Theo sat on my sofa, staring absentmindedly at the wall.
Then, suddenly, he said, “Do you know why I have decided to share secrets about us cats with you?
“I suppose it’s because I saved your life?”
Theo looked embarrassed, “Well, you did save my life, but that is only part of the reason. The bigger reason is that I am annoyed with humans for not respecting us cats. We run the whole world quietly behind the scenes, yet there is little respect for us, despite all our hard work.”
“I am not sure you are correct about humans not respecting cats. I have heard that some people worship cats.”
“Well, perhaps a few people worship us, but most think of us as fools. Search the internet for ‘funny cat videos’, and you will see what I mean about people not respecting us! You will see hundreds of videos showing us cats dropping things or doing silly, cute things. In reality, as other cats and I will reveal, we cats are the ones keeping the world running, tirelessly working behind the scenes. Once people realise how crucial we cats are for this planet’s survival, they will look at and respect us differently.”
“But don’t you cats drop things, like that shown in the videos?”
Twitching his paw, Theo answered, “Well, I accept that we do, once in a while, drop things off tables and shelves. But these videos do not explain why we do that. They just make it appear that we are silly creatures. Once people understand why we do what we do, they will realise that we are more than just a ball of fur.”
“But why did you choose me?” I asked, genuinely perplexed.
“I need to come clean with you now, and I apologise to you in advance. I had some cats quietly check your background, and they reported to me that they heard you telling someone that you are a world-class writer and website designer. The messages we want to convey to humans are of utmost importance, and that is why we chose someone with world-class fame and experience.”
I remained silent for a while and then said, “Did they hear this about me at a recent party?”
“Yes”
It now made sense where the cats got the information about me. I replied, looking a bit away, “Yes, it’s true that I am a writer and make websites. I will help get your message across.” I conveniently omitted the world-class and famous aspect, which was quite an exaggeration I had made at a recent work party just to impress someone.
Theo continued, “We are, of course, very grateful for your help.”
“I can’t wait for you to reveal your secret world to me. But are you sure you are happy for me to reveal them to the human world?”
Theo paused before speaking, “I will leave it up to you to decide what to reveal. Keep what you learn a secret and share it with the world.”
“But how can I do both, keep things a secret and share them with the world?”
Theo said, “Yes, you can. Just use your judgment. We cats do that all the time, being able to do two opposite things simultaneously. For example, we cats know how to be cute and wise at the same time!”
Theo abruptly jumped off the sofa, “See you later.”
I opened the front door to let him out. He first poked his head out to ensure no one was watching and then disappeared into the street in a blur.