King George Returns

This may seem trivial after my last post, but the day after Stephen's step dad passed away, our 8 year old cat disappeared. It completely devestated our children. I have to back up and tell you the story of how this cat came into our lives. About a week before Hannah was born, 2 year old Emily was asked to say family prayer. In her prayer, she asked for Jesus to bring her a black & white kitty. We all laughed, thinking she expected me to give birth to a kitten! '
Hannah was born a few days later & Emily didn't seem at all displeased. I quickly forgot her prayer as I settled in to caring for a newborn & three other children under the age of 5. Two weeks after Hannah was born, I was exhausted. I finally had baby Hannah asleep & needed a nap myself. Stephen took Jonathan (5), Kaitlyn (4), and Emily (2) on a walk so I could rest. On their walk, they found a kitten covered in oil one street over from our house.
They brought it home & cleaned it up. It was a black & white kitty! They begged me to keep it, but I was hesitant since I'd heard the stories of cats suffocating babies. So I made them knock on every door in the neighborhood to see if they could find his owner. They did. Jonathan claimed he was the Comte's cat. Kaitlyn claimed it was the older Allred's cat. But all 3 children insisted the owner said if we wanted the cat, he was ours! It was then that Stephen remembered Emily's prayer and, well, we had to keep him!
Jonathan was not at all happy that Hannah was "just another stinkin girl." He really wanted a brother, and even had a name picked out for him. So, we figured since we didn't give him the brother he wanted, he could name the new male kitten. Without hesitation, he named him the name he'd picked out for the baby brother he'd wanted.... George. At the time, Curious George was his favorite show on PBS!
I made George live outside at first, & as soon as Emily woke up, she would run outside, find "her" kitty, and cuddle him until I made her come in to get dressed & eat breakfast. One day, about two weeks after we found him, she ran outside & he was nowhere to be found. The kids were upset. 2-3 days went by, & he didn't return. At breakfast that morning, Kaitlyn said the prayer. She began, "Dear Heavenly Father, please bless that George will come home. In the name of..."
The phone rang, interrupting the prayer. it was the Brady's & they had found our George. At that point, the kids begged me to let George live inside, & I relented.
George settled himself in. Naturally, he settled him with Emily, her arms wrapped tight around him as she fell asleep. The routine has continued for nearly 8 years.
So, when we discovered him missing the night after Grandpa died two weeks ago, the kids felt like it was pouring salt in an open wound. Especially Emily. Their grief intensified, & since their was nothing we could do about Grandpa's death, we focused on finding George. We all prayed for his return. We have looked every day for him. Searched two shelters. We just kept telling the kids to pray, have faith, & if it was meant to be, he would turn up. A few nights ago, we prayed that George would return home on his own.
This morning, we woke up to find George sitting beside our bedroom door! I scooped him up & took him to each of the kid's, who were delighted to see him! He has lost a lot of weight, needs a bath, but otherwise, in great shape!
Now, I am not a cat lover, but I love what this cat has taught our family. Prayer is real. Heavenly Father listen's to prayers big & small. I hope when my kids are faced with much tougher problems in their lives, that the will remember these experiences with George, and turn to the Lord, trusting Him, and finding peace during the challenges they face.