It was another fun-filled day at the Bridge, having been to the fruit bar
for breakfast, a few quick laps at the 'Tone stream and then on to the
gravy pond for a fill up; Muldoone went staggering back to his hut where
his hammy was calling for him, he had a very full tummy and the best
thing for a full tummy was a good nap.  Well a ferret didn't need a full
tummy as an excuse for a nap but the two went together very well; nothing
quite like a full tummy and a long nap to break up the day.
 
Feeling a yank on his hammy and hoping he was dreaming but with a second
yank, Mully knew someone had interrupted his nap.
 
"Muldoone get up, we have an upcoming greeting to discuss" Mully opened
his eyes to see Nanna standing over him.
 
"Nanna I dooes da gweetings for da day and now I wants to sleep, comes
back later" he told his boss.
 
"Muldoone you get your tiny hinny out of there right now, we have to
discuss this upcoming greeting" Nanna told him sternly.
 
"Ok Nanna, gives me a minute" and Mully goes into a prolonged yawn and
stretch.  He then stretched and yawned more, and then more, and more,
and more, and yet more.
 
Just as he was going into another leg of his yawn-and-stretch marathon
he heard the booming voice of Nanna: "Muldoone get your butt out of that
hammy this instant" and Mully knew that meant it was time to cut the
stretches and yawns short, Nanna was loosing her patience with him.
 
"Ok Nanna, I be up, so tells me bout da gweeting" Mully told her yawning
and rubbing his eyes with his velvety paws.
 
"Muldoone, we have two cats that are coming to the Bridge and you are to
greet them" Nanna told him.
 
"Cats coming here Nanna?  Cats no comes here, dey gots deir own Wainbow
Bwidge Village, why dey be coming here?"
 
"Muldoone, do you remember Tigger and Blossom?  Nestlee, Rosie, and
Soda?" Nanna asked him.
 
"You means Soda dat be Mz SunnyFewet's assistannences?" Muldoone asked.
 
"Assistant Muldoone, the word is assistant and yes I am talking about
Soda, SunnyFerret's assistant" Nanna told him.
 
"Sure I members him but what Soda habs to do wiff da cats dat be coming?"
 
"Muldoone the ferrets named Tigger, Blossom, Nestlee, Rosie and Soda were
brothers and sisters in fur to the kitties who will be arriving, even
though they are cats, they were still brothers and sisters in fur, they
shard the same home and the same loving mom and dad" Nanna explained to
him.
 
"Can I bites em when dey gets here?  Muldoone asked.  "Tigger tells me
bout biting da cats he lived wiff and he say it be fun to neaks up ahinds
em and go CHOMP on em."
 
"THERE WILL BE NO BITING MULDOONE!" Nanna shrieked at him.  "I don't care
what Tigger or any other ferret told you, there will be no biting when
these two arrive.  Do you understand me young man?"
 
"Ok Nanna, okay, no biting" Mully finally agreed.  "What dooes I habs to
do?"
 
"Muldoone, this will be just like any other greeting you have done except
this time you will be greeting cats.  I will be with you and we will
welcome them, make sure they know where they are and show them around.
Since they lived with ferrets they may want to remain here for a while or
maybe they will want to go straight to the cat village but their human
mom asked that you be the one to greet them" Nanna explained to him.
 
"But why me Nanna?  Why not some odder gweeter?" Mully asked.
 
"Muldoone, I don't know why, I am doing as the Boss instructed.  The
owner wanted you to be the one to greet them and that is how it shall
be."
 
Just then there was a knock at the door and Nanna called out "Come in
Clancy."
 
Geezums, Mully thought to himself, I not gets to answer my own door?
Next she will be telling me I have to take Quancy along to greet these
two cats.
 
"Muldoone I almost forgot, you are to take Clancy along on the greeting,
the Boss wants him to have more observation time" Nanna told him.
 
"But Nanna, da wast time I took Quancy wiff me on a gweeting, he twied
widding dat hedginhug and he asksis too many stoopid quessions."
 
"Never mind all that, Clancy is young and he wants to learn and more
importantly the Boss wants him to learn.  It has already been decided and
arguing about it all is useless" Nanna told him.  "You will greet the two
cats, you will make them feel welcome, and you will take Clancy along to
observe so you best be getting yourself ready, they will be arriving
shortly."
 
"But Nanna" Muldoone started to object but one look at her eyes told him
it was useless, no amount of objecting was going to change her mind.
 
Going to his "necessary corner" and then trying to tame his unruly fur
only to be embarrassed by Clancy watching him loose the battle with his
hammy-head-hair.
 
"Misser Muldoone, my fur not wike yurs, how comes it not be?" Clancy
asked.  "And I no habs a cap to wears, ifins I messes up my hairs weally
bad wike yurs would someone gibs me a cap to wears?"
 
Chuckling to herself, Nanna told Clancy to not worry about Muldoone's
hammy-head-hair they had more important things to do.
 
"See Nanna, see what I means about stoopid quessions" Muldoone told Nanna
while shooting glare-stares at Clancy.
 
"That is enough boys, it is time we be making our way to the Bridge"
Nanna instructed them.
 
Arriving at the Rainbow Bridge to greet the two newcomers, Muldoone and
Nanna took their place and Nanna instructed Clancy where to stand and
what to do.
 
The lights over the Bridge began to dance and swirl; colors more
beautiful than ever seen on earth now painted the sky.  The colors
blended and then changed again; shades of pink gave way to peach and
yellows then changed to a soft green that blended into a delicate blue
that gave itself over to shades of lavender.  A fine soft fairy dusting
began to swirl all around Muldoone, Nanna, and Clancy.  They knew the
two kitties were on their way.
 
The Ferret Promise Song now filled the air with its bittersweet refrain.
It sang of hope and promise, of sorrow and loss, all tied together in the
cycle of life.  It sang of pain fading away, of limbs being made strong
again, and eyes once more bright, it told of the sorrow of passing and
the joy waiting in the Promise.
 
Sandy and PC felt the earth began to fall away from them and they were
tumbling into nothingness.  They were very frightened, not knowing what
was happening to them or where they were going.
 
Muldoone and Nanna closed their eyes and began to concentrate with all
their might, their hearts sending love and strength to the two who were
coming, they were lighting the way with their love for the new comers.
 
Sandy and PC felt a new warmth of love and guidance as the Ferret Promise
Song was being sung for them.  The sad sweet melody seemed to swirl all
around them and they both felt they were being cradled in the warmth of
love and protection.  A beautiful soft voice whisper to them, come home
wee-ones, we are waiting for you.  The melody was now awash in her heart
and they no longer feared letting go.  Thoughts were centered on those
they loved most and their hearts whispered a message to their familee; I
woves you but it be time for us to go, we waits for you.
 
Muldoone strained to listen but he didn't hear the usual sound of feets
coming across the planks of the Rainbow Bridge, instead he heard the
steady clop-clop-clop-clop of horses' hooves.
 
MoonBeam Molly stepped off the end of the Rainbow Bridge and both
Muldoone and Nanna could see she was very solemn and upon closer
inspection, the beautiful gentle white unicorn was crying, Molly had
streams of tears rolling down her beautiful face.
 
"Good morning Molly, I see you have brought us something" Nanna said to
the unicorn.
 
Having never heard MoonBeam Molly speak before, not ever really thinking
what she would sound like or even if she could speak, she had the most
beautiful clear gentle voice Muldoone had ever heard.  You could not only
hear the love in her voice for the passengers she had brought, but love
and gentleness seemed to radiate from her.  Being in the presence of this
wondrous creature, Muldoone could smell the scent of jasmine, magnolias,
and honeysuckle that seemed to all blend delicately together and surround
the beautiful unicorn in a strange kind of mist.
 
"Good morning Nanna and Muldoone" Molly told them, "yes I have two
passengers; they are the newest resident to the Rainbow Bridge."
 
Lowering herself to the ground to make it possible for Nanna and Muldoone
to climb up to the basket she had on her back containing the two kitties,
MoonBeam Molly very gently unfolded her second set of smaller wings that
had cradled her precious cargo, keeping the kitties safe and secure for
the flight from their world to the Rainbow Bridge.
 
Pulling back the beautiful soft fleece covering the basket, Muldoone saw
the faces of the new arrivals.  One kitty poked her hear up out of the
basket and drew in a sharp breath.  "I CAN SEE, I CAN SEE EVERYTHING!"
she yelled excitedly.  The other kitty seemed very frightened and was
trying to hide behind the first one.
 
Muldoone looked over to Nanna and sent her a silent message of "HELP"
and Nanna moved closer to the basket.
 
"Welcome to the Rainbow Bridge Sandy and PC" Nanna told them both.
"Would you like to climb down and have a look around?" she asked them.
 
Nanna didn't have to ask PC twice, she jumped from the basket to the
ground and immediately began to purr like a John Deer tractor while
looking around at everything.  Looking back up at the basket PC yelled
to Sandy "hey watcha waiting for Sandy, come on, it be purrdy here."
 
Still trying to coax Sandy out of the basket, Nanna got an idea; "Sandy
may I get in the basket with you?" Nanna asked her.
 
"I guess dat be ok" the little Siamese answered back.
 
Climbing into the basket and almost getting her feet tangled up in the
long yellow apron Nanna always wore, she settled in as Molly patiently
sat very still on the ground.  As Nanna moved closer to the frightened
kitty, she could see she was trembling.  "Sandy, my name is Nanna and
there is nothing to be afraid of, no one here will hurt you.  Do you
know where you are?" the gentle older ferret asked.
 
"I not be sur, but I not be home" Sandy told Nanna.
 
"Sandy you are at the Rainbow Bridge.  I don't know if you have ever
heard of it before or understand what it is, but that is where you are,
this will be your new home" Nanna told Sandy.
 
"I hears 'bout da Wainbow Bwidge from my mom, she tells me I be going
dere soon and she say I not be sick when I gets dere so I guesses she be
right, I no feels sick but I wants to go home pwease.  I misses my sistur
Sammy and Mike is bwind, he no can sees and he needs me to helps him so
pwease sends me back.  I not be sick now and I needs to be wiff Mike so
I can helps him."
 
"Sandy" Nanna begins to gently explain, "I am very sorry but I can not
send you back, it doesn't work that way.  You were very sick and you
needed to come here.  You will remain here until your familee cross and
then you will be reunited with them."
 
"How long dat be?" Sandy wanted to know.
 
"I don't know for sure" Nanna told her "but time has no meaning for
us here, we don't count the days, we are just here waiting for our
familees."
 
"Dis not be a gud pwace" Sandy told Nanna, "acause my mom cwy when she
talk 'bout me going to da Wainbow Bwidge."
 
"No Sandy, that is not true" Nanna told the frightened kitty, "the
Rainbow Bridge is a wonderful place created for us by God.  Its just that
it makes the humans very sad when they know one of their beloved pets is
leaving and going to the Rainbow Bridge.  Your mom loved you very much
and that is why she was crying when she told you about coming here.  In
fact your mom loved you and PC so much she asked special for you both to
come here to this particular village.  Normally when kitties come to the
Bridge, the go to the cat village but since you also lived with ferrets
your mom asked that you first come here and let you decide if you would
like to remain here or go to the cat village.  You see Sandy, you mom
felt that you and PC were very special kitties and she made a special
request for you both" Nanna explained.
 
"Wowsers, our mom did all dat for us?" Sandy asked.
 
"Yes she did" Nanna explained, so why don't you climb down and have a
look around.  Some of the other ferrets you lived with are here as well.
Do you remember Tigger and Blossom, Nestlee, Rosie and Soda?"
 
"I 'members Tigger, he wiked to neaks up on us and bite us" Sandy told
Nanna with a frown.
 
Laughing Nanna told the little Siamese kitty, "We have talked to Tigger
about the biting and he still bites but not as hard and now instead of
biting he can just ask you if you want to play."
 
All the while Nanna was explaining the wonders of the Rainbow Bridge to
Sandy and trying to ease her fears they would hear PC calling out "Hey
Sandy comes and sees dis." It appeared PC were getting along just fine
and she was exploring everything around her and enjoying her new sight
being able to see everything clearly.
 
Carefully climbing down from Moonbeam Molly the unicorn, Sandy stood
and surveyed the sights.  She was immediately stuck by the beauty of
everything around her but what she felt the most was the immediate peace
and love that seemed to close around her, kind of like the feeling a
kitty or ferret gets from being cuddled by their human.  She would miss
her familee but she had a safe place to wait for them and in her heart
she knew one day they would come for her.
 
Watching PC enjoying her new surroundings, Sandy wished she could be so
trusting and have the same self-confidence.  She was running from one
thing to another, sniffing it, looking at all the flowers and drinking in
the sights.  Sandy sang out with a carefree laugh when she saw PC run up
to Muldoone and immediately pounce on him, pinning him to the ground and
begin slurping him all over, giving him head bonks and announcing, "LETS
PWAY!"
 
Clancy approached the new kitty and with eyes big and round and he told
her "You are the pruddiest kitty I eber sees." Reaching for Sandy's paw,
Clancy assured her he would be happy to show her around at the Rainbow
Bridge and even show her how to look in on her familee while they were
sleeping.  He also told her he would teach her to how to sneak back and
give whisker kisses to her mom and dad.  "Welcomes to da Wainbow Bwidge"
Clancy told her.
 
~~Muldoone~~
Caring for your ferrets at the Rainbow Bridge.
[Posted in FML issue 5047]