To be or what can it be? That is the question.

I discovered a small brown edible tidbit on my pantry shelf today. It was obvious one of the kids must have dropped it while scavenging for something to satisfy their hunger. I studied the item, turning and pivoting it between my forefinger and my thumb observing the bite size item's object's color, shading and texture carefully. Finaly, unable to locate in my mind the exact source of the item, I tossed it into the trash can. It's pretty bad when you can't distinguish the difference between a piece of child's cereal and cat food.

I mean, really! Why do they have to look so much alike? Do you suppose that they are one and the same but in different packaging? Perhaps Purina and General Foods are one and the same! Now, bfore I get 101 horrified readers protesting either the above mentioned companies or the ridiculousness of my words, please be assured. I do not actually believe that Chocolate Lucky Charms are actually cat vittles with marshmallows.....but let's just suppose.

And, while we are sharing food with our favorite furry felines, let's not forget our canine companions. I have came up with a novel idea I think can really make a little money. My dog and cat want to eat each other's food anyway; why don't Purina actually make a Multi-Pet Food? I think it would sell. Chicken vittles with a twist of peanut butter....Hey, my cat and dog would probably kill over it. And my husband thought I was sitting around all day doing nothing! Hey, my brain was working overtime conjuring up that brillant concept! You wait and see! A year from now you will see this advertised on television using a cat and dog contently eating from the same bowl and you can say to yourself that you read it here first!

In The Shadows

She hated these Sundays-when her husband worked and she had to take her daughter to church alone. In fact, if her daughter had not enjoyed Sunday School so much, she would have skipped church entirely. The music was starting to drift up the hallway signalling first service was about to begin. Good! She would slip in quietly and find a seat in the back. Settling in to the cushioned pew, she allowed her eyes to scan the sanctuary. Her eyes settled on the woman in front of her. The woman placed a newborn on her shoulder and proceeded to pat the babe. She guessed the baby couldn't have been more than a month old. Sighing, she began wishing she had picked another spot and yet her eyes remained transfixed on the baby. She watched as the baby slept on. After awhile the baby stirred and the mother lifted the child gently down to her lap and became engrossed in a quiet dialogue with the wee one. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat as the voices filled her head. "When are you having another?" ".....needs a baby brother/sister." "Do you only have one child?" A tear escaped and started cascading down her cheek. She quickly brushed it away hoping nobody had noticed. She and her husband had trouble conceiving their daughter, but after 14 months she had made the happy discovery they would be parents. However, when their daughter was a few years old, they tried again. Fourteen months passed and no baby. Eighteen months. She began dreading that time of the month. Now she was looking at the two year mark with no sucess. No baby to hold. Their third bedroom sat void and eerily quiet. Staring at the baby in front of her became unbearable so she gathered her belongings and made a quiet escape out the closest door. Glancing around the foyer, she gave a quick half-hearted smile at some lurking parishioners, some with busy toddles who would not sit still fo the service, and hurried to her favorite escape- the church library. There was no one else present for which she was grateful. She grabbed a book from the shelf and pretended to read till she heard the organist begin playing once again signaling the end of the service. She shoved the book where she found it and hurried to fetch her daughter and disappear like she had never been there.