heartwarming encounter

Shortly after I shared about how I was worried we had sowed the seed of a dog-phobia in Leona and then that I took it back, we encountered a cat on our walk home one afternoon.

We had seen a couple kids petting it and picking it up at the elementary school a bit before. As the cat started to walk towards us, Leona started backing up while saying "I'm scared~!". I crouched down and got her in a hug with my side to the cat and said that I would hold her and wouldn't let the cat touch her. I could feel her relax a little.

The cat came right up to us, pushing against me and tried to find a way to push against Leona too. I pet it while also keeping it away from Leona, and then asked if she wanted to pet it. She said no.

And then she said she wanted to touch it. The cat was super soft - obvoiusly brushed often - and super friendly and gentle. She pet it carefully at first, and I explained that the purring showed that it felt it was comfortable. After a little while we started walking again, and the cat followed us. Leona walked over to it and pet it some more - on her own.

It sat itself down in the middle of the road and streatched and started licking itself, and she copied his pose laughing.

We went to the bridge and rested a bit, and the cat continued to follow us, and Leona continued to pet it.

[I love how you can see how comfortable she is with the cat here, and how she is enjoying the feel of its fur].

Eliana wasn't as keen on the cat trying to get up to her, and so Leona even tried to lift the cat away from the stroller.

Any bit of worry that may have been left for me regarding a phobia melted completely away, and I could feel my heart settle with a sigh of confidence and contentment for Leona.


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