day with all the cats, making each one feel as loved and cared for as the next.

On the seventh day, the shelter had a catnip party! Marjorie put lots of catnip and catnip toys out for the cats and it went from a quiet, peaceful morning (with classic Byng Crosby Christmas music) to one filled with a bunch of crazy cats catnipping. It was a memorable day to say the least. Gary climbed onto a light shade and meowed until Marjorie got him down, while Morris rolled around on a couch cushion until he fell off and into one of the heated beds. He was then joined by Stephen and Blossom, where, of course, Blossom’s gut ended up pressing against his head.

The eighth day brought each cat eight gourmet milk treats. Being the funny creatures they are, adult cats cannot process milk properly, but they still love its taste and crave it. Knowing this, Marjorie and the volunteers whipped up eight cat-safe gourmet milk treats for each feline in The Foundation and passed them out throughout the day.

The ninth day of Christmas was highlighted by a visit from some local children who love cats and wanted to learn more about them. They dressed up like cats and after an afternoon filled with play, they presented a special Christmas song to the kitties of the shelter. Gary and Morris referred to them as ‘Felines Humans Singing’.

The tenth day brought litter that’s self-cleaning! Another amazing donor provided the shelter with some very modern self-cleaning litter boxes, giving Marjorie and her volunteers more time to spend with the cats, and a very swank, special new place for the cats to do their business!

The eleventh day was a special one. It was filled with delicious wet food feasts. Each cat had their choice of wet food options and was encouraged to have as much as they wanted as often as they wanted. While not a healthy option all year long, it was Christmas Eve after all, and this feast was well deserved. Exclusive wet food dining.

The twelfth day had finally arrived, and Gary and Morris once more awoke to the sounds of Christmas music – Barbara Streisand singing Jingle Bells. This time, they could smell bacon and eggs cooking once again, wet cat food, and a bunch of other wonderful Christmas treats. They could also hear bells jingle, cat feet on the giant cat tree, and the snores of snoozing kitties.

“It’s Christmas!” said Gary and Morris in unison.

The two cats ran downstairs to find Marjorie with her close friends and members of her family downstairs. They were hugging each other, cooking food, talking loudly, and having a great time. Most of all, almost every one of them was holding a cat and giving them lots of pets.

Once they saw Gary and Morris, they called them over and gave them both big hugs. Everyone wanted a turn to pet them.

“This is great!” said Gary. “What a Christmas!”

All the cats of the shelter took turns sitting in the laps of Marjorie’s friends and loved ones throughout the day. When gifts were opened, they ran through the paper and rolled around in the ribbons. Everyone at The Foundation felt especially loved and cared for that day – human and cat.

Even Blossom and Stephen managed to squish in on either side of the head of one of Marjorie’s friends. Blossom’s gut pressed against it.

“I think they like me!” said the friend.

Just then, Marjorie stood up and said a few words. She thanked everyone for coming and for bringing with them good gifts, great food, and even better company. She also filled them in on her 12 days of Christmas plan at the shelter and let them know that they were all collectively the twelfth day for all of the cats at The Foundation. She told them how much it meant to the cats to have that time with them, and how happy it made her to see them so content.

Marjorie then surprised everyone with a little poem. The 12 days of Christmas, as witnessed at the Hervey Foundation for Cats. She got through 1-11, then finished it off with the following…

“On the Twelfth day of Christmas, Mar-jorie gave to me…”

-Loving friends and family (12)

-Exclusive wet food dining (11)

-Litter that’s self-cleaning (10)

-Feline humans singing (9)

-Eight gourmet milk treats (8)

-Crazy cats catnipping (7)

-Volunteers a-playing (6)

-Five goofy things (5)
-Special new cat perches (4)

-New heated beds (3)

-Two little bells (2)

-and one giant Christmas cat tree! (1)