Once there were three little cats called Meow, Purr and Kitten. Kitten really was a kitten, but so were Meow and Purr. How Confusing! The way you could tell them apart was by their colour. Meow was an orange cat, Purr was a brown cat and Kitten was a black cat.
Every day they played in the woods by their house. They played jumping. They played chasing. They played sitting in the sun and licking themselves clean. Then one day Meow suggested they play hide and seek.
“You hide and I’ll count to ten,” she said.
Purr and Kitten ran off to hide. In the wood were flowers, a wooden bench, a hole by the bench, a black bin, trees and a tree that was the tallest of them all. Purr quickly found a tree and hid behind it. Kitten ran until she found the hole by the bench. It was a little scary, but she hid inside. In the hole, it was dark and black. She hoped Meow would find her soon!
“Ten!” shouted Meow. “Ready or not here I come!”
She began to look. First, she looked in the flowers. “No cats here.” she thought.
Then she looked under the bench. “No cats here.” she thought.
Then she looked behind the trees.
Purr saw her coming and thought “Oh dear, this wasn’t a good place to hide.”
But Meow walked straight past!
“Meow!” Purr called.
Meow jumped in fright.
“Who’s there?”
Purr stepped towards her.
“Purr!” Meow said. “I didn’t see you there.”
“How strange.” they both thought.
They went on together to search for Kitten.
“I’ve already looked in the flowers,” said Meow, “and under the bench and behind the trees.”
“Well,” said Purr, “how about we look in the hole?”
“That’s a good idea,” said Meow.
So, they went to look in the hole.
Kitten had been in the hole a long time. She was happy to see Purr and Meow coming towards her.
Purr and Meow walked right up to the hole. They stared inside. They stared and stared.
“Oh good.” thought Kitten, “you’ve found me.”
But Purr and Meow hadn’t found her. They didn’t know she was there.
“Purr!” shouted Kitten. “Meow!”
They both jumped in fright.
“Who’s there?” they called.
Kitten came out of the hole.
“It’s me,” she said.
“Kitten!” they said. “We didn’t see you there.”
“How strange,” they all thought, “what’s going on here?”
They decided to investigate.
“Stand by that tree,” said Meow to Purr.
Purr disappeared again!
“Go in that hole,” Meow told Kitten.
Kitten disappeared again!
“You’ve both disappeared,” Meow told them.
They came back and thought about what had happened.
“What can it be?” asked Purr.
“Well,” said Meow, “you disappeared by the tree.”
They looked at the tree.
“The tree is very brown,” said Purr.
“And you are very brown,” said Kitten.
Then they looked at the hole.
“The hole is very black,” said Kitten.
“And you are very black,” said Purr.
“They are the same colours as you,” said Meow.
“What fun!” cried Purr and Kitten.
They started to look for more things the same colour as them to hide by. Kitten disappeared by the bin. Purr disappeared by the bench. Kitten hid in a shadow. Purr hid behind the trees again. They laughed and laughed, but Meow was quiet. Meow was sad.
“Nothing is the same colour as me,” she said.
She walked around, standing against trees, standing against flowers. Nothing was orange.
She was so sad, she climbed the tallest tree to be alone.
The others played at hiding until it got late in the day. Then they felt bad.
“Where is Meow?” Purr asked.
“I can’t see her anywhere,” said Kitten.
“Meow!” they shouted. “Where are you?”
But there was no answer. Meow was too sad to reply.
They began to look everywhere as the sun set in the sky. They looked in the hole, they looked behind the trees. They looked by the bin. They looked in the flowers and under the bench.
“We have lost Meow,” said Purr.
“Poor Meow,” said Kitten.
They had looked everywhere. Where could Meow be?
They stopped beneath the tallest tree.
“Perhaps she’s gone up there?” said Kitten, looking upwards.
They looked up into the tree, but it’s top was too tall to see.
“Let’s climb up,” said Purr.
They climbed up the trunk. They climbed up the branches. They climbed until they were swaying amongst the tiniest twigs.
“Where is Meow?” they asked each other.
“I’m here,” said Meow.
Purr and Kitten jumped in fright.
“I’m sorry I hid,” said Meow. “I was sad that nothing is the same colour as me.”
“But where are you?” said Kitten.
“Here,” said Meow, coming to join them.
“We didn’t see you!” said Purr and Kitten.
“How can that be?” asked Meow. “The tree is brown and I am orange.”
Purr and Kitten looked at the sky.
“The sky is orange!” they said.
Meow looked around her and the sky was orange. The setting sun had made it orange!
“I am the colour of the sun!” she shouted. “I am a sun cat!”
“I am hole cat!” cried Kitten.
“I am a tree cat!” said Purr.
Then they were happy. They were all so very happy. You see, we are all different and that is what makes us special.
Image Credit: Geraldine Jull