

### The Cat Factory

Rita Villa

Copyright 2007 Rita Villa

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this ebook with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this ebook and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

### A message from the author:

If you are holding this book, maybe it can help you in some way. Please let these words fill your spirit with the gift they are offering and when you receive that gift pass it on to another.

With love,

Rita

### Quotes from anonymous readers:

" _The most powerful book I've ever read."_

" _This book made an impact on my life. I am starting to think positive thoughts and moving forward not backwards."_

" _I am an animal lover and this book hit on many cords._

Several times almost psychic."

" _I hope people will be moved to pick up this book_

and learn from it as I did."

" _So much symbolism and magic."_

" _I stayed up all night and read this book._

I couldn't put it down."

" _It's as inspirational as anything I've read. The message is wonderfully clear and vibrant."_

" _It's easy to see the author put a lot of love into this creation."_

" _Profound and thought provoking."_

" _So much spiritual love to share with the world, and we sure need some now."_

" _I thought your handling of evolution and_

intelligent design was super!"

" _Work of art."_

" _It's everything people should be appreciating in life."_

" _You are such an artist, painting pictures of places no human has seen with fun folks who gallop along with fascinating stories. What a wonderful imagination you have."_

### Chapter One

### The Cabin

Emma stood silently staring at the old wooden door. It had been painted once, but now only remnants of color remained. She didn't know where she was or how she got there. A glance around revealed a small porch, mostly hidden by the blackness of night. Her first instinct was to turn and run, but a mysterious heaviness held her in place, as if the vast darkness pressed on her shoulders. No memories of the day remained and a haze filled her head. Not knowing what else to do, she took a deep breath, bravely reached out, and knocked.

A few seconds passed. The door knob turned, the rusty hinges creaked and the door opened a crack. A four foot tall, very old lady peeked out. Her big brown eyes stared directly at Emma. She smiled, showing only a few crooked, yellow teeth. Her pasty skin had deep wrinkles and a clump of wild gray hair stuck straight up on the top of her head. The door creaked open further and she motioned for Emma to come inside.

For a second, Emma hesitated, but the old lady didn't look threatening, it was the middle of the night, and she needed to use the phone, so she stepped inside. A huge stone fireplace crackled as it cast a warm glow across the living room of the small cabin and she could smell something baking. That eased her fear a bit. She didn't think many serial killers were old ladies baking cookies. "Can I use your phone, I seem to be lost."

"Oh, you're not lost," the old lady said. Followed by an odd giggle. "I've been expecting you."

Emma took a step back, wondering how this crazy looking old lady, living in the middle of nowhere, could have been expecting her. "Expecting me?"

"Yes, I was expecting you."

"I seem to be confused. I don't know where I am, or how I got here, so how could you possibly be expecting me?"

The old lady smiled and non-chalantly. "It's no great mystery, you're right where you're supposed to be. But don't worry; I'm ready for you."

"I think I better just use the phone." Emma realized she had no idea who she would call since she really didn't remember anything, which scared her even more than the fact she was stuck in some remote cabin with a crazy looking old lady.

She took Emma's hand. "There are no phones here."

Emma huffed and pulled her hand away. "You don't even have a cell phone?" She turned toward the door. "Maybe I better go back outside and look for a phone to borrow. Certainly one of your neighbors has a phone."

"No, no neighbors here either."

Emma peeked out the window. Nothing but blackness and a few distant stars. "Maybe you could drive me into town? I could use a phone at a gas station or something."

"No, no town nearby. And who are you going to call?"

Emma said nothing. The old lady was right. Who could she call? All she remembered of her life right now was her name. Emma Grace Flanders. That was it.

The old lady smiled. Her crooked old teeth looked like something from Halloween and Emma thought there must not be any dentists in this neighborhood either.

"You are right where you are meant to be," the old lady said. "The sooner you realize that, the sooner we can get started." She pulled out a chair at a long wooden table. "Maybe you better sit down."

Emma hesitated. "Get started?" But feeling a little dizzy and like she had no other options, she sat. To steady herself she ran her hands over the soft rounded edge of the table. It helped her feel grounded. As grounded as she could feel in this situation.

The old lady placed a large plate of hot, gooey, chocolate chip cookies and two tall glasses of cold milk on the table, pulled out a chair and sat.

"So I guess I'm staying a bit, since I seem to be out of options, but can you at least tell me where I am and why?"

"You're at my house."

"Well, I kind of figured that." Emma felt a little irritated. "But I don't remember anything. How did I get here? And for that matter where are we?"

The old lady had a look of compassion Emma had never seen before. "My name is Yolanda, and this is my house." She hesitated and then gently stroked Emma's hand.

Yolanda's touch felt calming. All fear and irritation left Emma's body and deep relaxation moved in.

"This is going to be hard for you to hear since your memories have not returned yet. But my house is a stop off for all the people who die on Earth. They're usually quite bewildered, like you are now."

Emma took a gulp of milk and the barely managed to mumble, "I'm dead?"

"Seems so."

"Can I ask how it happened, since I don't remember dying?"

"Your memories will return soon enough."

"I still can't believe I'm dead. And if I'm really dead, what am I doing here with you in this cabin. Isn't everything supposed to just be over with, like darkness and that's it. I'm gone."

"Oh, don't be silly dear, you're not really dead, like in there's nothing left. There's no such thing as that kind of death. I know people on Earth believe that, but it's just because they don't know the truth."

"You just said you're here to help people that die."

"Yes, I did, but death is not what you thought."

"Okay, now I'm really confused. I'm dead, but I'm not dead."

"Your body is 'dead' but only from your life on planet Earth. Your spirit is alive."

As Yolanda talked about death Emma started to have flashbacks of life as she knew it, the alcohol, the homeless shelters, the unwanted pregnancy. She looked down at her wrists. "I really did it, didn't I?"

Yolanda reached out and gently rubbed her arm. "I don't know why you're headed through here at such a young age and at your own hand no less, but you are..."

Emma looked away and sniffled. Her eyes started to tear. "You seem really kind, but I don't think you should be judging me, you don't even know me."

"So why are you here?"

"My life sucked."

"What was so bad?"

"My mother died when I was only sixteen and I never knew my father."

Yolanda munched on her cookie.

"I didn't want to live in a foster home after Mom died, so I ran away. I started drinking and begging for money. I lived under the bridge at the South Street Seaport in a cardboard box and ate out of trash cans. Isn't that enough reason to kill yourself?"

"Is it?" Yolanda raised her brows questioningly.

"And then, to top it all off, I got pregnant. I didn't intend to be a bad mother. I didn't intend to be a mother at all. I couldn't even take care of myself. So then I had to drag a kid around with me everywhere and try to provide for her too. I hated making her live in a shelter. It was no place for a little girl."

Yolanda's smile put Emma at ease and the whole story just came pouring out, like the cork popping on a champagne bottle. "It's tough living on the streets. You worry about getting mugged, especially with a little girl along. Worry all the time, worry, worry, worry, that's all I did. So I continued to drown all those worries with Vodka. It was hard trying to feed her and get her clothes and stuff. I wasn't thinking clearly, obviously, or I wouldn't be here. At the time everything just seemed so hopeless."

"Did you love her father?"

"What does that matter?"

"Just curious."

"It wasn't meant to be. He was an artist, a good one. I was a drunk. It wouldn't have worked out. I would've held him back. A year or so ago I saw an album cover he designed. She'll be better off with him. He'll give her a real life."

"Your daughter?"

"She looks just like him. He's a happy person, he's not like me."

"You don't think you could have worked something out, been happy, raised your daughter together?"

"No, besides it's too late now. I'm dead, I guess, huh?"

Yolanda didn't answer.

Emma looked out the picture window. She felt much calmer. Pouring her heart out to Yolanda seemed to take the weight of the world off her shoulders. She leaned back and took a big bite of her cookie. "It's really beautiful here, wherever we are." The sky, filled with stars, seemed surreal. "I've never seen the sky look so dark, and the stars, there's so many of them."

Yolanda turned around in her chair and looked out the window. "Beautiful."

"What the hell was that!" Emma jumped from her chair, threw open the door and ran onto the front porch. "Where did it go?"

Yolanda followed.

"Did you see it? Did you? It was giant and glowing, like a big blue and white ball."

"Magnificent, isn't it?"

Emma pointed toward the sky. "What was it? It looked like Earth from one of the pictures we studied in science class." She looked into the distance. "Wait a minute, I see it; here it comes again." She tugged at Yolanda's sweater. "See that, look, right there. Is it Earth? It can't be."

"Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?"

"Never." Emma looked over the railing. "Where's the ground? There's no ground!" She leaned farther. There was nothing but the blackness of space, filled with twinkling stars, above the cabin, below and to both sides.

Yolanda chuckled. "No, there's no ground because we're orbiting the Earth in the Milky Way galaxy."

"We're what?" Emma looked farther over the railing expecting to see ground somewhere.

Yolanda grabbed her around the waist. "Be careful."

"Orbiting the Earth, in the Milky Way galaxy," Emma said. "Impossible."

"But true."

Hundreds of thousands of stars filled the sky. "This is awesome. I never knew Earth was so beautiful." The giant blue ball, dotted with cotton candy like clouds, spun past one more time. "It didn't look that great while I was there." She felt like she could touch the stars as they trailed past the front porch. She reached for one. "I have a million questions."

"Hopefully I have some of the answers." Yolanda made herself comfortable in a big rocking chair. "Please, sit."

Emma scooted into one of the rocking chairs. "So you said this place is just a stop off for people who die, right?"

"Yes, like you, most people don't understand that their death is just a continuation of their life."

Emma sighed. "So you're saying my misery is going to continue?"

"There isn't supposed to be misery in life or in death," Yolanda said. Her rocking chair made a creaking sound as it moved back and forth.

"But sometimes there is."

"You will learn otherwise."

"What does that mean?"

"I can only tell you so much, the rest you'll learn when you're ready."

"I'm ready right now."

"When the time is right."

"You're being very vague."

"I can only tell you what you are meant to know at this point in time."

"Like I said, vague. So am I just supposed to hang out here with you? Because that doesn't seem so bad." Emma giggled.

"I'd love the company, but that's not how it works. You can't stay here. This is just a place for spirits to pass through."

"Yeah, you said that earlier. So how often does somebody like me come through here?"

"About every two hours. I've helped tens of millions of spirits pass through here over the last ten thousand years."

Emma held her head in her hands. "Ten thousand years? This is all just a bad dream, isn't it? I'm going to wake up in the homeless shelter, aren't I?"

"Make fun if you want, but it's true."

She looked at Yolanda inquisitively. "You're trying to tell me that you've been living in this house for ten thousand years? Now this is really crazy."

"But true."

"So even if the house made it to ten thousand years, which I might believe because it needs some major repair work, and a good paint job, I know for a fact that people don't live to be ten thousand years old," she said defiantly, knowing she had a well thought out point and would definitely catch the old lady in a lie.

"Like you thought you could kill yourself?"

Emma huffed. The old lady was a crafty one.

"You were wrong about that too, weren't you?" Yolanda said.

"But, but... But human bodies only last like seventy years or so."

"That's true."

"So you couldn't have been alive for ten thousand years. People don't live that long. You just said it yourself."

Yolanda smiled. "But spirits do."

"So it's your spirit that's been alive that long, not your body?"

"It's hard to separate the two, but in a way you're right. It's my spirit that's been alive that long."

"But my body's dead, right? So what part of me is here? My spirit? And if that's the case, why do I feel like I still have a body?"

"Like I said, they're hard to separate. Part of you is left behind, on Earth, as a corpse. Part of you is here as a spirit. Right now that spirit is manifesting into that which it knows best, your former body."

"But I feel good. Better than when I was alive."

"Your spirit has restored the part of your physical body that you're experiencing to its perfect form."

"Is that why I'm not craving vodka?"

"When the body is restored to its original perfection, there are no diseases, addictions, aches or pains."

"If this is my original form, then how long will I live like this?"

"Your spirit will never die."

Emma glared at Yolanda. "Are you telling me my spirit could live another nine thousand nine hundred and eighty years?"

"Oh, easily. You're a very young spirit."

Emma took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. "I was really hoping everything would be blank when I killed myself. That it would just be over with. Now I'm facing another nine thousand years. How can I even begin to comprehend that?"

"You'll learn not only to comprehend it, but to love it."

"I doubt it."

"Everybody does," Yolanda mumbled.

"What?"

"Oh, you'll find out in due time."

Emma stared at her. "So, what am I supposed to do for another nine thousand years?"

"Oh, don't worry about that. You'll have plenty to keep you busy. Your grandfather, Albert, will be coming to pick you up to work at The Cat Factory."

"Yeah, right."

"No, I'm serious."

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

"This is only the beginning."

"Now I have a grandfather and I'm going to work at some factory?"

"The Cat Factory, you're going to work at The Cat Factory."

"Yeah, sure I am. With my long lost grandfather."

Yolanda shrugged her shoulders. "Don't believe me then, that's fine."

Emma leaned back in the rocking chair. "Well, for now I'm going to just sit here in outer space and watch the Earth fly by and eat homemade cookies with the oldest person I've ever met. This is the weirdest day ever!"

### Chapter Two

### The Long Hallway

Emma heard a loud noise inside the cabin.

"He's here." Yolanda stopped rocking and got up. "Time to go." She took Emma's hand, the big door creaked open, and they went back inside.

An older man, about 70 Emma guessed, stood in the middle of the living room. He was almost bald with a smidgen of gray hair still hanging on both temples. His mismatched outfit consisted of a brown plaid flannel shirt, brown striped polyester pants, and an orange sweater with a black cat embroidered on the pocket and The Cat Factory inscribed below it. He had a round face with soft blue eyes. A puff of smoke trailed out of the big old pipe that hung from his lips. He stepped closer to Emma. "Hi Emma, I'm Albert, your grandfather."

She took a step back. He looked friendly enough, but she still wasn't really sure this whole thing wasn't a nightmare, and at some point all these seemingly kind people would turn into zombies and eat her for dinner.

"Don't be afraid. I'm your mother's father from your last life time. We never got to meet on Earth, but I am so happy to be meeting you now." A melancholy look flashed across his face. "Well, I do wish it was under better circumstances..."

Emma took a deep breath and tried to be brave. "Yolanda told me you were coming, but I still don't understand. Now you're supposedly my dead grandfather come to take me to this Cat Factory place." Emma stared at Yolanda. "This has been fun and you've been really nice." She looked back at Albert. "But I really just want to be dead. Can we get on with that?"

"There's no such thing as death and I'm not your dead grandfather, because I'm not dead, and neither are you. We're just not on Earth right now; it doesn't mean we're dead."

"No, we're in a log cabin in outer space. That sounds logical."

"I know it all seems pretty far out right now, but it will all come together. I promise." He sighed. "Think about how you feel, rather than what your logical brain is saying."

"How I feel?"

"Yes, how do you feel being here?"

Emma thought for a second and shrugged. "Really good. And your point?"

"You feel comfortable here because you're headed home, to your real home."

"This Cat Factory place is my real home?"

He took a long puff of his pipe, and as the smoke left his mouth, continued with his bizarre story. "The Cat Factory is only a small part of The Department of Creation. That's your real home, where each and every tiny thing comes into being."

"Department of Creation? Really? Sure we are."

"We work to create everything that exists. There's much designing and production to be done. Each and every species has to be planned, produced, improved upon, and possibly retired."

"And this Department of Creation does that?"

"Yes."

"Sure they do." Emma smirked.

"Well, who do you think makes everything?"

Emma looked to Yolanda for help, but she offered none. "God, I guess."

Albert laughed. "But you never believed in God."

"No, I didn't, but I certainly didn't believe in all this mumbo jumbo either. I just knew we were born, life sucked and that was that...death and darkness for eternity."

"Boy, were you wrong. Each and every tiny thing has to be made, perfected, sculpted, produced, and tested."

"Even cats?"

"Even cats. The Cat Factory is a busy place. Cats are the most popular pets in the universe right now. You're very lucky to be going there. It's not a punishment, but a wonderful gift."

"A gift? Why?"

"Your spirit has many things to learn. The Cat Factory isn't just a place to create cats; it's a place to create enlightened spirits."

"But I don't want to learn anything new. I want it all to be over with. I don't want worries, work or anything. I made the decision to kill myself. I want an end."

"That's not an option. There's no end to something once it's created. You may change the type of life you're leading, but you will never be in darkness. In that matter you have no free will."

He took her hand. "I know you have a lot of questions, but we have a long journey ahead of us, we better be on our way. There are many very old spirits working at The Cat Factory. They'll help you learn what the universe is really all about."

A fist banged loudly on Yolanda's door. "Is anybody home?" The voice, shaky and terrorized, sounded like Emma's a few hours earlier. She wondered if that person had killed themselves too. Would they go to The Cat Factory? What was their story?

Yolanda leaned over and kissed Emma's cheek. "Go and enjoy, my dear. Let your grandfather take you to the next step, you'll be happy there." She hugged Albert. "Good-bye, Albert. It's always a pleasure to see you. Please don't forget, I'm still waiting for the kitten you promised me."

Albert grabbed Emma's hand, and everything went black.

In what seemed like just a few seconds, the blackness faded and she found herself standing in the middle of an intersection in what appeared to be a colossal building. Long hallways ran in four directions, with no visible end in sight. She looked up; the walls angled in, or appeared to, as they transcended her field of vision into oblivion.

She squeezed Albert's hand.

"No reason to be scared." He smiled sweetly. "This way." She glanced down the other three hallways again, and then followed Albert down the one directly in front of them.

White paint covered the endless span and gigantic wooden doors lined the walls as far as she could see. The doors, at least twenty feet tall, were made of beautiful wood, birds-eye maple, she thought. The brown marble floor looked infinite. A vivid light shone down upon each door, illuminating an engraved brass plague.

Albert shook his hand loose, before she stopped the circulation to his fingertips. He took a puff from his pipe. "It's okay, Emma, relax. We have a long walk ahead of us."

"What's behind all these doors?"

"You'll find out in a few minutes."

He walked at a fast pace, but she couldn't resist reading the plaques. "Department of River Creation. What in the world?" She looked at Albert with a wrinkled brow. "Wildflower Development. New Planet Production. They aren't really making planets. Are they?"

He blew smoke rings instead of answering her.

She tried again. "How long has this place been here and why don't people know about it? Surely somebody has been here before."

"I know you're very curious, but all your answers will come soon enough." He patted her on the back.

"Everybody keeps telling me that. My answers will come soon enough. It's frustrating."

A figure approached, pulling a noisy cart and covered in black and white paint. Maybe he could answer her questions.

He shouted and waved. "Hey, Albert, how the heck are ya? I haven't seen you in at least fifty years. Are you still at The Cat Factory?"

He looked like a normal guy. What's he doing in this weird place, she wondered.

"Hi, Tony. Yeah, I'm still at The Cat Factory. I'm in charge there now."

Emma interrupted the two men. "Tony, can you tell me about these doors?"

Tony chuckled at her question and then turned his attention back to Albert. "Wow, Al, how'd ya get that gig? I'm jealous. I'm still stuck here in Zebra stripe painting. Seems like all I do is fetch paint. We're always running out." Tony stared at Emma. "So who's the pretty girl, Al?"

"That's my granddaughter. I'm taking her to work with me."

Tony shook her hand vigorously and said, "You're one very lucky lady, yes, very lucky." He smirked like he knew the answer to a Jeopardy question. "You'll find out about the doors soon enough."

"Is that all anybody can say around here?" she said.

Then he turned and without another word continued to pull his wobbly cart, filled with fifty-five gallon drums of black paint. The wobble faded in the distance.

Emma turned her attention back to reading the interesting signs adorning each doorway. "Rainforest Restoration, Star Creation and Production for the Milky Way Galaxy, Dolphin Design."

"We better get a move on." Albert started walking faster, almost dragging her along like a distracted dog on a leash.

"This place is unbelievably weird. I am going to wake up at some point aren't I?"

"I know. It's bit overwhelming at first."

"Are you sure I'm not having some kind of nightmare? First I'm dead, then I'm in outer space eating cookies with a ten thousand year old lady, then I'm here."

"Positive, dear, no nightmare."

"Why are we in such a hurry? I want to read these crazy plaques." She pulled him toward a door. "Cloud Shape Design and Creation," she announced as if he should be amazed. "This place is bizarre." But she didn't feel afraid anymore. Instead, she felt peaceful.

Even though she was immersed in an unknown world, she felt somehow like she had returned home. She walked in a state of wonder still reading doors, "Bumblebee's and Other Flying Insects." So many doors, such a long hallway. Her feet started to ache.

"We're almost there."

"Thank God." She spotted the end of the hallway. One door at the very end, twice as big as the rest, appeared to be made of gold. The sign read New Species Research and Development.

He pointed. "That's the ultimate place to work, but only very, very old spirits can get those jobs. Once in awhile our departments work together, but we haven't designed a new species of cat in quite a few years."

"Designed a new species?"

He seemed excited as he continued, "Not since the hairless one. I hear that's pretty popular on Earth, great for people with allergies. Did you ever see one?"

"A hairless cat, yeah, I saw one at a pet shop. It was weird looking, but very soft."

"This way." He took a sharp right and there it stood, a huge wooden door with a brass plaque labeled in large letters...'The Cat Factory'

### Chapter Three

### The Factory

"We're finally here," Albert said.

"The Cat Factory. We really are at a place called The Cat Factory? Unbelievable."

He placed his palm on a small plastic panel next to the door. A green light scanned it. She heard a loud click as the door unlocked.

"Albert, welcome back," a cheerful voice bellowed from a small speaker above the door. "We're happy you're home. I assume you have Emma with you."

Emma stared up at the speaker wondering who was asking about her.

"Happy to be home, Polly," he replied. "Yes, Emma is with me. Yolanda was good as always, but she still wants a cat. Somehow we've got to get one sent in that direction."

"You know that's almost impossible," the speaker announced.

He turned the knob and pushed on the massive wooden door. It creaked and groaned, as if it hadn't been opened in a long while. Emma's heart thumped in her chest. Eyes closed tightly and filled with trepidation, she took a hesitant step.

The massive door slammed shut behind them. Afraid to open her eyes, she heard lots of noise, voices, hustle and bustle. She felt like she was standing in the middle of Manhattan. She peeked; definitely not New York City. There were people everywhere, as far as she could see, computers, machines, boxes, carts, sculptures, tools, and cats in all stages of construction. People busily scurried about, analyzing, creating. They carried drawings, clay, and rolls of fabric that looked like fur. This place has to be miles long, she thought, because she couldn't see the other end. Everywhere she looked people ran around like worker ants.

Albert turned to her. "I know it's a bit much at first, but you'll get used to it."

"Is it always this busy? What are they all doing?"

"Yes, it's always this busy, sometimes worse." He chuckled. "I know this is hard for you to understand, but this place," he lifted his arms as if showing off a grand piece of art, "this is where we make all the cats for the entire universe."

"Like, real cats, not just stuffed toys?"

"Yes, real cats, big cats, little cats, house cats, lions, tigers, panthers and more. Every conceivable kind of cat is made right here in this place. We work twenty four hours a day, every day of the year."

"Making cats?" She rubbed her temples.

"Yes, they go to Earth and other planets to spread love. Here is where we fill them with that love; it's such a wonderful job."

"Albert, Albert!" A woman screamed and ran straight toward him, arms outstretched. Her rolls of flesh vibrated and her gigantic boobs bounced. A bright orange, flowered dress covered her body and an orange bow tied like a ribbon on a package, adorned her brown curly hair.

Emma recognized the voice - the one that came from the microphone outside the door. She grabbed Albert and hugged him so hard Emma thought he'd collapse.

Albert looked at Emma squeamishly, still trapped in her crushing grip. "Emma, this is my sister, Polly, your aunt."

"Emma, my dear, sweet, Emma." Polly hugged Emma until she thought her lungs would pop. "I've been waiting for you. We're all so excited you're here." Dazzling cherry lipstick surrounded her huge white smile and her intense red cheeks looked like two big ripe apples. Her plump hand wrapped itself in Emma's as she started walking.

"How in the hell did I get here," Emma mumbled.

"What, dear?"

"Just wondering where we're going." Emma waved good-bye to Albert and wondered how she came to be in this mess with this colorful lady pulling her through a mass of confusion. I will wake up at some point, she thought, I will wake up at some point.

"I have so much to show you," Polly said excitedly.

They hopped into a little cart that looked like a souped-up golf cart. Polly could barely fit, but she squeezed in, steering wheel imbedded in her rolls of flesh. She talked while she drove. "I can't believe you're really here. You're going to love it."

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to get you settled in your house. And you know what? I have a present for you too."

"House, present, cats." She felt overwhelmed by it all. They passed hundreds of desks, carts, boxes, computers, and people doing all kinds of jobs. The place seemed endless.

"Albert and I have been watching you for almost five years."

"You've been watching me?"

"Yes, we can watch you."

"From here? Like on some kind of television?"

Polly ignored her question. "Unfortunately, you ended your life on such a sad note, at such a young age. We prayed for you to see life as the precious gift it really is, but you always looked at the negative side of things. You never gave yourself a chance. You had so much good, but you turned away from it."

"I had nothing good. Mom taught me that life sucks and mine sucked big time. I just ended my misery."

"Oh, Emma, there were much easier ways to end your self-inflicted misery."

"You don't know how hard I had it. My life was lousy and no end in sight."

Polly patted Emma's leg. "You had so much good right in front of your eyes, you just weren't looking."

"Good, what good?"

"Life is beautiful, but to see the beauty you must really look. You just don't know how. Don't feel bad, a lot of humans are that way."

"There was nothing beautiful about my crummy life. I lived in a cardboard box for years with vodka for a best friend. That's just great, huh?"

"And that's why you're here."

"Because I lived in a box?"

"No, it's not about the box or anything else you perceive of as bad. It's about learning how to see your own loveliness and how much you had to offer life. You need to see your potential.

"My potential what?"

"It's all in how you look at it. Some things I can't explain in words, you're just going to have to see them for yourself."

"Here we go again," Emma mumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing." Emma looked away. "Everybody's just a little vague with the answers around here."

"Ahh, here we are." The double doors swung open as they arrived at the front of the building.

The door man waved. "Hi, Polly, good to see you."

She waved and smiled as they buzzed on by and went outside. The most beautiful day Emma had ever seen appeared before her eyes. A dazzling blue sky, adorned with fluffy white clouds and sunshine, warmed her skin. The vivid green trees filled with leaves, made the air smell like spring. Everything glowed. It looked like Earth, but more intense. The birds sang a hundred songs, and everyone waved at her and Polly. Cats of various colors, shapes and sizes wandered far and wide, as if they were the kings and queens of the city.

They drove down a small road lined with green grass and flower gardens in bloom. Polly swung her cart into a driveway so fast they almost tipped over. She laughed as Emma grabbed the side of the cart to keep from falling out.

Little Victorian cottages decorated the street. The one they parked in front of, painted three shades of pink and white, looked particularly adorable. Tulips, Emma's favorite, filled the garden. Their perfume reminded her of spring, warm sunshine and chocolate Easter bunnies.

"This is all yours, Emma." Polly held the door open and they entered the house.

Emma had never set foot in such a perfect house, least of all lived in one. "Mine?"

"Yes, yours."

"No way?" Sun streamed in the kitchen window highlighting the light yellow walls. A warm welcoming feeling filled the air. She took a deep breath, as if absorbing the lovely nature of the place, and wandered into the living room. A comfy brown velvet couch and two oversized chairs looked so inviting that she could hardly stop herself from jumping on them and screaming hurray.

Just when she thought she couldn't be happier she heard a tiny "meow," and saw a kitten running toward her. He sat down and looked up at her with impossibly huge blue eyes.

"What a doll." The kitten had orange and white striped fur and the most perfectly shaped pink nose she'd ever seen. She picked him up, hugged him tightly, and as she did, he purred so loudly her chin quivered.

Polly patted the little guy. "This is Charlie; we kept him especially for you."

"He's so cute. Thank you. I love him already." She carried the kitten into the bedroom. The bed was like nothing she'd ever seen. A down comforter flowed over a delightful mattress and a mountain of pillows called to her. She pinched herself, hoping if this was only a dream, she'd never wake up.

She noticed a photograph of a baby girl hanging over the bed. Her heart nearly stopped when she saw how outrageously beautiful the girl appeared. Astonished by her glowing skin, loving eyes and radiant smile, Emma felt like she was in the company of baby Jesus himself.

"Who's that little girl? She's so beautiful. I can't take my eyes off her."

Polly looked up solemnly and replied, "That's Mattie, your daughter."

Emma stood there, stunned. Such a wonder and magnificence glowed around the child; yet looking closely she did resemble her daughter. "That can't be Mattie?"

"Maybe we better sit down." Polly sat on the bed. She patted the quilt with her hand. "Sit here next to me and I'll explain."

Emma sat on the bed but didn't take her eyes off the photograph. Charlie curled up on her lap.

Polly took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Albert and I watched you go through so much on Earth, but when your mother died it seemed like you really gave up and turned everything over to alcohol. It made us very sad. The vodka destroyed your chances of living out your dreams; it ruined your love for life, took away your connection to the spiritual realm, and made you feel life was worthless."

"It was worthless."

"We watched as you turned from everything good that came your way."

"There you go again, saying I had something good. Nothing good ever came my way." Emma still felt compelled to stare at the photograph.

Polly ignored her outburst. "We can't affect your life from here because of your own free will. All choices are up to you. But we prayed Mattie's father, Scooter, would change things. It didn't. You walked away from his undying love. All your love went into that stupid bottle. It broke our hearts to see you so, so, sad."

"I still can't believe that's Mattie." Emma moved closer to the photo, analyzing it. "Are you sure? It can't possibly be."

"In the meantime..." Polly tugged on Emma's sleeve. "Are you listening?"

"Oh, yeah." Emma turned back toward Polly.

"Albert had been working with your great, great, grandmother on the design for the hairless cat. She works in New Species Development."

"He told me that, about the cat design."

"She's one of the oldest spirits in existence, and she's uncommonly wise."

"My great, great grandmother?"

"Yes, well, Albert explained the situation to her and they decided since we couldn't help you from here, someone needed to go down to Earth and try to help you first hand."

"I'm confused." Emma moved closer to Polly. "Someone needed to go to Earth?"

"This wise old spirit, your great, great, grandmother, Madelyn, volunteered for the job."

"Job? She went to Earth as a job? What kind of job? And she could choose to go to Earth from here?"

"Helping you, that was the job. And a tough one it turned out to be." Polly smiled and then went back to her story. "The trip really excited her. She hadn't been to Earth in over one hundred and fifty years. Albert and Madelyn concocted the scheme that she would go to Earth as your baby. They were sure when you found out you were pregnant you would give up the vodka and make a life for yourself with Scooter, as Mattie's mom, but you didn't."

"So you're trying to tell me that the screaming kid I carted around for three years was actually my great, great grandmother...ahh reincarnated as my daughter?"

"She was."

"And she went all the way there to help me?"

"She tried, but things just seemed to get worse."

"This is all pretty hard to believe."

"But true. Albert was a wreck watching you go downhill. Then their plan failed, you didn't stay with Scooter, and Madelyn was stuck in the body of a homeless three-year-old. She hoped to share her lifetime on Earth with you, but then you committed suicide." Polly looked into Emma's eyes. "But young spirits like you are particularly unpredictable."

"This whole thing is nuts. You're saying I just left my great, great grandmother trapped in the body of my daughter?"

"Yes, that's exactly right."

"Alright, Polly, if this really is true, why didn't I see her like that?" Emma pointed to the photograph.

"You weren't really looking. You were focused on yourself, your unhappiness and vodka. Mattie has always been glorious. Your eyes shut out her beauty, as well as your own."

For the longest time, Emma could say nothing; she just stared at the photo. Then she started to cry. "Oh-my-gosh, Polly, why did she do that? Why did she go?"

"Because she loves you so much."

Emma buried her head in Polly's chest and sobbed. Polly consoled her by running her fingers through her hair. "It's going to be fine now, honey."

Emma looked up at Polly, eyes red and swollen. "Do you know what I did to her? I used her to make money for booze. I dressed her up really cute and we begged from the tourists. They couldn't resist her face. I dragged her around and complained about her all the time. I made her sleep at a homeless shelter."

"Yes, I know, dear, but it's okay now."

"No, it's not okay now. If they didn't have any beds at the shelter sometimes we had to sleep in the alley."

Polly pulled a tissue from her pocket and wiped the tears from Emma's face. "Here, blow," she said holding the tissue under Emma's nose.

"My daughter was so beautiful but I never saw it or felt it. Where was I? What was I thinking?" Emma blew her nose. "I was drunk! That's where I was. I was drunk."

Polly crinkled up the tissue and tossed it in the trash can. "You were, yes, but beating yourself up won't help the situation."

"I hated my life." Emma looked up at Polly with tear-filled eyes. "But you're right; I didn't see what was right in front of me. I was too busy figuring out where I was going to get money for booze, and getting drunk, and dealing with hangovers. There wasn't any time left for enjoying life."

"I'm glad you can see that so clearly now."

"Now I can, yeah, but then, I couldn't see this." Emma pointed to the photo. "Even if you had told me I would never have believed it. I mean, it's hard to believe it all now, but then, in the midst of it all, I would've thought you were completely wacko."

"It's hard to see things as they really are. Sometimes the beauty gets masked by the pain."

"What?"

"You were suffering after your mother died. You just didn't know of any other way to deal with the pain you felt inside."

"And I was scared. Some people on the streets preyed on young girls like me. Booze helped me be stronger."

"You thought it did."

"No, really it did." Emma shook her head.

"You thought you were stronger because you were drunk, but really you were much weaker and more vulnerable. Alcohol gave you a fake sense of security."

"What do you mean fake?"

"Alcohol fooled you into believing things that weren't true."

"Like what?"

"Like your life was bad. Or that drinking more would make things better, or you'd be safer."

"But my life was bad."

"That was an illusion."

"If I had been sober it would have been worse."

"How?"

"I would have had to deal with my own problems."

"Yes, and?"

"Isn't that enough?"

"Everyone has to deal with their own problems. Dealing with them makes you stronger."

"But the vodka made them disappear."

"Really."

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Well, for a bit."

"Like when?"

"Like the first gulp. Everything faded away."

"After that?"

Emma sighed. "Oh, you're right damn-it. It all just came crashing back on me even harder than before. It was like I was free for a few minutes, I could forget about Mom, and then all of a sudden I'd be terrified and panic stricken. Then I'd be begging for money or selling my body for a couple bucks to buy more, just to try and escape for a few more seconds."

"But morning always comes."

"What?"

"Morning, a new day. It always comes and must be looked straight in the eye. That's very hard to do with a hangover."

"I see your point. In the morning I'd be throwing up, feeling like crap, not only from the booze, but from the guilt. I'd never have admitted this then; I hated myself more every time I put that bottle to my lips. I just couldn't help myself."

"Addiction is a tough cycle to break."

"How could I have done it?"

"Each soul has to answer that question for himself or herself. But I can tell you, if you look into the mirror and learn to love what you see, not what you look like, but who you are, inside, as a spirit, you will know no matter what happened to you, no matter what you have done, are doing, or might think is wrong with your life, you are perfect."

"But I'm not perfect."

"Every spirit is perfection. There is nothing else. No matter how much pain you feel, you are still that perfection."

"But that's so hard as a human. We beat ourselves up over everything."

"I know, honey, I know. I'm still dealing with issues from my last life time. But that's part of being human, joy and pain. You'll discover they are one and the same."

"That's very confusing. I thought you said I wasted my life drinking because of the pain."

"I did."

"Now you're talking about joy. I don't remember any joy."

"None?"

Emma thought for a second. "There were the doughnuts." She chuckled. "We made friends with this lady that worked at the doughnut shop, Betty. She would sneak us the day old doughnuts. They were perfectly fine, but they couldn't sell them. I loved the big fat ones that were filled with custard and covered with chocolate frosting. So did Mattie. We would fight over them and we'd get laughing and tickling each other until both our faces were covered in gooey chocolate and custard." Emma smiled. "That was fun."

"Within the pain there is much joy and beauty. Life is never just about pain. It always brings good things along. Sometimes you've just got to be willing to see it."

"So now that I know I could have made a better life for myself and Mattie can I go back?"

Polly cocked her head. "Go back where?"

"To Earth?"

"What makes you think you could do that?"

"My great, great grandmother did it."

"Under very different circumstances."

"I wish I could do it all over. I'd call Scooter and tell him how much I love him. I'd tell him about Mattie, throw away the booze and run into his arms."

Polly gently placed her hand under Emma's chin. "If only you had understood that lesson on Earth, baby girl. It's too late now."

"Too late?" Emma could barely breathe. "But, Polly, can I just go back, knowing what I know now?"

"It doesn't work that way. When we don't learn our lessons on Earth we must learn them here and trust me, it's harder from here."

"Harder? How can it possibly be any harder?"

"Once we see our mistakes we can't go back to our former life and fix the things we messed up. We can only use the wisdom we learn for future reference."

"Does that mean I'll never be with my daughter? I need to apologize for being such a rotten mother."

"I know it's difficult, but when you made the decision to take your life, you gave up the chance to raise Mattie and live as her mother."

The finality of that seemed too enormous to contemplate. Still, Emma had to try. "But grandma Madelyn went to Earth to help me. Why can't I go back to help Mattie?"

Polly patted her hand. "You have much to learn before you can be reincarnated, and still you would only be a little baby yourself. Besides, I wouldn't worry too much about Madelyn; remember she's a very old spirit."

"Will Madelyn hate me for leaving her alone?"

"Oh, dear, there's not an ounce of hate in Madelyn's soul. In her twenty thousand years of life..."

"Wow, wait a minute. Here we go again with the twenty thousand year old thing."

Polly continued, "She has grown beyond all negative emotion. Ultimately, there's only love and that's Madelyn. It's too bad you didn't get to experience her love on Earth. When an old spirit, like Madelyn, returns to Earth, miracles happen."

"Miracles? What kind of miracles?"

"While she's small the changes on Earth will be minor, involving only things and lives around her, but as she ages, things will change dramatically."

"If I had stayed, I could have been a part of that?"

"If you were open to it."

"But you said her spirit could change lives. Why not mine?"

"It could have, had you let it. One wise old spirit like Madelyn can offset the negativity of hundreds of thousands. Earth desperately needs these loving, giving and wise spirits or young spirits would all self-destruct."

"Young spirits, like me?"

"We all have to start somewhere." Polly giggled.

"Madelyn will teach people?"

"She will. An old spirit can help new spirits grow at rapid rates, restore Mother Earth, bring families together, heal human bodies, and change the future."

"I guess Madelyn won't miss me then?"

"That's hard to answer." Polly adjusted the bow on top of her head. "Because I know Mattie will help many people while she's there, but her real goal left with you." She stood up, pulled back the comforter and handed Emma a silk nightgown. "It's been a long day, maybe you'd better rest."

"I'm very tired." Emma changed and crawled in between the sheets, Charlie purring by her side.

Polly tucked them in and kissed Emma's forehead. "Good-night, honey. Get some rest. Tomorrow will be a very busy day."

"Thank you. You've made me feel so welcome here."

"You are, honey, you are. We love you very much. Get some rest and I'll see you in the morning."

Emma was exhausted. It felt wonderful to lie in a big bed with new sheets and a fluffy comforter. She wrapped her arm around her purring kitten. It was heavenly, except for the glow that came from the portrait of her daughter.

She rolled onto her stomach and looked up at the photo. "Where are you? Are you still at the shelter?" A tear rolled down her cheek. She wiped it away with the pillow case. "I hope you're with your father. He'll take good care of you. Yes, he will, if they found him, if he hasn't changed." She thought about her great, great, grandmother. "I can't believe you went there to help me. And I left you. Left you all alone, trapped in the body of a helpless, homeless, and now motherless three-year-old. What was I thinking? Please forgive me Grandma Madelyn, please forgive me."

### Chapter Four

### Incoming Orders

Polly barged in the front door. "Good morning. I can't wait to show you around the factory today."

"Good morning," Emma yelled from the bedroom.

"You'll find some clothes in the closet. Lime green coveralls."

Emma opened the closet door; the coveralls were embroidered with 'The Cat Factory' and a cat's face. She also found new underwear, socks, sneakers and t-shits. She slipped on some panties and a t-shirt and then pulled the coveralls over the top.

Polly sat at the kitchen table. "You're going to love it."

"What?"

"The factory."

"I still can't believe we really make cats."

"It's incredible."

Polly and Emma made their way to the factory, chatting about different breeds of cats. Emma excited about seeing the process, Polly anxious to show her the miracles life held in store.

"Where are we going this morning?" Emma asked.

"First, we're going to pick up Albert. Then we're going to give you a brief overview of the factory's ordering department."

A few minutes later, the ladies pulled up to Albert's office door. Polly barely knocked and then walked in. A big mahogany desk sat in the middle, with two soft brown leather chairs facing it. Plush, emerald green carpeting cushioned their steps. Two large picture windows provided a view of a lake surrounded by enormous pine trees. The sun shone through the trees, while ducks swam on the lake. Emma's grandfather sat at his desk puffing on his pipe.

He looked up and smiled. "Welcome my dears. How are you both today?"

Polly smiled as she plopped into one of the leather chairs. "We're great, Albert. How about you?"

"I'm fine."

Sheepishly, Emma slid into the chair next to Polly, looked at Albert and said, "Finding out that Grandma Madelyn went to Earth to help me has been on my mind quite a bit."

Albert looked at Polly. "You told her?"

Polly smiled. "Yes, last night. She asked about the photograph."

Albert turned toward Emma. "I know it's a rough situation. There's so much for you to learn, and many of those lessons aren't going to be easy." He smiled and put down the pipe. "The life you left behind will cause you much sorrow."

"Can I do anything to help Madelyn?"

"There's nothing you can do now. She'll have to do that for herself."

"So what am I supposed to do? I ruined her life and my own."

"Best thing we can do is get you focused on something new and leave the past to work itself out."

"Work itself out how?"

"As you move forward you will see things beginning to fall into place."

"I don't understand."

"But you will. For now let's talk about The Cat Factory."

Emma looked forward to talking about something besides her wasted life. "Fine with me."

Albert took a deep breath. "Like I said yesterday, we make all the cats for the entire universe. I know it seems impossible, but it's real. Every little part from the bones to the heart is made right here. It's a complicated process, so we're going to take it one step at a time."

He stood up and looped his arm through Emma's. "Let's head over to the ordering department, that's where it all begins. The lady who runs this department lived her last life time in Russia. Her name's Olga. She runs her department like a General in the Marines." Albert smiled. "Her tone is firm and demanding, but that instills a sense of responsibility in her workers. Her division runs smoothly, and the people love her. They know her bark is much worse than her bite, and although she'll appear hard as a rock, her core is pure honey."

After a short walk, the three of them stood in front of a large door labeled Incoming Orders. Albert opened the door and they went inside. It looked very busy, papers everywhere; walls covered with post-its and scribbled notes, everyone talking at the same time. It looked like ten thousand people worked there. A computer screen forty feet long and twenty feet tall stood in the front of the room.

Trying to take it all in, Emma looked around until a short, gray-haired lady sauntered over to them. "Hi, Albert, Hi, Polly. I assume you're Emma?" She shook Emma's hand. "I'm Olga and I run this department."

Olga took Emma's arm in hers and started to walk; she explained the ordering process on the way. "Vell, when the female cat meets the male cat and you know, the sperm fertilizes the egg, the order for kittens gets initialized."

She asked one of the technicians to take a break so Emma could look at his computer. "Please sit down. See here, this is a new order."

Galaxy: Milky Way

Planet: Earth

Delivery Date: December 15th, 2010

Mother: Black long hair, small size, green eyes, black nose, whiskers and pads.

Health: Excellent.

Father: Orange short hair, large size, yellow eyes, pink nose and pads, white whiskers.

Health: Excellent.

Olga pointed at the screen. "The computer tells us the basic information about the two parents. Once that information is known, we get to decide the details."

She took Emma's hand again and they walked over to what looked like a hundred big round tables. Six people sat at each table, arguing.

"This is our debating area, where all the details are decided. Each group of debaters decides how many kittens will be born to those parents, what colors they will be and every detail down to the tiniest whisker."

Emma listened to the people arguing. "No, she's a black female; I don't want to send a calico."

"I think that one should have blue eyes, not gold."

"No way, the parents have gold and green."

Olga looked at Emma. "They'll debate these issues until they're all happy. Once every detail is decided, the order is finalized and placed on the large computer screen."

Emma watched the huge screen when the order came across for the couple they followed:

Galaxy: Milky Way

Planet: Earth

Ship Date: December 15th, 2010

Quantity: Three

1. Black female, long hair, small build, white spot on belly, black whiskers, nose and pads, blue eyes.

2. Orange male, long hair, white stripes, large build, white whiskers, pink nose and pads, green eyes.

3. Calico female, long hair, medium build, black whiskers, pink nose and pads, gold eyes.

"I see they held out for the calico." Olga laughed. "Once the orders are on the large computer they can head out to the factory and get into production."

Olga talked as an order flashed across the screen with a big gold star next to one of the kitten's descriptions. "See the gold star? That means there's a prayer attached to the kitten."

Emma looked at her as if she were speaking Russian. "I have no clue what you're talking about."

"Let me explain. When someone prays to receive a kitten, all those prayers go into our data base. The prayers are matched with the closest pregnant female fitting the description of the prayer requirements. Once the gold star is attached to the order, the kitten is promised to the person praying and we make that special order just for them. After the kitten is born, coincidence and fate take care of the rest."

Emma smirked. "Are you serious?"

"Let me give you an example. My friend, Sue, incarnated on Earth right now, prayed for a long-haired black cat, very lovable and cuddly. The order came in and we saw a black female and a black male had mated in a town fifteen miles from her house. We placed a star on the long-haired female for Sue. Now, of course, Sue knows nothing of the whole thing, but she keeps praying for the kitten."

"And you can hear her prayers?"

"Yes, we can. When the litter of kittens is born, fate guides the kitten's current owner to take them to a pet shop to find homes. The pet shop just happens to be close to Sue's house. At the same time, Sue and her husband drive by a shopping center where he notices a hardware store. He needs something and they pull in. The pet shop is next door. Sue peeks in the window and spots six tiny black kittens. She walks in, looks down, and there's a long-haired female crying at her. She picks up the kitten and an everlasting relationship is born. The prayer is fulfilled."

"Prayers for kittens come across this computer?" Emma shook her head in disbelief. "I never thought anyone listened to prayers." She looked at Olga. "It's pretty hard to believe that pleas for kittens actually come here, go into production, and then travel all the way to Earth, just to fulfill somebody's dream. I can't comprehend people, real people, like you all, take the time to figure out how one little kitten will get to its new home out of millions of households. How can that work? It's impossible, nothing can be that well planned."

"Trust me. It is. Down to the smallest detail."

"It's just a coincidence. Don't you think? That your friend got her cat."

"Ah, my dear, coincidence is not what you think. It's not an accident or strange chance. Coincidence means things are coinciding, working together in harmony, in this case to answer Sue's prayer. The universe is a synchronized living organism. The heavens are in a dance of life with everything that exists. There are no chance meetings, no missed paths; everything is perfect, absolutely perfect, just as it happens."

Emma had so many questions rushing through her head, but it seemed like the more answers she got, the more questions she had.

"Are you alright?" Olga asked.

"Just watching all those orders coming in."

"Fun isn't it?"

"Wait a minute, what's that?" Emma pointed at the screen.

Galaxy: Andromeda

Planet: Lipariti

Ship Date: 3-256-789000

Quantity: Two

1. Blue female, long hair, small build, blue whiskers, nose, pads, and eyes.

2. Blue and white calico male, shaggy hair, extra large build, black whiskers, nose, pads and eyes.

"They're ordering kittens for another galaxy?"

Olga patted her on the back. "Yes, Andromeda."

"Never heard of it."

"It's close to the Milky Way. In fact you can see it from Earth."

"Never saw it either. And those kittens they're ordering, they're blue!"

"What's wrong with blue?"

"Kittens don't come in blue."

"In the Andromeda Galaxy they do."

"Of course they do," Emma said sarcastically, wondering if things could possibly get any weirder.

Olga looked at Albert. "You haven't explained to her about the other galaxies yet, have you?"

Albert lowered his eyes. "I hoped you would do that, Olga."

Olga took Emma's hand. "Let's go sit down."

They went into a room with a big table in the middle. Emma pulled out the chair at the head of the table, and Olga poured her a glass of water. Albert lit his pipe, took a big drag, and stared at Emma as if she were the one from another planet ordering a blue kitten.

Olga, a worried look on her face and shakiness in her voice, said, "Your grandfather has neglected to explain to you..."

This has got to be good, Emma thought.

"About the different galaxies." Olga continued. "The Milky Way, which is Earth's home, is only one of ten trillion galaxies that make up the universe."

Emma couldn't imagine one thousand galaxies, least of all ten trillion. "I thought the Milky Way galaxy was the whole universe."

"The Milky Way is only a tiny, tiny speck in a massive universe."

"I'm starting to get a headache." Emma sat, head throbbing, trying to imagine ten trillion galaxies.

"Now, lucky for us at The Cat Factory, not all those galaxies have cats," Olga continued, "Nearly all galaxies have life at this moment, but only one million have cats. Within those million galaxies only from one to five planets will support life."

"And that means?"

"In total we supply approximately two million planets with cats."

"Two million?"

Olga sighed, Albert took a deep breath, and Polly looked at Emma, waiting for her response.

Emma wanted to get up and run away, screaming. This place flooded her brain with bizarre ideas. She took a sip of water and swallowed.

Finally, after a few minutes, her shock started to fade. "If there really are two million planets that have cats, how the hell many cats do you make here?"

"On the average we make two hundred million cats per day," Albert said. "That's mostly domestic cats but does include the big cats as well."

"But I don't understand how it all gets done. It seems impossible."

Albert put his pipe down. "It is impossible, dear, but somehow it all gets done. Call it hard work, or a miracle, but every kitten gets shipped when it's supposed to. You'll see it all in progress as you learn more about how we operate."

### Chapter Five

### Skeletal Structure

"Albert has decided to have you work in Skeletal Structure today," Polly said. "He thinks you'll benefit by getting your mind off the facts and your hands into the process. I agree."

Emma looked at her shyly. "I'm nervous about starting work today, and I still have so many unanswered questions."

They sped to work in Polly's little cart. "Don't be nervous about work, honey, everyone here is very nice, and the questions, well, they'll all get answered in due time. There's no rush, relax, and have some fun creating."

Moments later, they pulled up to the Skeletal Structure Department. Polly introduced Emma to the boss, Nick, and drove away. Emma felt lost without Polly at her side, but Nick eased her strain. He looked like a model, tall with short blonde hair and very well groomed. The sleeves of his coveralls were cut off, revealing his muscular arms and tanned skin, with a large tattoo of a white tiger on his left bicep.

He had a charming smile. "I'm so happy you're joining us. I've known your family for over a thousand years." He put his arm around Emma's shoulders and they started walking.

"Here in my department," he said, "we make all the bones for every species of cat. Cat's bones are unique; they need to be lightweight yet amazingly sturdy. The feline skeleton has to support extremely fast speeds, dexterous agility, and extraordinary grace. Did you know that cats have more bones than humans?"

Emma shook her head. "No."

"Mostly because of their tails, but honestly, the whole structure is amazing, just amazing." Nick stopped by a huge vat of what looked like plaster. "This is bone in a liquid form. We fill the molds, let them dry, and then remove the newly formed bones from the molds."

"The bones are made in molds?"

"Yes, that's how we get them so perfect." Nick grabbed something off the table and placed it Emma's hand. It looked like a leg bone. She rubbed it between her fingers, noticing it felt smooth and soft, like marble.

"Beautiful, huh? That's a femur. Once the bones are removed from the molds, they're sanded, sealed and quality checked."

He took the small bone from her hand and they continued walking. Conveyor belts filled with bones ran for miles, some in molds, some being sanded and others being coated with sealer. Although everyone worked hard, they talked, smiled and laughed. Nick and Emma walked up to a conveyor filled with thousands of skulls.

He picked one up and looked at it inquisitively. "Perfection, shear perfection." He placed it in Emma's hand. "These are ready to get sent to assembly."

"So how many people work in this department?"

"Well, Emma, there are about five hundred in mold making, a thousand in pouring, three thousand in un-molding, three thousand in finishing, and five thousand in assembly. Actually, as of today there are three thousand and one in un-molding," he added as he patted her shoulder.

She laughed. "You mean me?"

"I sure do. Oh yeah, I don't want to forget our resident artist, Nigel. Not that you'll ever meet him. He's a loner. Nigel sculpts the original bones that all the molds are made from. He's the only master craftsmen in my department."

"That must be a fascinating job."

"Well, we better get you to work. I'm going to have you start in the un-molding department because it's the easiest job on the line." Nick walked with Emma over to the assembly line and pulled out a chair for her next to an older lady.

"Emma, this is Mary." Nick pushed in Emma's chair. "She's worked on this line for two hundred years. Mary, this is Emma, Albert's granddaughter. Can you show her the ropes?"

Mary smiled and shook Emma's hand. "It's really busy here, young lady, there's lots of important work to be done. No messin' around."

She sounded tough, but she smiled the whole time.

Emma watched as Mary grabbed a big blue rubber mold, unhooked two clips and pulled off the top half. An entire cat skeleton, everything except the skull, rested inside, each and every tiny bone nestled in pliable rubber. She removed them carefully and placed them on a plastic tray lined with a soft fabric.

"Some of the larger bones come out easily, like the scapula," she said while she worked, "but the tinier bones, like the phalanges, need to be removed with tweezers."

Emma watched in amazement as Mary removed the tiny, delicate bones from the mold.

"Everything gets carefully placed on the tray and then sent down the line to finishing. Then the mold gets thrown in the big bin behind us to be reused." She turned and tossed the empty mold into a big yellow plastic dumpster on wheels.

Emma pulled her chair in close, rolled up her sleeves and grabbed a mold. She unclamped the hooks holding the two half's together, cautiously lifted off the top half, and revealed a perfect cat skeleton. She hadn't noticed earlier, but the mold was labeled below each bone with its name; Ilium, pelvis, isocheim, tibia, ribs, sternum etc. The mold itself was labeled 'domestic house cat medium size.'

She took Mary's advice, carefully removing the larger bones first and placing them on the soft tray. Then she took her tweezers and gently pried all the tiny bones from the mold. This task seemed difficult at first, but her overly cautious behavior slowed her down. After she'd finally finished one, she threw the mold behind her, passed the tray of bones on to the next station and started un-molding her next cat.

The fast pace of the line left Emma way behind, but as time went on, she picked up speed.

"You're doin' good, honey," Mary said.

The job helped Emma feel focused and important. As she worked, she thought about all those cats running around, jumping, playing and hunting. It felt great to be a part of something, something bigger than her old life.

Mary, a little Italian lady with dark hair, olive skin and dark eyes, taught Emma everything she knew. "Now as you get used to handling the bones you'll be able to do a quick quality check. If there are any large cracks, the bone needs to be thrown away." She picked up a pelvis bone with a crack, let Emma look it over and then tossed it into a large plastic bin in front of the conveyor belt. "That's where defective bones go, they'll be recycled.

"You can find any hairline cracks by running your fingertips over each bone. Luckily, only one percent of the bones made have them. And if you miss one, don't worry too much, because they'll be thoroughly checked in quality control."

The day went by quickly. Emma loved working on the line with such pleasant, friendly folks. She never thought people could be that nice. No hatred, no malicious gossip, no judgment, jealousy, or criticism. No alcohol or drugs. Happiness oozed out of everyone. It really was heaven, in more ways than one.

Her hours on the line turned into days and her days turned into weeks. She had un-molded thousands of skeletons for many different species of cat. She especially loved working on the African lions. The molds were so big that Mary and Emma worked on them together. Even though they were bigger, the structure was exactly the same.

Emma learned the purpose of each bone and how the entire structure had been designed to be a perfect predator.

"The skeleton gives the cat superb balance and flexibility to enable it to catch its prey," Mary explained.

Learning made Emma long to meet Nigel, the man who brought it all together by designing these perfect bones, but so far she had not even caught a glimpse of him.

Her weeks faded into months. During that time, she'd traveled around Nick's department and done almost every job, made molds, poured molds, sanded, finished and assembled skeletons. She was on top of the world, except for the sinking feeling that she had left Mattie alone at the bottom.

### Chapter Six

### Life Cam

That night, Emma stared at the photo of Mattie, like she did every night before bed. "I hope you're with your father." She put on her nightgown and folded back the comforter. "Why do you look different tonight?" She moved closer to the photo, analyzing it. "You look older. But that's impossible; a photo can't age."

She opened her bedroom window and yelled out, "Polly, can you come here for a second?"

Polly ran across the yard and barged into the house. "What is it, Emma, are you okay?" She threw her chenille robe on over her purple flannel nightgown.

"I'm fine. I just wanted to know why this photo seems to be aging."

Polly sighed and rested her bottom on the bed. "The photo is aging because your daughter is aging on Earth. You've been here about six months and you're starting to see changes in her looks."

"But photos don't age."

"This isn't a photograph like they make on Earth. This is a camera into your daughter's life."

"A camera?"

"It's called a Life Cam. You can watch her from here and see everything she's doing and becoming. This is how Albert and I watched you."

"Why didn't you show me this sooner so I could check on her? You know how worried I've been?"

Polly grabbed Emma's hand. "Oh, Emma, dear, we were worried you would get upset by what you saw and not focus on your work here."

"What do you mean I'd get upset? Are things bad for Mattie? I want to know, I need to know. Is she stuck in the shelter? Is she okay?" Emma grabbed Polly by the arms, almost shaking her. "Help me, Polly, please!"

"Calm down, dear, I don't know what has happened to Mattie. Until we activate the Life Cam we won't know anything."

Emma placed her hands on her hips. "Let's activate the damn thing then!"

"It's not that easy." Polly raised her eyebrows. "There's a down side to the Life Cam."

"I don't care. I just want to know she's okay."

"Slow down a minute and let me explain. Once it's activated you'll see everything that happens to Mattie, good and bad." Polly nodded. "You'll experience her pain and joy, almost as if it was your own."

"Alright, I can handle that."

"It's very difficult to watch someone you love suffering."

"But if she's in trouble maybe I can help her."

"That's the hardest part. You can't affect anything from here. You can't help her in any way, no matter what you see. It can be very, very upsetting. I'm sorry to say, you chose to leave Mattie on Earth, and it's probably best to try and forget about her."

"Polly, I need to know what's going on. Please, I missed enjoying the first few years of my daughter's life. I didn't know any better, but now I do. I want to know where she's living and what she's doing. Please help me."

"You think you can handle the consequences?"

"I do."

"And you won't let it affect your work here?"

"I swear." Emma held her hand over her heart.

"I know I'm going to regret this." Polly sighed. "I'll activate the Life Cam, but it can't affect what you're doing. You have your own potential to fulfill."

Emma looked at her pleadingly. "I promise, I promise. It won't affect my work here in any way."

Polly reached up to the photo, flipped down a secret panel inside the frame and pulled out a tiny remote control. She closed the panel and placed the remote gently in Emma's hands. "I'll leave you with this remote. If you decide to activate the Life Cam remember, there's no turning back. You'll watch everything Mattie experiences, pleasure and suffering, and you won't be able to help her in any way. You can use reverse to see her past, but you can't use fast forward to see her future, it doesn't work that way. You can't see it until she's lived it, because of her free will."

Emma held the remote tightly in her hand and shooed Polly out the door as fast as she could. "I'll see you later, Polly, thanks for everything."

She ran into the bedroom, jumped on the bed, and sat facing the photograph. She felt like she was either going to throw up or have a heart attack. Her heart raced with eagerness and apprehension. She set the switch to 'on' and entered the date. "Here goes," she said as she pressed play. A question flashed across the screen.

"Are you sure you want to activate Life Cam?" Emma read out loud.

She looked at the remote, at a big red button labeled 'no' and a big green button labeled 'yes'. She hesitated for a second and then pressed 'yes'. "Yes, I'm sure." Flashing across the screen were the words:

Life Cam activated.

The first thing Emma heard was laughter. A good sign, she thought. Then she saw Mattie laughing and running through a house. She looked happy, clean and dressed in new clothes.

"Oh-thank-God," Emma said. "You're safe."

Mattie hid behind a big chair, smiling. Her head overflowed with bright red curls.

"You look so much like your father." Emma wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Why hadn't I noticed how cute you are?"

Then she heard Scooter's voice. "Where are you, pumpkin? I'm coming to find you." He snuck around the room, pretending not to see Mattie, but she giggled the whole time.

"You're with your father. I'm so happy you're together."

Finally, he caught her and threw her up into his arms. She laughed and smiled. He looked at her lovingly. "Daddy's got work to do. How about painting with me?"

Mattie smiled as she skipped into a sunny room lined with paintings and art supplies. Scooter had an easel with a painting in progress, and Mattie had a tiny easel right next to it with a painting of her own.

"You're going to be a wonderful artist," Emma mumbled. "And you're not even four-years-old yet." She moved closer to the Life Cam, studying Mattie's face. "Are you really my great, great grandmother? I wish I knew for sure."

She turned off the Life Cam and took a deep sigh of relief. "For once things are falling into place." She laid her head on the pillow, pulled the comforter up over her shoulders and put her arm around Charlie. Right here, right now, she was at peace for the first time in her life.

### Chapter Seven

### Nigel's Studio

The morning brought with it a continued sense of serenity. Emma slipped on her coveralls and waited outside for Polly to arrive. The cherry trees were blossoming and the aroma filled the air. She took a deep breath, letting her new reality meld with the old. Mattie was safe. She was with her father. "She'll have a good life now," Emma assured Polly on the ride to work.

She walked in Skeletal Structure with a smile on her face, grabbed a cup of coffee and began telling Mary about the Life Cam. "You should see her." Emma added a packet of sugar to her cup. "She looks so happy."

"Good morning, ladies." Nick poured himself a large black coffee. "Emma, we need to talk."

Emma looked up. "Okay." She grabbed her cup and followed Nick to his office.

"Please," Nick said motioning, "have a seat. You've done a fantastic job here. In just a short time you've learned every step like an expert."

"Thanks." Emma grinned. "It's been really fun working here."

"I've informed Albert of your accomplishments and before you leave my department, he would like you to work with Nigel, to understand how the skeleton is designed."

"Nigel, the artist?"

"Yes."

"But what can I do? I'm no artist."

"He'll teach you how the original bones are sculpted."

Emma moved forward in her chair. "Really?"

Nick's wrinkled brow told Emma he was worried. "Nigel's very talented, but he's shy, evasive and a bit odd. I'm not sure how he's going to respond to this." Nick stood up. "But I guess we're going to find out soon enough."

Emma followed Nick to Nigel's studio. He knocked. "Nigel, are you there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," a voice said from behind the door. "What is it?"

Nick shook the door knob. It was locked. "Can you open the door? There's someone I want you to meet."

"I'd rather not."

"It's Albert's granddaughter."

Emma could hear footsteps.

The door opened.

She gasped. In front of them stood the most handsome man she'd ever laid eyes on. He was tall and thin with black silky hair, black glasses and eyes that were, amazingly, also black. He wore a gray angora sweater with skin tight black leather pants.

He smiled but it looked strained. "I have to teach the new girl the ropes, huh?"

"Emma, this is Nigel," Nick said. "Nigel, Emma."

Nigel nodded at her. She could tell by his smirk, that he was going to be fun.

"You'll find she's very talented," Nick said.

Nigel looked at Nick. "I guess we'll see about that now, won't we? See you later, Nick." Nigel pulled Emma into the room and closed the door in Nick's face.

Emma noticed a sexy wiggle in his stride as he walked away from her. "Well, come on, let's get started." He motioned for her to follow. "I've got tons of work to do. And it's about time they gave me some help."

Bronze sculptures of assembled cat skeletons, placed around the room on wooden pedestals, gave the room the elegance and air of an art gallery. Every one of them looked wonderful: Domestic Cat, African Lion, Lynx, Leopard and many Emma didn't know. One of the most incredible was the Saber Tooth Tiger.

"I didn't realize there really was such a thing as a Saber Tooth Tiger," Emma said.

"Yes, it really did exist on Earth, but we were forced to retire that species because of its appetite for humans." He chuckled with a slightly evil tone.

Emma laughed. She liked his sense of humor.

"You came at a fantastic time. I'm working on a new species."

Emma could feel the enthusiasm in his voice. "How exciting," she said.

"This new cat, it's for The Andromeda Galaxy, for a planet called Ominous. It will be bigger than a Tiger and faster than a Cheetah."

He waved Emma over to his desk. "These are the final sketches from New Species Development."

"Oh my-gosh, Nigel these are magnificent." Emma loomed over the artwork.

"The sketches specify every detail about the new cat, bones, organs, fur, whiskers, etc. Every tiny feature is planned out, even the name. The new breed will be called Bozena."

"Bozena," Emma repeated, trying to pronounce it correctly.

Nigel looked up, his big black eyes peeking over his glasses. "Pretty amazing, huh?"

"Most definitely."

"Here we'll design the skeleton. The whole thing has to fit together and function perfectly. It's going to be a major predator so it needs to be very fast and strong, yet flexible and graceful. All which starts right here with the skeleton."

Nigel took her over to a large work table. "The first step is to sculpt each bone to the specs, out of clay. You can see I've started that process." He lifted up a bone. "See how it matches the drawing?"

"You're a genius."

Nigel laughed. "Yeah, right."

"You are."

"No time for debating on my genius status." Nigel placed the bone on the table. "We've got a lot to do."

"That sounds great." Emma picked up a wad of clay.

"I know people think I'm antisocial. But this kind of work, it takes concentration."

"I totally understand. To do this job you've got to have passion for what you're doing."

He grinned.

They sat at a work table together, and he carefully began to teach her the art of sculpting rib bones.

She loved the feel of the clay in her fingers and the way the creative process eased her mind and awakened her heart. Working with Nigel released the artistic spirit in her, unleashing a power that existed all along. She had just been too naive to access it.

Emma's life began to revolve around her work with Nigel. She rushed to The Cat Factory every morning, then hurried home to check on Mattie on the Life Cam. She slept and started all over again. Creating something from nothing with her own hands gave her a pleasure she never knew existed.

***

A few months later, the clay mock ups for the Bonzena were finished. Next they made a mold from the clay and poured two plaster skeletons. After the skeletons dried, they assembled them; being sure every part fit together perfectly and would function correctly.

"Wow, Nigel," Emma said, "it's beautiful."

"Now all we have to do is get it approved so the factory can get production going."

"What do you mean approved?"

He took off his glasses, set them on the table and rubbed his eyes. "The people from New Species Development have to approve everything."

"Like what?"

"They have to check the specs." He nervously looked at his watch. "And they will be here any minute."

"But the skeleton is perfect. I don't know what you're so worried about." She put her arm around him. "It's brilliant, Nigel, really." She rested her head on his shoulder and thought about how much she had come to love him. He was the best friend she'd ever had. He made her feel talented, creative and needed. She had never felt needed before.

As they waited apprehensively for the inspectors to arrive, Emma thought it would be a good time to get some of her many questions answered.

"Have you lived on Earth before?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Were you happy in your last lifetime?"

"I was for awhile."

"What happened?"

"My lover was beaten to death."

Emma lifted her head off his shoulder. "I didn't mean to bring up something so sad. I didn't know."

"It's okay. It was a long time ago." Nigel turned toward Emma. "Pierre and I were dancing, lost in the music. He leaned over and kissed me; some guys got pissed, took us outside and beat us. Pierre died instantly."

Emma gasped. "I'm so sorry."

"I suffered for a few weeks before I finally died."

He looked into her eyes as they waited for the NSD to arrive. "If you ever come across Pierre, please tell him where I am. I've been looking for him ever since I've been here."

She took his hand in hers. "I'll help you look for him, sweetie." She kissed his cheek and they sat there quietly holding hands both thinking about their former lives.

A few minutes later they heard a loud knock on the door.

"Emma, can you get that, I'm too petrified."

She walked over and opened the door. Three men dressed in black suits, white shirts, black ties, and NSD tags hanging from their suit pockets stood there like statues. Timidly, she welcomed them in.

They didn't even introduce themselves, or stop to shake her hand; they just pushed past her as if she didn't exist and headed over to the Bozena skeleton. They stared, not saying a word. Then they walked around it, measured it, flexed its bones and wagged its tail. They looked at the drawings, took notes, calculated numbers, and looked at each other inquisitively.

Nigel and Emma waited.

Finally, they stopped staring at the Bozena, looked up and smiled. Emma's heart beat even harder. One of the men reached over to shake Nigel's hand. "This is brilliant, Nigel, absolutely brilliant. You and your new helper have outdone yourselves."

One of the other men handed Nigel a piece of paper. "Here's the release to send the models out for production. One needs to go to Internal Organs so they can start designing the heart and lungs, the other to Exterior Finishing, where they will design a custom pattern for the fur, one never seen before."

The men turned and left as quickly as they came. The minute they closed the door behind them Nigel and Emma jumped up and down screaming with joy like two kids who had just won their first little league game.

She looked at him with such delight. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. I've never experienced creation. I feel like you brought me to life and awoke my artistic spirit. I feel so alive and filled with vitality. I love you so much."

"I love you too, Emma." He kissed her cheek.

She hugged him, a long hug, the kind you really mean, the kind that's filled with love. "Wow, Nigel, we created a new species. I, me, little, pitiful, hopeless, alcoholic Emma helped create a new species. Oh-my-gosh!"

Another knock on the door interrupted their celebration. "Nigel, Emma, it's Nick."

She ran over and opened the door.

"Well, tell me, please, I can't stand it any longer," Nick said.

Nigel smiled. "They said brilliant!"

Nick sighed with relief, hugged Nigel and Emma and then walked admiringly around the Bozena skeleton. "I think we need to celebrate."

He picked up Nigel's phone. "We're having a celebration, Skeletal Structure, ASAP," he said and hung up.

"The party stuff will be here soon. I'm going to announce a party break to the department."

Emma had never been to a party here. She had no clue what to expect. People from the department started wandering through admiring the Bozena and congratulating her and Nigel. Albert and Polly arrived, supportive and proud. Everyone stopped working. Within a few minutes, a bunch of ladies showed up with punch and desserts.

By then the line had completely stopped. Nick turned from boss to DJ and Emma received hugs and congratulations from hundreds of people, genuinely happy people. On Earth she always got the impression when people handed out congratulations they really thought negatively, like maybe you didn't deserve to be congratulated, you cheated, or they were simply jealous. These people actually instilled a sincere, happy and loving feeling in her with their words and handshakes. Kindheartedness permeated the air. Emma felt incredible.

Standing back she took a moment to admire Nigel in his skin tight jeans and black turtle neck. He looked gorgeous, and she thought, I really do love this man with all my heart. What a beautiful spirit he is. I hope someday I can reunite him with Pierre to thank him for this experience. She felt a vitality she'd never felt before. Creative energy surged through her veins, like electrical current through a wire.

Nick had Louis Armstrong playing in the background, and people started to dance and sing. Emma just sat and smiled as she sipped her punch and ate chocolate-covered strawberries. She'd helped create a new species...how awesome was that!

***

Emma's days were unbelievably happy working with Nigel. Weeks flew by as if they never existed. Time stopped as her imagination took over her existence and she became one with the creative process. Parts of her brain sparked to life she'd never used before as she lost her individuality to the progression of the Bozena. She began to feel a new Emma emerging from the old, with a renewed thought process to match her renewed body.

Emma and Nigel worked on finishing the final molds for the Bozena and discussed life as they worked. She'd never had a friend she really felt herself with. He made her feel at ease, comfortable and free. With him she could say or do anything, ask silly questions, or even laugh at herself. He brought out the childlike freedom she had erased from her life at a very young age.

He looked at her and smiled. "You look a bit distracted today?"

"I'm just thinking about life on Earth and how much of it I wasted. Since I've been here creating cats I realize people must have created me in some other 'factory'. Somebody went to a lot of effort to create my life. I never appreciated my healthy body and good looks unless they could earn me money. I was trapped in the illusion I had nothing, when I had been given everything."

Nigel shook his head. "Sometimes it works that way. It's easier to appreciate things after they're gone. As humans we get caught up in our day to day existence, survival sometimes. And joy is harder to find. We become like busy little ants, rushing and racing to build, buy, and get ahead. We loose sight of the real reason for living; we just forget how to really be alive."

"I'm realizing that, now that it's too late."

"It's never too late. Someday, when you go back to Earth again, hopefully you'll remember to appreciate every moment, smell the flowers, love even when your heart is breaking, eat dessert everyday, sing in the shower, dance in the rain, go on picnics, paint and soak up every second of life's preciousness you can get."

"I sure hope I will."

"Most of all, thank God for the gift of life, and give Him the experience of creating through your hands." Nigel held Emma's hands in his.

She crinkled her forehead inquisitively and looked at him. "I'm just getting used to the idea that I was made in a factory like our cats are; now you're saying I should thank God for giving me life?"

"We only make the bodies, God creates life. We can carve bones, make noses and design fur. We can fill those bodies with blood and a heart, but the heart will not beat and the blood will not flow until God creates the spirit. Upon His creation of a spirit, life begins. Without His touch, these cats, you and I, would just be a pile of lifeless bones."

"Why doesn't He just snap his fingers and create it all? I mean He's magic, right?"

Nigel patted Emma's hand. "He does create it all, through us. God doesn't have a physical body of His own per say. God is pure energy and He experiences the joy of creation through us, we're His energy manifest in physical form."

"You're saying we're God?"

"In a way, yes, God experiences happiness and sorrow through us. A part of God goes into every spirit. God is in you, as He is in me. He loves to experience things and He can't do that without you."

"God can't experience things without me?"

"He sure can't. Everything you do God experiences with you. That's why it's important to enjoy life. Every time you're happy, God experiences happiness. When you love, God loves. Every time you dance, God dances. If you are compassionate, God gets to feel compassion. Whenever you have fun and laugh, God gets to do the same. Every time you create, God creates. Every moment you cherish life, you're making God very happy. He's living on Earth, in you, as you."

"Oh, Nigel, so when I wasted my time getting drunk, I wasted God's time too?"

"Sorry to say, Emma, but yes, in a way."

"What do you mean in a way?"

"There's value in every experience whether we judge it to be 'good' or 'bad'. God is experiencing life through you. Without you He would be just energy, therefore every experience is of value to Him. He doesn't judge those experiences, He only appreciates them. You're the one judging them."

"I'm getting frustrated. If God is living through me then wouldn't I want to give Him the best, most joyous experiences I could? Wouldn't I want to live life like I think God would?"

"You answered your own question. If you know God is living through you, of course you'd want to live life to its fullest and give him the most joy possible. The problem is you didn't know about God while you lived on Earth. You didn't even believe in God least of all that you were a part of God, and you'd have laughed in the face of anyone who told you otherwise."

Emma sighed. "Gee, you're right. Why am I learning all these things now that I needed to know on Earth?"

"You're learning things here in The Cat Factory which may have taken you hundreds of lifetimes on Earth to learn. Albert was heartbroken when you killed yourself. He pulled a lot of strings to get you here."

"But why would Albert do that? Why would God allow me to come here?"

Nigel shook his head. "Those questions I can't answer, you'll have to ask Albert himself."

"How many lifetimes have you lived on Earth?"

Nigel smiled. "Only three. I'm a young spirit like you."

"Do you remember them?"

"When I'm here I can remember every detail. I know what I did and who I loved. I retain all I learned and each bit of wisdom I gained.

"When I'm incarnate on Earth I don't recall any of the details of my former lives. I don't even know I've lived other lives, and I don't remember The Cat Factory. I hear some people can remember details of this place or past lifetimes when they're human, but I've never done it. What I do know is that I'm wiser and more in touch with creation each time I incarnate."

"So you get better at being human each time you go back?"

"As your spirit grows and learns you carry that knowledge with you for eternity. Like creation for example, my first two lifetimes I created a lot of junk, like you did. Most young spirits do, but I wised up the next time around and started to let God create through me. Once I did that, God started to create beautiful things like sculptures, paintings and loving relationships."

"You're telling me if I go back to Earth I won't remember you, or my last lifetime, but I will remember the wisdom of this conversation and be able to use that wisdom to make a better life for myself?"

Nigel smiled. "You've finally got it, exactly, that's why learning, creating and loving is vitally important. In those three things is where wisdom grows, and wisdom is the most valuable asset you will ever possess. Once learned, it's carried with you indefinitely; it becomes a part of your existence. Since your spirit is pure energy and energy always exists, wisdom therefore always exists."

***

That night, Emma turned the lights down, got into her jammies and flipped on the Life Cam. Scooter and Mattie were out to dinner at the pancake house. She looked adorable in a tiny pair of overalls decorated with Hello Kitty, a pink shirt and red curls flowing around her smiling face. She ordered her favorite, blueberry pancakes and chocolate milk.

"Gosh, you look adorable," Emma said out loud. "I want to pinch your fat little freckle-covered cheeks."

After they ate, the waitress, a pretty girl with long blonde hair and a bright smile, came over and sat with them. She leaned over and kissed Scooter and then kissed Mattie's cheek.

"Are you coming to my ballet recital, Katie?" Mattie asked the waitress.

"When is it, honey?"

Scooter looked at Katie. "It's a few months away yet, but we'd love it if you could come."

Katie sat down next to Mattie. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

The three of them chit chatted for a minute and then Katie started playing patty cake with Mattie. Mattie laughed hysterically. The happiness in her laughter was so contagious Emma could hardly stand it. She started laughing, as she watched them play, until Mattie fell asleep in Scooter's arms.

### Chapter Eight

### The Life Plan

Knock, knock.

"Emma, honey, it's Albert."

"Is it morning already?" She opened the door sleepy-eyed and wandered to the kitchen. "Want some cocoa?"

"Sure." Albert pulled up a chair at the table.

"How about an English muffin?"

"Great."

"You're here early." She filled the kettle and placed it on the stove.

"I wanted to talk with you alone."

"About what?"

"I know you had a rough life, but there must have been some good times."

"Yeah, there were." Emma smiled as she scooped two tablespoons of cocoa mix into each mug. "I remember sometimes on Saturday's Mom would surprise me with day out on the town." She walked to the refrigerator. "Do you use milk in yours?"

"Just a tiny bit."

"I loved those days." She closed the refrigerator and went back to the stove. "If our purple 1961 VW bug felt like running, we'd go for a grilled cheese, French fries, and a chocolate shake at the local diner. Everybody there knew us." The kettle whistled. She poured the hot water into the cups and then added some milk. "Here you go," she said handing Albert his cup.

"Thanks."

"After lunch, we'd go to a dollar matinee. We loved going, especially when there was a good scary movie playing." The toaster popped, she buttered the muffins, put them on plates and placed them on the table.

"Looks delicious." Albert took a bite of muffin.

"Then we'd go for a walk in the park so I could pet the dogs. I've always loved animals, but Mom wouldn't let me get a pet."

Albert stirred his cocoa. "Not even a cat?"

"Nope, she didn't want me to get too attached. She said it would just cause me pain."

Albert sighed. "I'm sorry about that. It was probably my fault she felt that way."

Emma sipped her cocoa. "Why would you say that?"

"I died when she was young. Maybe she felt abandoned."

"You don't know?"

"No. I couldn't use the Life Cam on her or your grandmother."

"Why not?"

"I missed them too much. It was interfering with my work here and they made me turn it off."

"They can do that?"

"When you're here there's no going back or changing things. It was what it was. I needed to move on, learn and grow, rather than watch what I was missing." Albert started to tear up. "I know they were hurt terribly by my death. But there was nothing I could do about it."

"Could you have gone back, like Great Grandma Madelyn did?"

"No, that's only allowed in severe cases and still it's impossible to affect another person's free will, even if you're standing in front of them. Things will play out as they're supposed to."

"But mine didn't."

"How can you say that?"

"Because I killed myself."

He sipped his cocoa. "But now you're here."

"But my life is over; obviously I didn't get it right."

"You simply don't know what you've come here to learn."

"But I messed up my life."

"You appear to have made some messes, yes."

"But a lot of it couldn't be helped."

"Really?"

"You say that like it's a question."

"Well, looking back on it from this point of view, were there answers?"

Emma looked at him inquisitively. "Maybe."

"There are always an endless number of answers."

"Like what?"

"At the very least, you could have gotten a job. That would have given you some pride and money."

"I thought I couldn't do anything right, especially not something people would pay me for. Unless I became a dancer, like Mom, and I couldn't do that. I hated seeing her do that."

"I know you did. I hate the thought of it myself."

"When I was really little I thought she was truly a dancer, but as I got older, I realized 'dancer' was just a fancy name for stripper." Emma chewed her muffin. "She used to sneak me into the back room because she couldn't afford a babysitter. The boss didn't want me there so I had to be really quiet. I liked hiding out in the dressing room with the girls while they got ready. It seemed really cool at the time, like Mom was a famous actress or something. I used to think, wow; my mom has the best job. She gets to dress in pretty clothes and really fancy underwear. She gets to wear makeup and nice perfume."

"It must have seemed that way to you as a little girl."

"A few years later, I started to understand what she really did, and it sucked."

"Can you think of something you could have done to change things?"

"Like what?"

"Anything at all?"

"I guess I could have tried harder to get her to quit."

Albert nodded.

"I could have paid attention in school."

"Yes."

"I guess I could have lived in a foster home after she died."

"You could have."

"Maybe I would have graduated from high school."

"Or college even."

"Alright, I see where you're going with this."

Albert smiled. "Every tiny thing you do has an effect on everything else."

"But I was so scared."

"I know you were. You could have gotten help from your real father, Travis, who yes, does know about you."

Emma set her cocoa on the table. "You know who my father is?"

"His name was in your mother's things."

"She never told me. She said he was a one night stand and she couldn't remember his name."

"She lied to you."

"I can't believe she lied to me."

"If you had contacted him you could have lived with him and gone to college."

"How could I have known?"

"That's not the point."

"And what is?"

"You gave up."

"But..."

"You could have stayed with Scooter, he loved you unconditionally. He would have helped you get away from the booze. Mattie, Scooter and you would have been a wonderful family. He has become a well respected artist and would have given you anything you ever dreamed of, including a dog or better yet, a cat."

"I see how much he loves Mattie and that makes me sad for what I threw away." Emma grabbed a hand full of marshmallows and put them in her cocoa. "Want some?"

Albert took a few. "Life is never stagnant. There are always many, many choices, and each tiny choice affects not only your life but the lives of the people around you."

"I see that now."

"You had a number of choices but you still chose booze over love, death over life."

"If I was so bad why did I come to this wonderful place, rather than go to hell?"

Albert took a bite of his English muffin. "Emma, hell is not an actual place. Hell is a way of thinking and being. You already lived in hell on Earth, your own self-created hell."

"But if there is no such place as hell, where does the devil live?"

"I hate to disappoint you, but there's no such thing as the devil. The devil, God's enemy, was made up by humans. Like hell is not an actual place, the devil is not an actual entity."

"Why would humans make up an enemy for God?"

"Humans like to blame things outside of themselves for their own bad decisions and unhappiness. The 'devil' is just a scapegoat. If they can blame an evil entity for their negative actions then they don't have to take responsibility for them. The devil is an excuse and a cop out."

Emma sipped her cocoa.

"Humans use fear of the devil and hell to try and control people into being 'good'. Fear doesn't work as a device to make better people, only love and compassion can do that, only God can do that."

"Why do they try then?"

"Because they don't understand the true nature of God. God is omnipotent, which means He has infinite power. There is no other power in the universe. God is the one and only, and He has no enemies."

"Doesn't God need to judge my life and punish me for the bad things I've done and the people I've hurt?"

Albert finished his cocoa. "Absolutely not, God doesn't pass judgment on anyone; He doesn't punish, condemn, complain, discourage, hate, or become disappointed."

"Seriously, because I was really worried about how mad He would be at me."

"God only loves. He can never be mad at you or anyone else. You're one of God's creations and He treats every creation with the compassion it deserves. You're precious to Him."

"But I felt alone and unloved on Earth. Where was God then?"

"You made that choice, my dear. God stood by your side at every moment. You chose to turn away."

"But I'm looking now. I'm learning about love and about God. I'm starting to understand."

"You're making wonderful progress. Someday you'll be able to choose to be reincarnated."

"I can choose to go back to Earth? Polly said I couldn't go back and help Grandma Madelyn."

Albert pulled his pipe out of his sweater pocket. "I said someday, not now."

Emma jumped up. "I promise I'll do things differently. I feel like I'm ready."

"Relax, you're not even close to ready," Albert said motioning for her to sit. "You must learn the wisdom you came here to learn. Then you might be able to go back."

"Might?"

"One more thing. I'm sure no one has explained to you the weirdest part about reincarnation."

"You mean there's something weirder than all of this?"

Albert ignored her. "The circumstances of your lifetime are arranged by you, for you."

"What are you talking about?"

"When you're ready to be reincarnated you'll decide the circumstances of that lifetime before you leave here, it's called your Life Plan. Everything you set up will be to help your spirit learn to love, grow and gain wisdom. The harder the circumstances you set up for yourself, the greater the learning potential and the greater your spirit's possible growth."

"Okay, I'm totally confused now."

"The difficult part is, once you're on Earth you still have free will and outside influences, both can draw you away from your goals. And the minute you're born you won't remember the Life Plan; therefore you won't know why you put yourself into the circumstances you're in. If you don't overcome your circumstances and learn to love life, you'll come back here feeling confused, the way you feel now, because you didn't fulfill the potential you set up for yourself."

Still confused, and a bit frustrated, she said, "Now you're trying to tell me I chose the shitty lifetime I just had?"

"Yes, you chose the circumstances. You selected your mother, father and the types of lives they led. Then each time an option came along you chose again, to leave Scooter, to drink, and to give up. You chose it all, each and every step of the way."

"What did my spirit need to learn from all those bad choices?"

Albert smiled. "Maybe to make better choices? But we'll never really know because you chose to end your life rather than live out your potential. We don't know what you had set up for yourself and what you wanted to learn. We don't know your Life Plan."

"Why didn't I pick a nice family with a house and a dog? Why didn't I pick an easier life?"

"That, I can't answer for you, Emma."

"How can I possibly know?"

"You should be able to remember your Life Plan."

"But I don't."

"Usually after ending a particular life the details of the Life Plan come flooding into your mind so you can realize what goals you achieved and what you didn't."

"I've got no memory of any Life Plan or goals, none at all."

"Honestly, in all my years, I've never met someone who couldn't remember their Life Plan."

"Never?"

"Maybe Volodymyr, The Record Keeper of Lifetimes, can help us with that information."

Emma hopped up. "Let's go see him, can we, please, like right now?"

Albert put his cup in the sink, buttoned his sweater, and headed toward the door. "I'll see what I can do about getting you an appointment with Volod. It's not that easy. He's very busy with spirits setting up new Life Plans to be reincarnated. I've never had to send someone to get their own Life Plan after their life ended."

"It's just like me, not being able to remember why I messed up my life."

Albert chuckled. "For now you better get ready for work, Polly will be here in a few minutes to drive you to your new job in the Muscular Creation Department."

### Chapter Nine

### Muscular Creation and Application

In the department of Muscular Creation and Application thousands of assembled skeletons traveled along on conveyors, black rubber belts on top, stainless steel assemblies on the bottom. It looked like they went on for miles and miles. A guy dressed in overalls had an oil can in his hand and was carefully oiling rollers that were placed one foot apart under the belt. Emma could smell the fresh oil and the tinge of burning as the rollers took it in. The conveyor belt squeaked a bit when it rounded the corner and some of the skeletons looked as if they would wobble over, but none did. The oil guy moved to the squeaky corner.

The enormity of the room felt similar to the other parts of The Cat Factory. Just too big to comprehend. Giant stainless steel lights, like from operating rooms, hung from the ceiling on chains. It made the conveyor belt seem to glow, but beyond that, the room was in shadow. The old wooden floor looked like it had been walked on for thousands of years, which it probably had...dents, cracks, creaking boards. A blue neon sign hung in the middle of it all. Department of Muscular Creation and Application.

Emma turned her attention back to the skeletons traveling along the belt. Each cat had a few muscles in place already. They still looked fake, she thought. More like haunted house props than living cats. But it wasn't her place to judge, not yet anyway. She had to have faith that Albert, Polly and Nigel were telling her the truth. Someday these would be living, breathing cats. It seemed so impossible, but so did all of this. She took a deep breath, if there was ever a time to have faith, she thought, this is it.

A tall African lady dressed in traditional clothing of bright colors and patterns met Emma at the door. "Hi, Emma, I'm ZuZu and I'm going to teach you how we make muscles and attach them to the skeletons." She hugged her. "It's very nice to meet you."

Emma stared at ZuZu. She had a beautiful sculpted face with big brown eyes and particularly long eyelashes. "Nice to meet you, ZuZu. Your clothing is beautiful." She ran her hand over the sleeve of ZuZu's handmade dress and glanced at her jewelry.

"Thank you; I spent my last life as a priestess in an African tribe. We made all our own fabric with dies from local plants and minerals. The jewelry is carved from deer antlers and other bones." She held out her necklace for Emma to touch. "I love the traditions and carry many of them into my work here. But you will see that as we progress."

Emma couldn't imagine how they made muscles that actually worked. It was one thing to make bones, they were solid, and made mostly in molds. But from what she knew of muscles, which was very little really, they had to stretch and give things strength and power.

"Let's get started." Zuzu stepped forward, stopped in front of a skeleton and pointed. "Here the great oblique and the latissimus dorsi are already attached." She picked up some other muscles. "This is the gluteus maximus, the temporalis, the scapular deltoid, and the triceps. Each station on the line attaches a different set of muscles." She looked toward the far end of the room. "If you can see way over there, they're almost complete. They're just finishing up the elastic ligaments."

"It looks very overwhelming. How can you possibly remember where they all go?"

"Don't worry; you'll have plenty of help." ZuZu smiled. "We're going to start you on a simple task for today, on the first line. They're attaching the great oblique on the Felis Silvestris Catus, or house cat."

ZuZu pulled out one of the stainless steel stools on wheels and motioned for Emma to sit. The top was cushioned with soft leather and felt quite comfortable. Emma grabbed the handle and adjusted the height. ZuZu pushed her close to the conveyor belt and took the seat next to her.

"When the skeleton is in front of you we attach the muscle, see, like this." ZuZu took Emma's hand and helped her attach the great oblique on her first Felis Silvestris. It was a hundred shades of color, from white to red, with pinks and purples in between. It felt like rubber, but stronger, and a little slimy. Emma started attaching the muscles on her own.

"Perfect," ZuZu said. "I'll leave you on your own for awhile and after a week or so at this station we'll move you on to another. That way you can see how all the muscles and ligaments come together, forming a fully functioning cat, full of strength and vitality." ZuZu walked away.

"Thank you." Emma fell right into the routine. After the first few hundred great oblique's she attached, it became second nature and she moved on to the next station. Throughout the month, she moved from station to station learning about each muscle. Understanding what it did for the cat's agility and strength. She learned how to attach them to the skeleton and how important they are for the creation of a properly functioning feline.

"The cat's scapula or shoulder bone is not attached to the main skeleton," ZuZu explained. "It's only attached to the muscle, permitting them to have superb flexibility at any speed. She how that moves around? The living feline will have that same ability. It's perfect for running, jumping, and catching prey."

Emma looked closely. "Like for pouncing on mice?"

ZuZu laughed. "Yes, for pouncing."

"What happens after all the muscles and ligaments are attached?"

"Next the internal organs are put in place."

"Is that where I'll be going next too?"

"I'm pretty sure that's Albert's plan, but before you leave us I'd like you to see how the muscles are actually made."

"That would be amazing." Emma followed ZuZu into another massive room that looked like the kitchen of a bakery. Two twenty foot long stainless steel counters ran down the middle. Electric mixers, as tall as Emma, churned away with a grinding noise and a dusty smell. Thousands of blue fifty five gallon drums, filled with ingredients, she assumed, were stacked to the ceiling.

"The whole process starts with a secret mixture of ingredients." ZuZu pointed at the drums.

"And some gigantic mixing bowls." Emma moved closer and looked inside a stainless steel bowl bigger than her whole body.

"Only two people are allowed to do the mixing because it is so critical to the health of our cats. If one ingredient is off just a pinch, the cats might all be invalids."

"What do they make the mixture from?"

"It's a secret formula," a man said. He threw a two foot round rubber ball onto one of the stainless steel tables and started to stretch the substance like taffy. "After it's mixed we form it, press it, and sculpt it into shape."

ZuZu smiled at him. "It's really an art to take a chunk of rubber and stretch it into the shape of a gluteus maximus."

"I'm Emma." She reached out to shake the man's hand.

"Makulu, nice to meet you." He handed Emma a chunk of rubbery muscle substance. "See how it feels before it's formed."

"Feels like an eraser." Emma squashed the rubber between her fingers. "The squashy kind that you can shape any way you want."

"I guess you could say that. Why don't you give it a try?"

"I'd love to." She moved next to him at the table and he tossed a big chunk in her direction. "You need a large chuck to form a gluteus maximus."

"I attached those to the cats a few weeks back. That's the butt muscle, right?"

Makulu slapped his butt cheek. "Right, there. It's the biggest muscle in the body."

Emma laughed.

"We'll round it out and stretch it over here." He started pulling and molding the muscle. "Then it gets smoothed here and here, like that."

Emma tried it herself. "How's that?"

"Not bad for your first shot. Needs to be a bit smoother. We wouldn't want this cat to have cellulite." Makulu laughed.

Emma used her fingers to smooth out the muscle. "So you knew ZuZu before this?"

"I was a Shaman in her tribe."

"What's a Shaman?"

"It's a medicine man and spiritual leader all rolled into one."

"So you'd need to be very wise to get a job like that?"

"I guess you could say so." Makulu and Emma continued working on stretching muscles.

"Can I ask you something?" Emma said.

"Of course."

"This may sound stupid, but why do we make cats full sized here? Aren't they born as little kittens?"

He laughed a roaring laugh. "Oh silly child, we must make everything to its fullest potential. As far as the body goes, that would be its fullest size, fastest speed, best agility, and optimum health."

"I don't understand how these full sized cats get born on Earth as tiny kittens."

He chuckled again. "Once the body is assembled and the spirit is in place they go to the Reduction and Shipment Department."

"Are you trying to tell me these bodies we're making are reduced in some way and then sent out as tiny kittens?"

"Yes, Emma. I think you've got it. The bodies are reduced, full potential and spirit intact, and then sent to the mother when the time is right."

"Are humans made the same way?"

He laughed hysterically, so loud everyone looked at them. "There's no difference in the life form, child, they're all the same."

"What do you mean they're all the same?"

"We appear to be making cats here, and in a way we are, well, we're assembling cat's bodies for life on Earth or other planets. We're also creating spirits. Once a spirit is created, it's not assigned to a particular species."

Emma realized she must have looked confused, because he continued to explain. "Let's see if I can make this any clearer. This cat we're making right now will continue through all the departments in The Cat Factory until it gets to Spirit Creation. If this body is not being made for a spirit already in existence, we'll get to that later, then it will head into Spirit Creation and a new spirit will be created for this body. It will then be born, grow, live its Life Plan, hopefully fulfill its potential, and then return. Upon the spirit's return, it's a spirit, not a cat, and can choose to manifest as anything it desires, depending on the spirit's age and wisdom."

ZuZu came over to join the conversation. "Once God creates the spirit it lasts forever, as anything it desires."

Emma looked at them amazed. "Are you telling me I could be reincarnated as any living thing?"

"Ultimately, yes."

"What do you mean, ultimately?"

"You have to gain much wisdom before you would be allowed to return as an animal or a tree."

"I know I disappointed God very much with the way I messed up my last lifetime."

ZuZu took Emma's hand. "Honey, don't ever think that. You can never disappoint God. It's impossible. Yes, He would rather you experience joy than sorrow, but you have free will and He will be happy with whatever you choose. You're deciding your own path and God will always love you from the moment He created your spirit until the end of eternity."

"If God doesn't care what we do then why do people try so hard to please Him? Why should we be good? What do we gain from all this learning? Why grow, why be kind, why gain knowledge, why accumulate wisdom?"

Makulu smiled. "For your spirit's growth, your own happiness, and yes, for God's joy. It's not that God doesn't care what you do. It's just that He won't be disappointed in you. His love runs too deep. The answer is, you try hard for you, and you try for God, because He experiences everything through you. The more your soul grows, the more opportunities you have in front of you."

"I'm confused, you just told me that once the cat we created returns it can be reincarnated as anything it wants."

"That's true, dear," ZuZu said, "within certain limitations, and only if it fulfills its potential from its last lifetime."

"Obviously, I didn't do that."

"We're assuming you didn't since you said you took your own life," Makulu said. "Do you remember your Life Plan? Only you and God really know the answer to that question."

Emma sighed in frustration. "That's the problem; I can't remember my Life Plan and Albert is having a tough time getting me an appointment with Volodymyr, The Record Keeper."

"Don't get frustrated, Volod will get to you. It's just unusual that you're not able to remember."

"If I had fulfilled my potential in my last lifetime I could be reincarnated as anything, like a dog, or a tree?"

"Yes and no," they said in unison.

ZuZu continued, "Depending on your spirit's wisdom and growth. The more growth, the more opportunities. To reincarnate as a tree you need to be an old spirit with much insight. To incarnate as a dog, you need to be a very giving spirit, dedicated and loving. It all varies depending on your development and your spirit's astuteness."

"I guess I don't understand why someone would want to incarnate as a tree and just stand around for a hundred years. What would their spirit learn from that? It seems pretty boring."

"Oh, dear child, think more closely about the life of a tree. The first thing your spirit learns from being a tree is to be completely dependent upon God. You have absolutely no control over your food, water, or sunshine. You must stand there and know God will give you everything you need. It's a letting go of control. Humans could learn a great deal from trees, if they would watch them more closely. A tree can't change its appearance; it must love itself exactly as it is. There are no haircuts, make up, or new outfits. It's exactly as it was created. A tree is silent; it listens and watches life go by. It's constantly giving to others, shade, clean air, and fresh fruit or nuts. A tree's presence alone provides a nesting spot for birds. Its leaves show us the seasons and its branches provide climbing spots for kids. A tree's beauty decorates the landscape as it stands tall and majestic. It's always giving of itself, and when it dies, the body is used for building homes, wood fires, kitchen cabinets, or feeding insects. The life of a tree is a gift of love."

"Wow, I never thought about it like that. Trees really are amazing. Everything is very different than it appears on Earth."

"That it is, child, that it is," ZuZu replied.

"Can we go back to something we were talking about earlier, Makulu?"

"Of course. What?"

"You said we create the bodies and then God creates the spirits. I understand that part, but you also said some of the bodies are being made for spirits already in existence. What do you mean by that?"

"We're back to the whole reincarnation thing. Say I decided to go back to Earth as a cat, first I would go to Volod and set up my Life Plan and potential. Then the order would go to Olga, all the details would be put in place, and my new body would get assembled."

He stopped talking, went over to the assembly line and returned carrying a cat body with a silver ribbon around its leg. A tag with a number was attached to the ribbon. He placed the cat in front of Emma.

"We can tell from this tag that we're making this body for a particular spirit. It will travel through the factory like all the others, and when it gets to spirit creation God will infuse the new body with the old spirit. If that was me, I'd become a feline, until my 'death', and then I would choose how and where to manifest again."

"You're saying if you decide to go to Earth as a cat, we'll make you a body in The Cat Factory, and then you'll leave the body you're in now, and God will put you into the cat's body when it's ready?"

"That's it, child, I think you've got it."

"Well, I've sort of got it. You said your spirit would meet with Volod to set up a Life Plan and potential. Why would a cat have a Life Plan and what would its potential be?"

"Every living thing has a Life Plan and potential, always."

"What would a cat's Life Plan and potential possibly be, they're not human. They can't accomplish much except lay on the sofa all day."

Makulu shuffled in place, obviously frustrated. "I thought we covered this with the tree, but I guess I wasn't clear enough. Each and every life, no matter what species, is precious and an integral part of the universe. God lives in them all. God loves life, and being a lawyer is no more important to God than chasing mice.

"But since you're still stuck, let me give you an example. Say in my last life I manifested as a human soldier who was quite brave and fought many battles. I may decide to go back to Earth as the pampered feline pet of the queen and lay around on a cushion in the sun for fifteen years. My Life Plan may be to rest, love the queen, or pamper my tired spirit. It could be catching mice in the castle, playing with the kids or reuniting with an old friend. My potential spiritually could be to teach love, responsibility, or save the queen from a fire. Every spirit has its own ideas, dreams, and reasons for each incarnation. Maybe my wife from a former life has incarnated as the queen's female cat and I go back to be with her. Anything is possible."

Amazed, Emma asked, "You could incarnate to be with someone you loved before?"

"Most spirits will incarnate with loved ones over and over again," ZuZu replied, "just in different bodies and different types of relationships."

"I could incarnate with my daughter or my mother again?"

"Of course, it's likely you will, or already have."

"How would I know?"

"You should be able to remember any lifetimes you may have lived when you're here, but since you can't, you're going to have to wait until you see Volod."

Emma looked at them curiously. "You two can remember all your last lifetimes?"

"Oh yes, easily," they both answered.

"If I wanted to incarnate with my mother again can you tell me how I would do that?"

"When you decide to make a new Life Plan," Makulu said, "you need to talk with Volod and tell him you would like to arrange to spend some time with your mother from your last lifetime. He'll find her spirit in his records and see if she's willing to meet up with you. Then he'll work out all the logistics until the two of you are happy. She may not be your mother, but maybe your boss, sister, or pet dog. Anything can happen, provided the two spirits agree on the arrangements."

Emma looked at Makulu. "When I was little I had a friend whose dog died when it ran in front of a car. When she got a new puppy she insisted her dog had been reincarnated. I thought she was nuts, but that's possible?"

"It's not only possible," ZuZu said, "but it's likely. Beloved pets will incarnate with one owner many times. That same spirit will probably incarnate as your friend's dog throughout her lifetime. It becomes a very deep and loving relationship."

Emma had so many questions; she didn't know where to begin. "Makulu, if you went to Earth as a cat, would you be a cat when you came back here when that lifetime ended, or would you look like the Makulu we know?"

He put his arm around her and smiled. "Now that's a good question, child. It's completely my choice which of my former bodies I would like to manifest in while I'm here. Obviously, I can help out most in The Cat Factory if I take on a human form, but I could choose one of my other human bodies, another species I may have been, or my spirit body. I happen to like this body of the African Shaman, therefore I use it often." He smiled and pointed to his chest.

"Why do you pick this body over the ones you used in other lifetimes?"

"I like this one because it's handsome and strong. In some of my other incarnations the body was not as useful. I was a small boy with the plague who only lived to be nine years old. Another time I was an old woman who died in a fire at a nursing home. There were others, but I like this body best, so I choose it."

Emma squeezed his bicep as he flexed the muscle. "Yeah, I guess I'd choose this one too."

He laughed.

"But I was pretty sickly when I killed myself, and my body feels very healthy here," she said. "Wouldn't that nine-year-old with the plague be healthy here?"

He looked at her seriously. "Gee, child, your questions are getting tougher. Yes, once the nine year old left his earthly existence his body could be restored to perfect health, and I did use it, until I reincarnated as the lady."

"What do you mean could be? Wouldn't it automatically be restored?"

"Not necessarily."

"Why not?"

"Some people choose to hang onto certain, well, defects if you want to call them that, for a number of different reasons."

"Like what and why?"

"One of the main reasons is to keep memories from a past life alive. Sometimes spirits cling to their last incarnation and are afraid to let go of the way a particular body felt for fear the recollections will fade sooner."

ZuZu looked at the two of them. "Haven't you two had enough talking for today?"

"You're right, I'm exhausted." Emma hugged them both goodbye. The idea of reincarnation had her excited, and she decided to walk over and visit Nigel. They discussed different ideas about being reincarnated together late into the night.

"We could be brother and sister," he suggested.

"I love that idea."

### Chapter Ten

### Internal Organs Formation

Emma's first year at The Cat Factory zoomed by and before she knew it Mattie's fifth birthday was just around the corner. Her heart sang joyfully at the sight of Mattie's happiness. Scooter and Katie appeared to be developing a serious relationship. He seemed so happy and Katie loved Mattie; she'll make her a good mother someday, Emma thought.

Emma's life became a series of blissful days filled with friendships, knowledge and creativity. She waited impatiently for her appointment with Volodymyr. She was on his list, but it might take years before she could see him. In the meantime, she still didn't remember her Life Plan.

Her work in Muscular Creation and Application ended after a few months. After that, Albert transferred her to Internal Organs Formation, a very delicate and stressful job. She started out making lungs. They took a thin, paper-like material, cut it to the correct pattern and then glued the pieces together with super strong, permanent glue. After the glue cured they tested each set on a device which filled them with air a few hundred times. Once they passed inspection the lungs could be placed inside the body.

She had made all of the house cat's internal organs except for the heart and brain, the hardest they left for last. In the meantime, she learned how to make the lungs, kidneys, bladder, intestines, and liver. She also learned how to put those vital organs into the cat's body and attach them to the veins that blood would eventually flow through.

She learned how cat's internal organs are designed for survival. Because of the fantastic design, cats can go longer without food than any other domestic animal.

The heart, a complicated life giving organ, became her next learning experience. Luckily her boss, Gopala, knew everything about a cat's body. Gopala was not from Earth, but from a planet called Contrevia, in a galaxy thousands of light years from Earth. She seemed to be human, but her features, sharper and squarer, made her look a bit illusory. Unusually tall, probably six feet, and quite thin, she had long hair, down to her butt, incredibly silky and indigo in color. Her skin looked very pale and she had a strong accent. Her glasses, shaped like cats eyes, were also indigo, and imbedded with what looked like diamonds. Gopala didn't wear a uniform like the rest of the staff, instead she wore low cut, skin tight dresses made of silk that accentuated her phenomenal figure. Her black leather boots went up her long legs almost to her thighs. Around her neck she wore a large gemstone, mined on her planet, called photis. The photis was also blue, but brighter than her indigo hair. In fact, it glowed. They said it was phosphorescent, which made it look like it had an electric light turned on inside it.

"Next we're working on the cardiovascular system," Gopala said, "which pumps the blood to the rest of the body. After the main parts are formed and glued, we can start on the left and right atrium, the ventriculars, the chorda tendinea and the papillary muscle."

Emma watched Gopala's every move. "I'm a bit lost."

Gopala held up a heart. "When the main assembly reaches completion, like this one, we can attach the pulmonary artery and the aortic arch, like this." Gopala attached the additional parts. "At this point the newly created heart is ready for testing." She placed it in Emma's hand.

Emma put the heart onto the tester. They turned on the device and pumped a blood-like substance through it to be positive everything worked and there were no leaks.

"It looks great," Gopala said. "One more cat closer to completion." She grinned as she put the heart on the conveyor belt.

While they worked, Gopala told Emma about her planet Contrevia and Emma gave her the scoop on planet Earth.

"On Contrevia we have many cats just like these. Do you have them on Earth?" Gopala looked at Emma with her big dark eyes.

"Oh yeah, cats are extremely popular on Earth as pets. Do they live with people as pets on your planet to?"

"Cats are revered on my planet, considered equals, not pets. We live side by side as colleagues."

"Certainly people must work to pay the bills and cats just sit around and live in people's houses."

"Oh no, not on Contrevia. Yes, we work but only for the good of all beings, not for money, houses, or things. Nobody really owns anything; we just use everything we need. Cats live wherever they want, and no one owns them. Cats don't just sit around. They spread love, which on Contrevia, is considered the most important job one can do with their lifetime."

"It sounds nice there."

Gopala smiled, but the contemplative look on her face said she missed home. "It's similar to here, except the sky is darker blue because we have a blue sun. Contrevia also has sixteen moons, which are breathtaking vacation spots."

Emma loved hearing about other planets. "Is it cold there with a blue sun?"

"No, actually blue is extremely hot, hotter than Earth's sun. It's a different kind of light though, more warm and soft, with no ultraviolet rays. Our planet also glows from within because the photis is phosphorescent."

"What do you mean, it glows from within?"

She held up her necklace. It looked like a huge blue diamond with a light bulb inside. "This is how our ground looks. It glows."

Passionately curious, Emma asked, "Earlier you said everybody works together on Contrevia. Does that mean everybody is nice to each other all the time, like here in The Cat Factory? What about hatred, crime, war? Does it exist on your planet, like on Earth?"

Gopala looked at Emma, head cocked. "I don't know what hatred, crime and war are, Emma. Can you explain?"

"On Earth people hurt each other to steal money or cars. Sometimes they even kill each other for 'fun', like drive by shootings."

Gopala screamed, obviously terrified. "That sounds horrible!"

Emma hadn't even touched the tip of the iceberg. She wasn't sure this sweet lady could handle knowing the shit that happened on Earth, but she continued anyway. "Governments get mad at each other and then they say there's gonna be a war. After that, young guys are sent to fight each other with guns, bombs and other weapons. Thousands of people die. Sometimes the fighting lasts for years."

Gopala's face actually turned blue. Emma wondered if she was going to be sick. "I've never heard of such outrageous behavior and disregard for the preciousness of life. The planet Earth sounds barbaric and dreadful."

"Oh, it can be that. I still don't understand how Contrevia can be so peaceful. You mean no one ever gets murdered?"

Emma thought the whole idea of war had done Gopala in. Still holding her head, she said, "I don't understand...murdered?"

"No one on Contrevia ever takes a big knife and just stabs someone else. They don't use guns to shoot bullets into each other?"

"Why would they do such a terrible thing?"

"Maybe to rob them of their jewelry or money?"

"People on Earth kill other people for money? How awful!"

Dumfounded, Emma asked, "There's no crime on Contrevia, no murders, no war?"

She raised her chin. "Never!"

"Don't people get mad at each other?"

"We're a peaceful, loving people. We work together to create all we need, growing our own food and mining the photis, which gives us enough in trade with other planets to provide for everyone. Why do people on Earth steal from each other? Is there not enough food and shelter to provide for everyone?"

Emma felt sad just thinking about the answer to that question. "Yes, there's plenty to provide for everybody, but some people are rich and some are poor. The rich people live in mansions, while the poor people live in cardboard boxes or plywood shacks."

"People on Earth don't share?"

"Yeah, some do, but lot's don't. It's complicated, because a lot of rich people use the money they have to provide jobs, start charities, or help people. On the other hand, some people hoard money and want to get more and more without giving anything back to their community or the world. They think poor people are lazy and undeserving.

"I'll admit I lived on the streets, broke, because I let alcohol take over my life. A lot of alcoholics and drug addicts live like that because we spend all our money on booze or dope, trying to hide from ourselves and our lives. Many kind people tried to help me along my way. But I was caught up in my own self-destruction. I couldn't pull myself out of the pit. Now that I'm here, I can see that I held myself back from leading a better life. If I'd found a job or gone to college I could have had money and a home, but I chose to live on the streets."

Gopala put her arm around Emma. "Why would you choose such a sad lifestyle and self-destructive behavior? It goes against everything our spirits are created for."

"I didn't love myself. I thought my worthless life could never be turned around. The real problem on Earth isn't the difference between rich and poor, it's the fact that people don't learn to love themselves. That makes it hard for them to love others. Since I've been here at The Cat Factory, I've learned to value life. I wish I could share it with all the people on Earth. I pray I could teach each and every spirit how beautiful they are and how much God loves them. Most of all I wish I could make them love their children and treat them like the miracles they are. If only I could do that, I'm sure Earth would be a much better place."

Emma took another finished heart from Gopala and placed it on the tester. "So many children are raised without love, and that just makes more people who don't love or value others. It's a cycle they're stuck in. I feel like the only way to escape crime, war and hatred is to start caring more. Then maybe people will share, like on your planet, and children won't die of starvation or disease, and everyone will feel loved."

"It sounds like you have some good ideas about how to make Earth a better place."

"Maybe, if I ever get to go back, I can do something good with my life."

"On Contrevia there's no such thing as starvation or disease, and everyone is loving. It's just our nature, as it is every spirits nature."

"How can you say that? It's not every spirits nature. Like I said, some people are mean and murder or torture other people."

"Only on Earth. It sounds like they're taking pure loving spirits, created in total perfection, and turning them into unhappy, self destructive, diseased bodies and minds. You just said it yourself. Unloving parents are taking perfect newborn spirits and gradually turning them into unloving people. Those unloving people create more and more unloving people.

"On Contrevia it's just the opposite. When a baby is born we know it is God incarnated in a new body. This creates people who know they're a part of God, as are their neighbors. When children are raised, knowing in their hearts that they're part of God, they treat everyone and everything with love and respect, people, plants, animals, and the planet itself."

"Basically you're telling me not only is there no starvation, poverty, addictions, or crime on Contrevia, but there's no disease either?"

"That's right, Emma. We have no disease because there's no pollution and no chemicals, so therefore no disease."

"Then what do people die from?"

"When we're around one hundred years old we choose to leave our body because its parts start to wear out."

"Are you here to get a new body?"

"Right now, I'm here to create cats. This is a very rewarding job, and I'll stay here until I decide where to reincarnate. Earth perhaps, it sounds like they could use some lessons in love there."

"Would you like to see Earth?"

"I'd love to but how?"

"I have an activated Life Cam on my daughter Mattie, and I'm having some friends over tonight to watch her ballet recital. I'd love it if you would come."

Gopala stood up and hugged Emma tightly. "I'll see you later then."

### Chapter Eleven

### The Recital

Emma felt excited as she got ready for her friends to arrive. Mattie's ballet recital began at seven pm Earth time. She'd prepared snacks and punch and arranged enough chairs in her room for everyone to sit around the Life Cam. She closed the curtains and lit candles to give the room a soft pink glow. Charlie, asleep in the middle of the bed, snored loudly.

She heard a knock at the door. Polly and Albert were the first to arrive, anxious to see Mattie, Albert's great granddaughter. She could see the excitement on their faces as she hugged them. "Tonight is going to be wonderful."

Polly smiled her jubilant smile. "Oh, Emma, we're very excited. Let's get started."

Polly pushed her way into the bedroom, chose a large chair and positioned it where she had a perfect view of the Life Cam. She grabbed a bowl of popcorn and sat down.

Albert helped welcome the other guests including Gopala, Nick, Mary, Olga, ZuZu, Makulu and of course, Nigel. Once everyone found a comfortable chair, Emma started the Life Cam.

They tuned in about six thirty, perfect timing, Emma thought, as Mattie dressed in her emerald green sparkly tutu. "She looks so adorable."

Mattie's cheeks glowed and her skin had a slight coating of glitter. Little emerald-colored tights and ballet slippers completed the too cute for words outfit. She smiled as she danced and twirled through the dressing room with about fifty other little girls. Then laughed and spun while the teacher went over the last minute details.

The show began and Emma could tell every one of her guests loved her delightful daughter already. They watched her every move, mesmerized. Of course, they had to remember Mattie's spirit; that of Great, Great Grandma Madelyn in an adorable young body could captivate even the hardest of audiences. The curtain opened and the children danced enchantingly.

"She's going to be a star," Polly shouted, clapping.

"Madelyn always was a show off," Albert said. Everyone laughed.

Emma could see Scooter and Katie in the audience. He looked phenomenal. She could see a tear in his eye as he watched Mattie dance. She wondered if he missed her. Were his eyes tearing because he wished Emma could be there to see their daughter, not knowing that she was watching Mattie's every move, or because Mattie was incredible and he felt proud?

"I wish I was there," Emma mumbled.

Nigel moved his chair next to hers and gently wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Emma looked up as he whispered, "She's adorable."

After the show Mattie ran down from the stage and jumped into Scooter's arms. He hugged her tightly and filled her with compliments. They were making plans to go out for ice cream when a short pudgy man pushed everyone surrounding Mattie out of the way and reached up to shake Scooter's hand.

"Hi, I'm Neil Pearlman," he said with enthusiasm. "You must be Mattie's father. I have to say she's the best five-year-old ballet dancer I've ever seen. If you're open to it I'd like to talk with you about some promotional work for her."

"Well, Mr. Pearlman, I don't think Mattie would be interested," Scooter said.

Mr. Pearlman looked at Mattie. "How would you like to dance to raise money to build a home for little girls and boys that have no Mommy or Daddy to take care of them?"

Mattie lit up like a sparkler on the fourth of July. She looked at Mr. Pearlman, hands on her hips. "I'd love to." She stared at her father. "Wouldn't I, Daddy?"

Scooter couldn't say no to her. "I guess you've got your answer."

"Fantastic," Mr. Perlman said.

"When would you like to get together?"

Mr. Pearlman reached in his pocket and pulled out a business card. "Please call me Neil. You won't regret this; it's for a great cause." He handed the card to Scooter. "How about I buy you that ice cream and we discuss the details right now?"

Polly took a handful of popcorn. "I told you Madelyn would accomplish great things on Earth. Look at her already, you go girl!"

Albert reached out to grab some popcorn. "Can I have some of that?"

"Shh," Nigel said. "They're back on."

They watched the Life Cam as the group indulged in Mattie's favorite food group, ice cream. Her hot fudge parfait overflowed the dish, and as the chocolate ice cream dripped down the sides, she licked it off, covering her freckles in goop. Mr. Pearlman, up to his elbows in a banana split, looked like a child on Christmas morning.

He put his spoon down for a minute to talk about Mattie's dancing career. "First, let me start by saying you are one extremely talented young lady, you should be quite proud."

Mattie smiled smugly, as did Scooter. "That was nothing for her, Neil. She can sing and paint, too," bragged her father.

"That doesn't surprise me one bit. You're raising what we call an Indigo child. Indigo children are overly intelligent and talented. They have a greater awareness about things than other children do, than other adults, for that matter."

"That's Mattie." Scooter licked his chocolate cone.

"They're the future. We believe this generation of kids will promote extreme changes. That's why we're trying to get them involved in projects which will not only get their talents seen, but also raise awareness and funds for kids who are less fortunate. This program will let Mattie meet other Indigos and put her talents to good use at the same time."

"You've got our attention now, Neil."

Neil set his spoon down. "Great, the first program we're doing is a talent show for kids four to ten years old. It will raise money to build a home for up to one hundred children who have lost both parents and have no one to take them in. We have about twenty five kids already lined up for the show. If Mattie's willing, I would like to hear her sing, and maybe we can have her do a solo number."

Mattie looked at Neil. "I can also tap dance, Mr. Neil."

Neil giggled. "Wonderful."

Scooter looked at Mattie. "What do you think, pumpkin; you want to do this show?"

Mattie looked up with her huge green eyes. "Of course, Daddy. I have too, for Mommy!"

Emma looked at Nigel, her eyes filled with tears.

"That little stinker," Albert said. He took another handful of popcorn. "She's going to do it. She's going to make a difference."

Polly laughed. "Come on, Albert, we knew she would. Did you see that smile? Did you see her work the crowd, Mr. Pearlman and her father? Amazing!"

Emma turned off the Life Cam. "I can't take any more," she mumbled in between sobs. "She's only five and look at what she's doing."

Polly handed Emma a tissue. "Here, honey, wipe."

Emma wiped her nose. "I am, Polly, I am, but she's thinking about me, remembering that we were homeless. That makes me so sad. I just wish I could tell her how sorry I am." She looked at the Life Cam. "I'm sorry Mattie, I'm truly sorry."

Polly reached out to hold her hand. "She loves you, and it's wonderful that she wants to express that love by doing good things for others."

"I know, Polly, but if I'd been a better mother she wouldn't know what it felt like to be homeless."

"If she didn't know what it felt like to be homeless, she might not be inspired to help these kids. She needed that experience to give her the motivation. Without it she might just be another five year old playing on a swing set."

"But she should be that carefree kid playing on the swing set. She shouldn't have to worry about homeless kids, or me."

"That's not fair to Mattie." Polly handed Emma a cup of punch. "Take a sip. It will make you feel better."

Emma took a sip and sighed, looking to Polly for help.

"Mattie has more to offer the world than mindless swinging. What would that accomplish? I also don't think she's worried about you. I think she loves you. Mattie wants to give the world a gift and that gift is herself."

Albert stopped munching. "She realizes that without you she wouldn't have that gift to give. You gave her the life she needed to be the person she's becoming. Quit judging yourself as a bad mother just because you were homeless."

"Face it, I was a bad mother."

"Well, you weren't June Cleaver." Polly laughed. "But you were what Mattie needed to get her on the path she's on."

"What if she wasn't the strong spirit she is? What if she had followed in my footsteps, like I followed in my mothers?"

"I don't think that was a risk with her. Remember, she's the spirit of Madelyn, and Madelyn has twenty thousand years of wisdom under her belt. You've got to let her be free to express her knowledge and insight, without feeling like you did something wrong. You didn't. You're the reason this is all happening. Those homeless children will have a beautiful shelter because of you. Be happy, Emma, you're a part of it all." Polly grabbed a handful of popcorn. "Gosh, that's tasty."

"She's right you know," Albert said.

"Yeah, but if I had been there, think of how much she could have done."

"We don't know what she will accomplish. Or that you being there would be beneficial to her."

"But I'm her mother."

"But you're here."

"And?"

"And that means you're supposed to be here."

"Why are things always so vague? There are never any right or wrong answers."

"Calm down, sweetie, have some popcorn." Albert held out the bowl.

"No thank you." Emma pushed the bowl away.

"I need a root beer with this popcorn," Albert said, "you got any?"

"In the kitchen."

He wandered into the kitchen.

Polly stole the bowl of popcorn as soon as Albert left the room. "You're going to have to focus on your life here. Life on Earth is what it is, but you're no longer there. You can't waste time fretting over things you could have done better or what might have been."

"You're right. I know it. And I love it here so much. I've never been so happy, but..."

Polly held out her hand as if stopping traffic. "End of discussion."

"But..."

"You just said it yourself, you've never been so happy. Let's enjoy it." She handed Emma the bowl of popcorn. "Have some, it's delicious."

Emma grabbed a handful and stuffed a few pieces into her mouth. "It's really okay to just be happy?"

Polly smiled. "Of course it's okay to just be happy."

"No matter what happens?"

"The universe knows what it's doing, trust it."

Emma took a deep breath and sighed. "Trust the universe, huh? Sounds easy."

"Obviously it's not," Polly said.

"It's hard to let go and just be."

"Just be free and enjoy who you are in this moment. Not thinking about who you were or what you could have done. Right here, right now, you're becoming something new, and we do not know where that will take you."

Albert leaned his head in the room. "How many root beers do I need?"

Emma grinned. "I'll take one, with lots of ice."

### Chapter Twelve

### Exterior Finishing

Emma felt fully alive the next morning. When she thought about Mattie dancing and laughing she felt so happy. Even though she didn't appreciate her while on Earth, Mattie lived because of her, and in a way Mattie's accomplishments became Emma's. Possibly Mattie's affect on the world would last for generations. Emma now knew that string of events started with her. Even if she couldn't be on Earth to be a part of it all, she was the one who threw the pebble into the pond and the ripple affect about to take place could not have happened without her.

Hopefully, Volod could confirm her hopes and help her understand the purpose of her life. She finally had an appointment. Unfortunately, it was almost a year away, April twenty second. Well, at least his calendar had her name on it, a step in the right direction, she thought.

The sky looked brighter, the sun felt warmer, and people seemed blissful. Strolling down the tree-lined streets being greeted with smiles, handshakes, or hugs gave her such a sense of contentment.

She heard Polly's cart pull up behind her. "I know you wanted to walk today, dear, but Albert has a surprise for you, so hop in."

"A surprise?" Emma climbed in the cart.

First, they stopped to pick up Nigel. He didn't know where they were going either. Then they picked up Albert.

"Since you two worked on the Bozena I wanted you to see its progress," Albert said.

"What department is it in?" Nigel asked.

"Exterior Finishing. The fur has just been applied, and they're working on the details over the next few weeks, eyes, nose, and whiskers. The department heads, Melvin and Millicent, have agreed to let the two of you spend a few weeks helping them create those parts."

Emma could have jumped out of her seat she was so happy. "I can't believe we're going to help create the Bozena's eyes, nose and whiskers." She looked at Nigel. "And we'll get to work together again."

Nigel smiled. "Sounds perfect."

Upon their arrival, they jumped out of the cart like kids at a candy store racing for their first taste of sugary treats.

A very old looking couple greeted them at the door. "Good-morning, I'm Melvin and this is my wife Millicent." Melvin reached out to shake Emma's hand.

"Hi, I'm Emma and this is Nigel, and I guess you know Albert and Polly."

Melvin shook Albert's hand. "Sure do. How are you, Albert?"

"Just great. How have you two been?"

"Excited about this new species. We can't wait to get these kids opinions on what we've done," Melvin said.

Emma smiled at Millicent. She had pure white hair and looked frail, dressed in a warm red sweater; she had no meat on her bones to warm her blood.

"Nice to meet you, Millicent," Emma said.

"Huh," she responded, as if she hadn't heard a thing.

Melvin, looking almost as fragile as Millicent, said, "Oh, honey, she's as deaf as a doornail. You're gonna have to yell for her to hear a thing."

"Nice to meet you, Millicent," Emma yelled.

She smiled. "You're here to see the big cat, aren't you?"

Emma still didn't think Millicent had heard her. At least Melvin could hear. A very thin, balding man, wearing a baby blue polyester suit with a shirt, tie and a hankie in his pocket, he reminded Emma of something right out of the seventies.

A huge smile enveloped his face as he started to talk about the Bozena. "Millicent and I are thrilled to have the two artists that started this new species working with us. We've just finished designing and applying the fur." He started walking and motioned for them to follow. "As you know, this fur was especially created for the Bozena. New fur is Millicent's specialty, and we're very proud of this one."

He opened the door to their private studio and there stood the Bozena.

"Oh my God. It's magnificent." Emma ran toward the big cat. "I knew the skeleton was bigger than a tigers, but with the muscles and fur in place it looks gigantic."

The light gray fur, probably two inches long, sparkled with a silver shimmer. Dark gray spots, almost like a leopard's, intertwined with tiny black spots. And if you ran your fingers through the coat, it became black next to the Bozena's skin and gradually turned to light gray as the hair got longer. Soft and silky, like a chinchilla, Emma couldn't stop petting the remarkable creature. Highlights of white fur around its face and paws, added detail and dimension to the design. The whole thing shimmered in the light, like sugar crystals on top of strawberry bonbons.

Millicent looked at them and yelled, "What do you think, kids?"

"It's awesome," they yelled back.

"A cat's fur originates in the epidermis, like all hair," Melvin said. "There's a muscle right next to the root, just under the skin, that's extremely sensitive to temperature." Melvin spread the Bonzena's fur apart. "You can see how each hair is implanted. In cold weather or when the cat is scared, that muscle contracts and that causes the hair to stand up."

"Like a Halloween Cat?" Emma laughed.

"Exactly."

"I always wondered how they did that. They do look scary that way, all puffed up."

"That makes their enemies think they're bigger than they actually are," Melvin said.

"Some of the hairs are longer than others, why is that?" Nigel asked.

"Cats have a few different types of hair that make up their coat. First, there's the guard hairs, these here." Melvin held a few longer hairs between his fingers. "These longer, stiffer hairs that extend out past the base coat not only determine the color of the cat, they retard water to help keep the cat dry."

"What are these hairs called?" Emma asked as she pushed aside the Bozena's base coat and exposed the fluffy hairs underneath. "They're so soft."

"That's his undercoat or down. It's a softer, fluffier hair that keeps the cat warm. In the Bozena's case, he has more of that layer of fur than a house cat because he'll live in a cold climate.

"Then there's the main coat. That's called the awn hairs." Melvin ran his fingers over the Bozena's body. "Beautiful." He smiled. "A few cats have what we call vellus hairs which are very fine and sparse, almost like human body hair. There's a few here, in the Bozena's ears."

"Did you make his ears?" Emma asked.

"No, he was in that department a few days before we covered him with fur."

Emma looked inside the ear.

"Cats have thirty two muscles in each ear. That allows them to move the ear in almost any direction," Melvin continued, "like their eyesight, it's superior to that of humans. Their hearing range is forty five to sixty four thousand hertz compared to sixty four to twenty three thousand in humans. That means the cats can hear sounds we can't even imagine on both ends of the spectrum."

"Do they have this shape for a reason?" Emma asked.

"The shape is designed to draw sound into the ear canal." Melvin ran his finger over the edge of the Bozena's ear. "This allows the cat to hear a mouse rustling around in the brush thirty feet away."

Albert petted the Bozena. "A perfect combination of form and function."

After they looked over every incredible inch of the Bozena, they were ready to get busy. The cat needed eyes, whiskers and a nose. Millicent and Melvin, anxious to get started, sent Polly and Albert on their way.

Melvin found Nigel and Emma some chairs at their big work table and started to explain. "The first thing we're going to do is create the Bozena's nose." He placed a huge block of dark gray clay and some paints in front of each of them. "We'll create the design for the nose from this clay and paint. Here's the pattern for the basic size and shape." He handed them a cardboard cutout of a nose.

As he talked, he started to carve his block and motioned for them to do the same. Nigel and Emma followed his lead and started carving. Millicent just watched.

"Millicent doesn't like carving, but she'll paint and texture my carving," Melvin said. "This is going to be a big nose, for a big cat." They sculpted as Melvin talked. "A cat's nose is extremely important to its survival. The sense of smell will lead them to food and keep them from danger. It's thirty times greater than yours or mine. Just to give you an example of what that means, if you walked by a hot dog stand you'd smell hot dogs, peppers and onions. The cat would smell not only the things you did, but in addition he would smell the buns, ketchup, mustard, relish, chips, soda, grease, and even the shampoo the street vendor used that morning."

"Once the initial nose is created do you mold them for the production?" Nigel asked. He set down the clay and picked up a carving tool.

"We still sculpt each and every nose by hand. I know that sounds crazy, but Millicent and I love doing things the old fashioned way. We have a few hundred artists each creating the perfect noses for all the cats in production. That way each nose is unique, either in color, shape, or texture."

"That sounds like a lot of work," Emma said. "How do you get them all so perfect?"

Melvin smirked. "True spontaneity comes from lots and lots of practice."

Everybody laughed.

They worked on carving all afternoon. Emma still wasn't content with her results. Melvin and Nigel's nose's looked much better than her attempts, but over the next few days, she perfected the process. After sculpting the noses they used tools to texture the surface and added paint to give each nose some depth of color and uniqueness.

Melvin held up his completed nose. "Now that this one is finished it will need to set up for about six hours. When it's done it will feel like soft leather. Later we can attach the new nose to the sinuses and the Jacobson's Organ."

"What's that, Melvin," Emma asked.

"It helps the sense of smell. Placed just inside the cat's mouth, behind the front teeth, it enables it to open the ducts connecting to the nasal cavity. This increases its sensitivity to odors, even telling them if danger is coming, like an earthquake."

"Cats can predict earthquakes?"

"Yes, and anything else that could put them in harm's way. Unfortunately, they don't have any way to tell people about the danger."

Melvin smiled as he held the new nose in front of the big cat. "As soon as the spirit is placed in the Bozena it will be able to take its first breath."

"So what kind of clay is this?" Nigel asked.

"It's not really clay at all, it just has similar properties. For lack of a better term, we call it clay. But it really is a special material that will harden slightly, staying flexible enough to make the cat's nose pliable and soft. It also has the ability to get warm, cold, dry or wet depending on the cat's body temperature and health."

As they painted and textured the noses, Melvin talked about his life with Millicent. "I know you young people are probably wondering what two old farts like us are doing running this department. Millicent and I have always been creators, not always artists, but definitely creators. We hang on to these old bodies because they're from our favorite lifetime together." He looked at Millicent and smiled. "Right, dear?"

She looked back at him, brow furrowed. "The light is just fine." And went back to her painting.

"As I was saying, we lived on Earth in the seventies, and we had such a fun lifetime with disco dancing, pop art and the emerging technology. Millicent and I owned a company that invented a car which ran off solar power. We had a fantastic design that really worked. Production began with a model called the 'SunSpot'. The batteries were so small and effective we could charge them in one day in the California desert. The charge would last up to a year, and then people who didn't live in sunny areas could just mail the battery back to us for a recharge. We were working on finalizing the design and getting our factory ready for mass production when the big oil companies approached us.

"Needless to say, they were scared shitless. If our design hit the American market they would honesty lose their business overnight. The car companies started making threats. Millicent and I don't scare easily, but the oil companies and the car companies ripped our lives apart. They froze our bank accounts, tapped the phone lines and made our kids terrified to go to school. We had no choice but to halt production of the 'Sunspot' and hope someday things would change. They didn't, but that's why we hang onto these old bodies, to keep that lifetime and the 'Sunspot' alive."

"Do you think you'll ever go back and try again?" Nigel asked.

"We definitely will. We're just waiting for the right time. When people on Earth are ready for real solar power, pollution free and low cost, we'll be reincarnated and create the 'Sunspot' automobile all over again. Earth isn't ready just yet, but the tides are changing as we speak. We're thinking very soon we'll be able to go, hopefully, because as you can see Millicent definitely needs new ears."

Curious, Emma asked, "Melvin, let me see if I've got this straight. Millicent and you will decide when Earth is ready, meet with Volod to set up a Life Plan and then be reincarnated together?"

"Yes, we'll set up a time in our lives to meet, fall in love, and then start the car company all over again."

"I sure hope I'm on Earth when that happens."

"I'll remember to make meeting you part of my Life Plan, Emma, and we will meet again."

***

"Now that we've finished the noses we can start on the eyes," Melvin said. "The Bonzena's eyes will be dazzling sapphire." He held up a blue sparkling paint.

"I think that's the perfect color choice." Emma took the jar of paint from his hand. "Yes, it will be beautiful."

"But the color of the eyes isn't really very important. It's what goes on behind the eyes that matters most," Melvin continued. "A cat can see in very dim light, great for hunting at night. This is possible by a device we'll implant in the rear of the eyes called the tapidum lucidum, meaning bright carpet. This device is what makes the cat's eyes glow in the dark."

"Can cats see colors?"

"Unlike dogs, cats see in three-d and do see some colors."

While Melvin talked, Nigel and Emma worked on creating the eyes themselves. Each given delicate tissue, tweezers and a magnifying glass, they followed Millicent, the expert. They watched her every move, like interns observing a heart transplant.

"First, we'll make a large circle out of this clear tissue," she began. "This will be the outer layer when we assemble the eyeball. It's called the cornea."

Emma and Nigel followed her instructions and cut a perfect circle from the tissue.

Emma held up her cornea. "Okay, I think this looks good."

Melvin brought each of them a tray filled with concave cups.

"It looks like an egg carton," Emma said.

"This will form the perfect cornea and be the base for assembling the rest of the eyeball." He showed her how to place the cornea correctly into the cup. "You need to be sure it's nice and smooth. Can't have any Bozena's walking around with wrinkled corneas." Melvin laughed.

"That looks great," Millicent said. She handed each of them a heavier material. "This will become the iris." She helped them with the cutting. "Like this, kids. The iris isn't just the pretty colored part of the eye. It actually is the muscular diaphragm that will control the size of the pupil."

"How's this?" Nigel asked.

Millicent didn't hear him. "We need to cut a hole in the center for the pupil to fit into later. After that we can paint them."

Melvin placed the paints on the table. "Here you go, get creative. The base color must be the new blue but you can add whatever highlights you choose."

Emma painted her irises blue and then grabbed the orange. "I think I'll start with a touch of orange."

"Sounds nice." Melvin smiled.

Nigel had an array of colors in front of him. "A smidgen of lime, a dab of gold and just a touch of violet."

Emma stopped to admire Nigel's painting skills. "That's beautiful. I think I need to add something. What about some turquoise?" She chewed on the end of her paintbrush.

Nigel looked at her irises. "Yes, I think that will look great and maybe just a tiny bit of crimson." He pushed the crimson paint in her direction.

"Crimson in the iris, you two kids are bringing a whole new era to the colors of a cat's eyeballs," Melvin said.

Emma added a few more highlights to her irises. "That's perfect. I'm stopping there before I mess them up."

"We need to let these dry for a bit," Millicent said. She set the tray with the newly painted irises aside. "Next we'll make the pupil. As you know the pupil is the contractile aperture in the eye."

"What?" Emma asked.

Melvin explained, "She means it's the part of the eye that can open and close in response to light. In a cat the effect is quite pronounced."

"The pupil is made out of this material here." Millicent handed them each a piece of black tissue. It was a bit heavier than what they had been working with. "We're going to cut a series of angular portions that will be sewn together but still have the ability to contract."

Emma and Nigel watched as Millicent cut her pieces, and then did the same.

"Now we'll sew them." She handed them an almost invisible needle and thread. "Right here, just a few stitches, then tie the whole thing together with a loose stitch. This thread has a great deal of elasticity to it. And even though it looks fine, it's extremely strong."

"I think mine are done," Emma said.

Melvin brought the tray of finished parts back to the table. "Time to assemble them."

"Since you already have the corneas in the convex holding tray you can begin to add the other parts. The iris goes next." Millicent watched them closely. "No, dear, upside down." She flipped Emma's irises so the painted side faced down.

"Oh, I forgot. We're working on them from the back."

"Now we'll place the pupil into that hole you cut in the iris. It should fit tightly." Millicent grabbed a bottle of glue. "You want to put a thin layer of glue across the back to hold the pupil in place." She smeared the glue over the back with her finger. "Like this."

Emma and Nigel did the same.

"Next we'll add the lens." Millicent handed each of them two kidney-bean-shaped pieces. "Melvin made these earlier; they're tricky to get just right."

Nigel placed the kidney-bean-shaped lens behind the iris.

Melvin placed one of the lenses under a magnifying glass. "This lens is very important. The shape of it has to be perfect. It has to be biconvex to focus the light waves on to the retina."

"Biconvex?" Emma said.

"Kidney-bean-shaped," Melvin said.

Millicent looked at Melvin. "The retinas are next, dear."

"Okay." Melvin switched on a small red lamp over the work table. "We need to shut off the lights until the eyeball is sealed shut. The retina material is light sensitive."

Millicent unlocked a metal cabinet and took out a box. Inside the box was a black envelope. "This is the retina cloth." She handed them each a small square. "You'll need to cut two circles big enough to cover the back portion of the eyeball."

Melvin handed Emma and Nigel a bottle filled with clear liquid and some tiny muscles. "These muscles will be glued to the back of the iris. They allow the pupil to narrow to a vertical slit in bright light and open fully in dim light."

Millicent helped them glue the muscles in place. "Now we'll fill the back with the vitreous humor."

"I've never heard of that," Emma said.

"It's just a fancy name for the clear jelly that fills the posterior chamber," Melvin said.

"Once that's done we can sew on the retina and seal the whole thing shut," Millicent said. "After that we'll add the tapidum lucidum Melvin told you about earlier." Millicent handed each of them a shiny green cloth. "The tapidum reflects incoming light and bounces it back off the cones. That makes better use of low light. It's the reason cat's eyes look like shiny green orbs at night."

"Now all we need to do is add the nerves and they will be ready to be put into the Bozena," Melvin said.

"These eyes look awfully large compared to the Bozena's skull," Nigel said.

"Cats eyes are large compared to their skulls," Melvin said. "They have a wide visual field, approximately one hundred eighty six degrees. That's one of the reasons you can't sneak up on them."

"Is it true the pupil can change if a cat is mad?" Emma asked.

"Yes, a cat's pupil can change if it's angry, frightened or excited," Melvin said. "What to know a funny cat fact?"

"Sure."

"A cat can't see directly beneath its nose." Melvin chuckled.

While Melvin chatted, Millicent checked all the newly created eyeballs. "These look like they're ready. You can turn the lights on now, Melvin."

"Sounds like we're ready to place a set into the model of the Bozena. The other two sets we'll use at a later date when we start production. I think we should use Emma's set on this cat."

"That sounds great," Nigel said.

Melvin took the eyes over to the Bozena's body and separated the skin covering the skull where the eye was to be placed. "Now we'll attach the nerves you glued to the back to these inside the Bozena's skull, right here."

"How do you know where they all go?" Emma asked.

"You'll learn." Melvin continued sewing tiny nerves and veins with the fine elastic thread. He had on a silly looking hat with a magnifying glass and a light hanging from the brim. "The retina must be touching the optic nerve, there, like that." Melvin looked up and smiled. "Perfect. Let's see if it works." He tried closing the eyelid with his fingertips. "Right under this eyelid is the cat's nictating membrane or third lid. It protects the eye from dryness or damage."

Melvin reopened the lid and began attaching the other eye. "All done." He stepped back. "In a few days the Bozena will have 20/100 vision, thanks to you kids."

"It's beautiful," Emma said. "It's starting to look alive."

***

The next morning Nigel turned the knob and swung open the door to Millicent and Melvin's studio.

Emma looked in the room and then at Nigel. "Where are they? Why aren't Melvin and Millicent here?"

"Gosh, I hope they're alright. It's not like them to be late."

Emma started to panic. "I'm going to get Albert. Something must be wrong."

Nigel stepped into the room. "Wait a minute, look over there, at Millicent's work table, who's that?"

"It's not Millicent." Emma followed Nigel into the room, hands on hips. "Hey, over there."

The person looked up. It was a young woman.

"Do you know where Millicent and Melvin are?"

The woman smiled. She was stunning. "Nigel, Emma, come in. It's me, Millicent."

"Millicent," Emma said, "you're not Millicent."

Nigel whispered in Emma's ear. "What the hell. Why does this crazy lady think she's Millicent?"

"You got me." Emma started walking toward the young woman. "Where's Millicent and why are you using her tools?"

"Kids, it's really me. Please, sit down and I'll explain."

Nigel and Emma pulled up their chairs and stared at the young woman, who in many ways did resemble Millicent.

"This is going to be tough on you kids, but Melvin had to leave suddenly. Volodymyr sent a message that it was time to go to Earth and he had to go."

"Melvin has been reincarnated?" Emma asked. "He didn't even say good-bye."

"No time for goodbyes, when Volod wants you to go, you go." With a saddened look on her face, she continued, "You see Earth isn't ready to accept the 'Sunspot' yet, but Melvin must get there, grow up, get his engineering degree and develop the batteries and the car all over again. Volod figured that process would take thirty years, and in thirty years even if the oil companies don't want solar power, they'll have no choice. Oil will be rare and prohibitively expensive. Pollution will need to be addressed desperately, and the timing will be perfect to re-introduce the 'Sunspot'."

Tears filled Emma's eyes. "I'll miss Melvin so much, and why aren't you with him, Millicent?"

"Let's answer the easy question first. I'm not with him because he'll be five years older than me when we meet, so he needed to leave five years ahead of me. As far as missing Melvin, that I can't help you with because I'll miss him greatly myself," she said with a sniffle.

Emma could tell Millicent tried to be tough. "I feel lost and sad, like when my mother died." She leaned over and hugged Millicent.

"Well, dear, in a way Melvin has died, at least the Melvin you knew who helped you learn to create noses. That part of him we'll all miss. It's okay to feel sad for your loss and it's okay to miss him, but realize as we speak, Melvin's spirit is being born on Earth into the body of a new baby boy. Be happy for his spirit, it's eternally alive. While you're seeing Melvin leaving us as a type of 'death', remember 'death' and 'birth' are basically the same thing."

"I don't understand how you can say that?" Nigel said. "My best friend, Pierre, died and that didn't feel like birth in any way. It felt like pain, loss, and suffering. Birth feels happy, loving, and exciting."

"It all depends on which side you're facing it," she answered with a smile. "To us it feels like Melvin has 'died'. We feel sad and lonely. To his new mother, father, sister, aunts, uncles, and friends it feels like the most joyous moment in their lifetimes, filled with love and excitement. Like I said, it all depends on which side you're facing it. Birth equals death, which equals birth. There's no difference. We're always dying in one place to be born in another. Like the day each of you came here, you died somewhere else, and people were sad. When you leave here to be born somewhere else we'll all feel sad and lonely without you, but your new family will be happy."

"Millicent," Nigel asked, "why is the death of one person so painful to those of us left behind?"

"Well, Nigel, I think first and foremost because most people don't realize there is no death. The spirit you loved is pure energy which lives forever. Understanding that can ease a lot of stress about death. Missing them and longing for them to be back, that's just part of loving. I'll miss Melvin every minute of every day for the next twenty years until we meet again when I'm fifteen and he's twenty. I know it will be worth it though, we'll fall in love all over again, create the 'Sunspot', help the planet and then come back here to create more cats."

"But Millicent, why are you young now? We didn't even recognize you," Emma asked.

She grinned. "You see Melvin always liked the later years of our last lifetime so I let him choose the bodies we would work in here, but now that he's gone, I went back to my body at a younger part of that lifetime, when I could hear and I didn't have arthritis." She giggled.

Nigel gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "You look beautiful, dear Millicent."

"I know we're all going to miss Melvin," Millicent said, "but we better get busy on the whiskers for the Bozena. That's what Melvin would want us to do; besides, as you all know, The Cat Factory waits for no one!"

Millicent pulled out some heavy looking string wound around a spool. "Here, feel this," she said. "This is what the whiskers or vibrissae are made from. Basically, it's the same as the Bozena's fur, but more than twice the thickness. I wove it when I made the fur." She handed the spool to Emma.

"Yes, it's like stiff thread." Emma handed the spool to Nigel.

"The color is new and shimmers in the sun," Millicent continued.

Nigel held the spool up to the light. "I can see the shimmer. But why would we want the whiskers to shimmer? Wouldn't that be bad for a predator? It could warn his prey that he was ready to attack."

"You're right. Normally we wouldn't want a predator cat's fur or whiskers to shimmer, because its ability to hide in trees or brush would be diminished, but the Bozena is going to planet Ominous where the landscape is much different from Earth. It's very stark and barren with a lot of ice and snow. The silver will reflect like ice crystals and help the Bozena look invisible while standing out in the open on the ice."

"Why does this planet, Ominous need a cat this big?" Emma asked. "Won't it eat humans?"

"There's no human life on Ominous yet. The planet needs a large predator to control the population of ishbadittles."

Emma laughed. "What in the world is an ishbadittle?"

"I know, silly name. I think it was a joke over there at New Species Development. A joke that got out of control. The ishbadittles are monstrous little creatures that live in the ice. They have pure white fur and are impossible to spot, until they're chewing you up with their sharp fangs. New Species Development hopes the Bozena will control the population of those wild beasts so that human life can be introduced."

"The Bozena won't get hurt by the ishbadittles will it?" Emma asked.

"The Bozena will be able to smell them from at least fifty feet away. I hear they smell horrid." Millicent took the spool of thread from Nigel. "We better get back to the whiskers."

She started to unroll the beautiful silver string. "A cat has twenty four whiskers, twelve on each side of the nose, arranged in four rows. They can move according to the cat's emotions, forward if the cat is inquisitive or threatening, and backward if the cat is defensive or avoiding something. These heavy duty hairs are imbedded in the cat's skin three times deeper than the normal hairs, and as you'll see, they have a great many nerve endings like tiny transmitters directly wired to the brain, sensing any contact or changes in air pressure. This is perfect for nocturnal hunting because the cat can depend on its whiskers to detect even the smallest disturbance in air currents, which allows them to grab their prey in a split second without even seeing it."

Nigel and Emma listened to Millicent in amazement.

"A cat's whiskers are as wide as the body. He'll use them as a measuring tool. So we need to get the size perfect." Millicent held her tape measure up to the Bozena's body. "Hum, let's see, at his widest part he's twenty two inches."

"So the whiskers are twenty two inches long?" Emma asked.

"Divided by two, since he gets whiskers on both sides of his head. That means each whisker needs to be twelve inches long with a half inch extra to anchor it into the skin."

"But they're not all the same size are they?"

"No, the longest ones will be twelve inches and we'll make each one a little shorter, forming this fan shape."

Nigel and Emma cut the silver string to the sizes Millicent specified. Then they made tiny holes in the Bozena's face in four perfect rows imbedding the nerves in the skin and wiring them into the cat's central nervous system.

"Next we can add a dab of glue and shape them, like this." Millicent ran her hands gently over the whiskers pulling them into shape. "Perfect." She stepped back to look at the Bozena. "Now that the whiskers are done we can add the rest of the tactile hairs."

"What are tactile hairs?" Emma questioned.

"They're made of the same thread as the whiskers but they go in different places. Like here." Millicent spread the fur apart over the Bozena's eyes."

"Like his eyebrows." Emma laughed.

"Then he'll get a few on the very back of his cheeks and some shorter ones on the back of his front legs."

The addition of whiskers brought the cat's appearance to life. "He's just beautiful." Emma kissed his nose and hugged his still lifeless body.

"Doesn't it make you proud to see what we've done," Nigel said.

"It sure does." Emma petted the Bozena's furry face. "So, Millicent, how did you make his fur? It's so soft."

"Let's go see," Millicent said happily. She took them into another room behind the studio, filled with weaving and spinning machines creating rolls of fur for the factory.

"This is my spinning machine." She sat down and grabbed a small handful of a fluffy looking substance. She spun the wheel, and remarkably, silvery whiskers came out the other end. "Would you like to try, Emma?"

Emma picked up a small bunch of the strange stuff and placed it on the wheel. It felt soft and the silver shimmer became more apparent as the wheel spun the soft fluff into a hard string. She grabbed another handful. "This really is fun, Millicent, but how do you make the fluff we're turning into whiskers?"

"Come with me."

They followed Millicent to yet another room where hundreds of people mixed the fluffy substance with colored dyes, different conditioners, and in the Bozena's case, silver sparkle.

"This is where the fluff has color, texture, softness, and sheen added to it. From here, it goes to the weaving room where it's made into large sheets of fur or rolls of whiskers. This is where new colors, like the silver for the Bozena, are created."

Emma picked up another handful of the mystifying fuzz. "But where does the fluff come from before you add color to it?" she asked. "It has to come from somewhere."

Millicent ignored her. "Over here we're making black fur for a panther."

Emma tugged on her sleeve. "Millicent, just stop for a second." Emma looked her in the eyes. "Where does the fluff come from?"

Millicent cleared her throat, but didn't answer.

Emma was getting more frustrated. "Where do any of the raw materials we use come from? Where does the rubber mixture for the muscles get made? How did you get the tissue for the eyes, hearts and brains?"

Millicent sighed.

"Why has this never occurred to me before? After all these months of creating I never thought about it. The raw materials have to be here for the factory to make new cats. We need fluff to create colored fur and dyes and paints and silver shimmer."

"Yes, we do need all those things," Millicent said.

"But do you know where it comes from?"

Millicent looked at the ground.

Emma looked at Nigel. "Do you know, Nigel? Where does the plaster for the bones come from?"

"Gee, Emma, I really don't know. Nick just brings me what I need. I never thought to ask where he got it from."

Emma looked at Millicent again, feeling frustration overtake her once calm exterior. Millicent looked like she knew, but she wouldn't say. "You and Melvin have been working here for years, you must know, Millicent. Please tell me."

Finally Millicent spoke, "Calm down, Emma, you'll get your answers, but I think you should get them from someone who understands the whole process better than me."

"Like who?"

"Like your grandfather."

"Then I'm going to go see him right now." Emma grabbed Nigel by the hand. "Come on, Nigel, let's go."

### Chapter Thirteen

### Fluff & the Manifest Universe

Emma knocked on the big wooden door. "Albert, it's Emma and Nigel, we need to talk to you, now."

The door opened and Emma pushed her way in.

"What is it, dear, calm down," Albert said.

Nigel smiled at Albert. "She's upset."

"Yeah, I can see that, why?"

"I'll tell you why," Emma piped in, "because I want to know where the fluff comes from?"

Albert looked confused. "Fluff, what fluff?"

"Oh come on, don't treat me like a stupid child. I need to know where the fluff comes from, and the plaster, tissue, silver sparkle, paint, clay, and all the materials we start with. No one will tell me. To make the fur for the cats we start with fluff. I need to understand where the fluff comes from."

Albert sat in his chair, took a long drag from his pipe, and blew the smoke into rings above his head. Hesitantly, he spoke. "I knew you'd want this answer sooner or later. Please Emma, Nigel, sit down and let me get you a cold drink."

"I don't want to sit, and I don't want a drink. I want an answer."

"It's complicated." Albert motioned for them to sit.

Nigel sat down and Emma followed. "Okay, we're sitting, now we want answers."

Albert took a deep breath. "I'm going to get a colleague of mine to help out. He works over in New Species Development."

"We don't need help, just tell us."

"Give me just a minute." Albert slid out the door.

Emma huffed, frustrated.

He returned a minute later with four cold drinks, put them on the desk and pulled up another chair. "He'll be here soon."

"Who is this guy?"

"His name is Isaac. You may have heard of him while you were on Earth. He was one of the first scientists."

Nigel's face lit up. "Do you mean Isaac Newton?"

"Yes, Nigel, that's him."

A loud knock on the door sent Albert over to greet his friend, Isaac. Young and attractive, he was not what Emma had expected. She thought a scientist would be old and dreary. But Isaac surprised her with his muscular frame and brown curly hair flowing down to his shoulders.

He looked directly at her, with fascinating chocolate colored eyes highlighted with flecks of gold. "I hear you have some pretty deep questions, Emma. That's great; it shows spunk and initiative, wonderful qualities." He smiled. His smile, sweet and knowing, eased her agitation immediately.

"Isaac," she said, "where does the fluff come from?"

Nigel and Emma waited like they were in the last second of the World Series, bases loaded and the score tied.

He took a deep breath and began, "I'm going to start with the facts scientists on planet Earth currently know. Since you two were both recently there, you may be familiar with something. First off, they know everything is energy and energy can never be destroyed, only changed into different forms."

"I believe that," Nigel said.

"Even down to the tiniest particle all things are energy, held together with energy, the same energy," Isaac continued. "There's no difference in the energy of the particles in a rock than in a cat."

"That's hard to imagine." Emma tried to picture a cat and a rock being made of the same thing.

"Hard to imagine, but true," Isaac said. "Therefore everything is essentially the same, and since it's all the same, it's all interconnected. You got that?"

"I suppose so."

"Hence the fluff is made of the same stuff as you and me; it just looks like fluff right now."

Emma looked at her arm. "So you're trying to tell me I'm made of fluff?"

"In a way. Soon you'll make the fluff into fur, and then to people on Earth, the cat will mysteriously have fur. They don't know where the fur or the fluff came from, but you do because you made the fluff into fur and then covered the cat with it."

"You're still not telling me where the fluff came from, Isaac?"

"Ah, but I am, Emma, you're just not getting it yet. The fluff comes from the raw materials department. That's where all the paints, plaster, clay, tissues etc. you use here come from."

"That's a bogus answer, they still have to start out somewhere, and I want to know where."

"Put it all together. If you can make fluff into whiskers and fur, then why can't someone else make something else into fluff?"

"Well, what would they make the fluff out of?"

"Anything, Emma, absolutely anything. Like I said before, everything is made out of the same stuff. If you knew how to turn Albert's desk into fluff you could do it."

"Albert's desk?" Emma knocked on the desk. "No way."

"Take dead stars and turn that energy into new planets or new cats, either way, it makes no difference. Whatever the universe needs, it makes. Whatever it doesn't need, it recycles."

"You're saying we have a recycling plant here?"

Isaac laughed. "I guess you could call it that. Let me see if I can give you a more detailed example. When you killed yourself, your spirit came here, but your body was cremated on Earth. All your atoms, protons, neutrons, electrons and the massive amount of energy which held them together were turned into pure power once again. That energy was remolded into whatever the universe needed at the moment of your death. If the universe needed fluff then your old particles are now fluff, that fluff will become fur, and in a few weeks it will be keeping the Bozena warm as it roams around on planet Ominous."

"The energy that made my body alive could be in anything right now?"

"That's correct."

Emma thought for a moment. "But I'm still in my body, how can the universe be using the energy from my particles?"

Isaac smiled and patted her on the shoulder. "You're not really in a body now, you only think you are."

"Sure looks like I am."

"You're only spirit when you're here. You appear to be a young blonde girl, but that's only an illusion. There's no physical body to maintain, obviously. There's no sickness, no dentists, no doctors."

"You're right about that. I've never felt so healthy."

"That's because your spirit is always at a level of optimal health."

"And there's no booze to make me sick."

"But you haven't even craved it, have you?"

"No, haven't thought about it once since I got here. Why is that? I was a hard core drunk."

"A human being drinks to deal with problems or pain, a spirit knows there is no such thing."

"Alright, so say I accept the idea that I'm not in my body anymore. As a spirit I don't need energy from the universe?"

"Your spirit takes very little of the universe's energy to maintain, a human body takes a lot. When you leave your human body all that extra energy goes back to its source, the universe."

"How does the universe know what it needs to create from all that energy?"

"There are always requests. Millicent desires three thousand pounds of fluff, Nick needs five hundred barrels of plaster, you want blue paint and there are tissues for hearts and veins. The list is endless. The universe knows the list and then the incoming energy is turned into those substances. If there's extra energy after all the requests are filled then we get to design a new species, planet or galaxy. All the energy is in constant flux at every moment. It's going out a split second after it comes in."

"If I've got this right you're telling us that Earth, human bodies, cats, trees, etc., take a lot more energy to maintain than places like The Cat Factory."

"You got that right! The manifest universe, what humans see and experience, takes most of the universe's energy to maintain. In fact, it takes ninety six percent of the entire universe to maintain a tiny four percent that's manifest for human and physical existence.

"Let's go back to what human scientists think right now. They know the manifest universe is only four percent of all the matter that exists. That's correct. What they got wrong is that they think the other ninety six percent is dark matter, black holes or dark energy."

"Well, what is it?"

"Think about it." Isaac waited.

"Is it us?"

"Yes," he shouted.

"The other ninety six percent is us?" Emma said.

"That's right; the other ninety six percent of the universe is us, creation. If you could look at the manifest universe from here it would look like a huge snow globe, crystal ball or terrarium. The planets would look like miniscule marbles spinning in perfect unison, rotating and held together by gravitational fields. From here it's the most beautiful living sculpture ever created."

"And we're in that snow globe?"

"No, we're the darkness they don't see. We're what surrounds them on all sides, protects them, maintains and creates them."

"So we're on the outside looking in?"

"Only while we're here, because like all energy, we're coming and going in and out of manifestation."

"If I could look at Earth from here it would look like a tiny blue marble?"

"It would, but don't let that fact make you think any less of the manifest universe. It's also extraordinarily splendid, so marvelous in fact that you can't be in its presence without crying."

"Why would I cry if it's so wonderful?"

"The exquisiteness of the manifest universe is overwhelming; it will overtake your emotions. Only a small handful of spirits are ever allowed to see it in its purest form. These spirits have had to be introduced to it gradually. The attraction is incredible. It can mesmerize you to the point that you can't pull yourself away from it.

"Have you ever seen one of those hand blown glass balls that look like they have a world tucked inside them? Imagine an enormous glass ball, and everything in it is alive, the planets, stars, galaxies, oceans, people, trees, all of it. And not only is it all living and moving, but it is growing, loving, thinking, learning, creating and dying. It's a miracle. But if you're standing on the outside looking in, you know what's behind it all. You're part of creating that big glass ball. Suddenly you're in love with every aspect of it, and fixated on the details. How are the oceans, should we add water? How's the Bozena doing? Are all the cats we created last week being born? Where are they, are they happy? You want to stop pollution and end wars. You want to pour love over the people and teach them what's important. You want to stop their worries and tell them to enjoy life. We're all working hard here for them to have manifest life but some of them are wasting it being depressed. You want to help them. You want to tell them, do you know how much work it takes for us to give you life, enjoy it, love it!"

"Gee, Isaac, have you seen the manifest universe in person?" Nigel asked. "It sounds like you know first hand how it feels."

"Yes, Nigel, I have had that opportunity. It was undeniably magnificent and humbling at the same time. I actually spent fifty years watching it, unable to pull myself away. Finally, after much struggle, I was able to stop watching it and go back to creating."

Isaac brought tears to Emma's eyes just describing this irresistible beauty. "Is it like the Life Cam?" she asked. "When I watch my daughter on it I can barely take my eyes off her, and I can feel everything she's feeling. It's overwhelming."

"It's exactly like watching the Life Cam, but try to imagine when you watch the manifest universe you're in love with everything that exists. You can feel what every living thing feels, knows and wants. You can suffer with a starving child's hunger, have a stroke with an old man, or be born as a puppy. Your arms swish in the breeze among the oak trees, your gills fill with fresh water, and you're inside the wave the surfer is riding. At the same time, you're the surfer riding that wave, the sun shining upon him and the clouds above his head. You're the dinner he ate last night and the nurse who'll bandage his sprained ankle. All this you feel at the same time. On top of it all, you're the mother or father of everything, because you're here creating things to go there."

"I can't even imagine the overwhelming joy and sorrow I would feel." Emma wiped the tears from her face with her hand.

Albert looked at her. "Now do you understand why God could never be mad at you, no matter what you did with your life?"

"Yes, now that I created the Bozena I could watch them and just want to be a part of what they did without judging them. I imagine that's how God looks at us."

Isaac smiled. "When any of us look at the manifest universe we're looking through God's eyes. We're seeing, feeling, and living what He does at every moment, through every living thing. That's why the experience is so enlightening."

"Do you know anyone else who has seen the manifest universe, Isaac?"

"There's only been one other person I've known, Madelyn, your great, great grandmother."

Emma sighed. "She won't remember the manifest universe as she knew it though, will she?"

"Even if she doesn't remember, her cells will retain the wisdom she gained and whether she realizes it or not, she'll teach that wisdom to others."

"How does someone get to see the manifest universe," Nigel asked.

"Like I said, only a few spirits are allowed to see it. They're usually very old spirits getting jobs in New Species Development, Planet Creation or Galaxy Design. Even then the exposure is limited. Actually, it's best to see it on film or through photographs. The attachment is more easily controlled, the love not as powerful. The only other spirits that are allowed to see the awesome sight are the spirits in charge of prayer requests."

"I thought people only prayed to God. In the shelter I could hear them all the time, asking for things, but they never got any answers."

"Are you sure about that?"

"My mother made it clear that there was no God and unfortunately I believed her. Even on the slim chance there was a God, I thought He wouldn't care about me or my illegitimate kid."

"He would always care," Isaac said.

"I was sure that prayers were a waste of time. God only listens to priests and rabbis and stuff, I used to tell them. He doesn't listen to homeless people, if there even is a God."

"God listens to everyone."

"But you just said there's a prayer request department."

"Ahh, those are the people who implement prayers. That doesn't mean God isn't listening."

"Wouldn't they be angels?" Emma asked.

"I guess you could call them angels, but really they're just very old spirits who have taken on the overwhelming task of prayer request implementation."

"I really don't believe they do a very good job, Isaac, sorry."

"I thought you didn't pray?"

Emma whispered in Isaac's ear, "I did. I just never told my mother or anyone at the shelter. And like I thought, it was a waste of time. My prayers were never answered."

"That's impossible, Emma, all prayers are answered."

"I know you're a really smart guy, Isaac, but you got that wrong. None of my prayers were answered."

"What did you pray for?"

"Well, a dog for one, a better life, a house, a husband, and possibly happiness."

"You never had any of those things?"

"No."

"What were you thinking about?"

"What in the world does what I thought about have to do with anything?"

"All thoughts are prayers."

"What?" Emma said with a wrinkled brow.

"Every time you had a thought, good or bad, it was a prayer. The people in the prayer request department don't judge your prayers to be good or bad, they can only fulfill them."

"I thought a prayer was more like a formal request."

"Quite the opposite, everything you thought about was a prayer," Isaac continued.

"Everything I thought, shit, no wonder my life was such a mess."

"Since your spirit has free will, the prayer request department isn't allowed to judge your prayers. They hear all your thoughts, not only the ones you specify as prayers, like 'oh God, please send me a dog'. They also hear your next thought of 'I'll never get a dog, and your next one of 'this is stupid, there is no God, if there were He wouldn't love me, He wouldn't send me a dog anyway, what a waste of time.' If that's how you prayed, then they did fulfill your prayers, every one of them."

Emma looked at Isaac sheepishly. "That's exactly how I prayed. Every time I wanted something, I knew inside I didn't deserve it, there was no God to hear me, and I would never get anything I desired. Even when something I prayed for, like love, came into my life I threw it away because I thought I didn't deserve it."

Isaac took Emma's hand. "I'm sorry, dear, but the universe thought you didn't want it. The people in prayer requests were answering your every thought. 'I'm poor, I'm an alcoholic, I'm unlovable, and I'll never be anything.' They gave you what you thought about, because that's what you appeared to want."

Emma leaned toward him, gripped his hands tightly and whispered, "If I had changed my thinking, my life would have changed?"

Isaac smiled and whispered back, "Completely."

"If I thought I deserved Scooter's love, I would have never walked away from him, and my life would have been completely different."

"You're right, Emma," Albert said.

"But my mother taught me to think negatively."

"Yes, she did, but the wisdom of life comes from learning to overcome," Albert said. "What your mother taught you could have made you tough and strong. It could have shown you that you wanted a better life for yourself with love and respect. Her career could have shown you that you wanted to go to college. Your growing up poor could have inspired you to work hard, to give your daughter a better life."

"It didn't."

"That's because you chose to let her actions and words destroy your inspiration. You became like her, rather than learning from her."

Sadness almost overwhelmed Emma. "I sure did. I don't even understand why anymore. Why did I believe her depressing ideas? Looking back on it now I feel stupid. I was young and vibrant. I hate the fact that I wasted my time on Earth."

Nigel put his arm around Emma, and she rested her head on his shoulder as tears trickled down her cheeks.

Isaac spoke very softly. "It's okay." He rubbed her shoulder. "Everything's fine. Young spirits have many lessons to learn. We all feel like we waste time, it seems like we even waste whole lifetimes. It's learning, growing and becoming. It's what your spirit was made for."

Emma sniffled. "Easy for you to say, Isaac, you were a brilliant scientist."

He laughed. "I wasn't always. I started out young and silly. I spent ten lifetimes just getting up the nerve to speak out about my thoughts. I worried about what people would think of me, and I let that hold me back. My own fears stopped my ability to create."

"You?" Emma blew her nose.

"Even when I was a so called brilliant scientist my self doubt held me back. I discovered Calculus forty years before I had the nerve to introduce it to the world."

"No way."

"Keep in mind every minute of every lifetime you're giving God life, and not only is God experiencing life through you, but you're growing in wisdom. I know the next time you go back to the manifest universe you won't spend time hating yourself, feeling sorry for yourself or depressed. You've conquered those things through the school of hard knocks. You lived them, and you saw they don't work."

"You got that right."

"Sometimes living through negative experiences is the only way to overcome them."

Emma lifted her head off Nigel's shoulder. "What I went through is normal?"

"Oh, definitely, the manifest universe can be very rough. A new spirit is overflowing with joyfulness and expectations. It's then sent to a world filled with fear, jealousy, anger and sadness. It can take on those qualities very quickly."

"I sure did."

"But keep in mind every bit of wisdom you gain will make you grow and you'll see more clearly what you do want."

"Does that mean that the next time I incarnate I'll be better prepared for life's hardships?"

"You may not even see them as hardships, but as learning experiences or things to traverse. If you don't, then you'll experience them as pain once again, until your spirit decides it has lived enough pain and wants to triumph over sorrow in to goodness."

"Why wouldn't I choose goodness from the start? Why wouldn't all spirits choose pleasure and love?"

"We can never know why a particular spirit chose the path they did, or what they wanted to accomplish while incarnate. In your case you won't know your Life Plan until you meet with Volodymyr. That meeting will tell you what your goals were for your life as Emma. For now, stop judging yourself as bad. You're not bad. No spirit is ever bad."

"How can you say that, Isaac? Some people are bad, like murderers."

"We're not supposed to judge others because we don't know their Life Plan or potential. We can never know what they wanted to learn or teach."

"What do you mean, teach?"

"As a spirit grows it learns, but it also teaches. Everything you are, you teach. Your life is your message to the world. Some spirits teach through goodness and some through hatred, anger, or violence."

"What could a spirit possibly learn or teach through anger?"

"Oh many things, a spirit can learn through anger how to overcome that emotion, or learn the anguish of loss because of expressed anger. Perhaps it learns physical pain if someone hurts the body in response to the spirit's anger. It can also teach anger to others, the pain of anger, that anger hurts, destroys and wastes time. It can teach other spirits to release their anger because they don't want to act like the spirit they're watching expressing its anger, or it can have the opposite result and teach more anger."

"Why would a spirit want to teach anger?"

"It wouldn't, the spirit probably set overcoming anger as a goal in their Life Plan which sounds pretty easy from here, but once the spirit incarnates on Earth the goal becomes much harder than they thought. The spirit no longer remembers the Life Plan or that overcoming anger was their goal. Instead, they delve into the anger, they get respected or feared for it, and they use it. Instead of overcoming it, they become it."

"How would the spirit know that overcoming anger was its goal, rather than expressing anger? How do we know what we need to overcome and what we need to teach?"

Isaac smiled. "That's easy, Emma. If it's negative, overcome it. If it's positive, make it grow and teach it."

"That sounds too simple."

"It's that simple."

"Give me some examples."

"Overcome hurt, anger, addiction, sadness, loneliness, jealousy, fear, hatred, depression, worry, poverty, sickness, disease, shame, and pollution. Teach love, art, health, strength, respect, joy, happiness, kindness, faith, peace, music, abundance, creativity...anything positive, got it?"

"It sounds easy here."

"Try remembering this...either feed your faith or feed your fear, whichever one you feed will grow, and whichever one you ignore will disappear."

Emma sprung up in her chair. "Maybe I set up really difficult circumstances in my life so I could overcome them and learn wisdom."

"A good possibility," Albert said.

"Even though I didn't overcome them on Earth, I feel better knowing I had set up something challenging for my spirit to work on."

"That's a great attitude." Albert rested his pipe in the ashtray. "Because it's obvious to all of us that even though you didn't learn the wisdom you probably had intended to, you're learning it now. It's also great to realize you had set up hard challenges for yourself. Learning wisdom isn't easy."

"That's for sure." Emma smirked.

Albert hit the pipe on the ashtray until the spent tobacco fell out. "Your human body can't sit in front of the television or at the bar and learn wisdom."

"But that's what a lot of people do with their time. Why?"

"The temptations of Earth distract people from their potential paths." Albert removed the pouch of tobacco from his sweater.

"Temptations, like vodka?"

"Yes, like vodka and laziness and many other things."

"But life on Earth is rough."

"Even though life on Earth appears hard at times, remember each spirit sets up their own Life Plan; each is growing according to their own rules, playing their own game, and setting their own standards."

"So we're all to blame for our own messes?"

"I wouldn't call them messes." Albert opened the leather pouch, pulled out a wad of tobacco and stuffed it into the pipe bowl.

"What would you call a life like mine?"

"Even when you're accomplishing nothing, sooner or later you must overcome the nothing and move into something. That's the only real requirement of a Life Plan. It must make your spirit grow, even when you don't accomplish it."

"Now that's really hard to comprehend."

"Let me try to explain," Isaac said. "If your spirit's goal was to overcome the pain of losing your mother and to stop being an alcoholic, you obviously did not accomplish those goals, but you did learn the pain of wasting your life drowning in booze. You won't do it again, that's how even failing at your Life Plan can teach you wisdom."

"I guess I did learn something," Emma said.

"Your spirit is always growing, no matter what you do."

"Even if I do nothing?"

"You have no choice. There's no going backward, you must move forward."

"Can you give me an example because I'm really confused. I don't see how somebody can move forward if they've done nothing with their life."

"Let's say a person wasted a lifetime sitting in front of the television, he probably never fulfilled his Life Plan, but he will have learned that wasting a lifetime in front of the television is just that, wasted, and he won't do it again. That's one lesson out of the way."

"Okay, but that still seems like a waste of a lifetime. Aren't we expected to learn more that that?"

"Admittedly, it's slower learning by default than by actually accomplishing things, but he'll learn. Spirits can learn with happiness and joy, or with pain and suffering. The choice is always yours. Either way you're along for the ride, have fun and go willingly, or get yourself wrapped up in painful chains and go kicking and screaming, but you're going. That's the universe's only requirement of us, growth. God asks nothing else of our spirits except that we live and grow."

"What is all this living and growing for, Isaac?"

"Living is for God's energy to be expressed in spiritual and physical form. Growing is required for all life. If life isn't growing, it's dying."

"They told me that my spirit can't die."

"That's the point. Life is growing, always."

"Growing in wisdom?"

"Life and wisdom grow in many ways."

"Like?"

"Well, like the Bozena. You and Nigel both grew by the experience of its formation. Millicent and Melvin grew by teaching you. Everyone who works on the new cat will grow by the experience of creating. The new cats will grow from kittens to adults. They'll affect the planet Ominous by living there. That may mean humans can soon inhabit that planet and then much will need to be learned. They'll start out as cave men, like we all did on Earth. If one of us gets to go there we'll probably be the wise cave man who invents fire, with all our experience." Isaac laughed.

"What happens when we get to the end? At some point all this creation has to fill up the universe. Won't it be overpopulated and polluted?"

"There is no end, only beginnings. That's why we keep creating new life out of old energy. It will never end. Remember there's only a certain amount of energy in the whole of existence. It passes in and out of the manifest universe and it's made into whatever's needed. If an earthquake, tidal wave or hurricane is needed to cleanse a planet, the universe will make it. The energy from the death and destruction will be turned around into new life, and that new life will grow until it's time to be cleansed again. Always changing, forever growing, that's the universe in spirit or manifest form."

### Chapter Fourteen

### Mattie's Show

Polly barged through the front door. "Emma, honey, isn't it time for Mattie's charity dance to start?" She slid a plate of cookies on to the counter and hugged Emma. "I can't wait."

"There are a lot of people here already," Emma said. "Some of them I've never met before, but they knew Madelyn, I guess, because they want to see her on the Life Cam." She grabbed the plate of cookies and sniffed. "These smell delicious."

"They just came out of the oven."

Albert stood in the kitchen slicing up cheese and pepperoni. "I can't wait to see how she makes out."

"I know. I'm so excited." Polly took some crackers out of the box and arranged them on the platter. "I think she's going to be fabulous."

"Only a few minutes now." Emma helped arrange the crackers on the tray. "We better get the Life Cam started."

"You go ahead, honey. I'll finish up here," Albert said.

Emma and Polly set up the snacks, passed out drinks and arranged a few more chairs in front of the Life Cam.

Emma held the remote. "I hope this goes well. She's been looking forward to it for weeks."

Polly looked at the clock. "You'd better start it."

Emma pressed play on the Life Cam remote. "Life Cam activated," she said mockingly. After placing her chair in the front, dead center, she plopped down, remote tightly in her grip. Butterflies rummaged around in her stomach and she wasn't sure if she would be sick with worry or happiness. She nibbled on a cookie to try and stop the churning.

The Life Cam asked for a day, time, and place. Once Emma entered all the information and hit okay, they could see the auditorium. The place looked old, but in the sophisticated kind of way, not the dingy kind of way. The walls were at least fifty feet tall, covered with gold velvet wallpaper. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ornately carved ceiling and sparkled like colorful prisms. Red carpet ran up and down the aisles and gold velvet covered the hundreds upon hundreds of seats. On top of all the beauty, the place was completely packed, every seat taken, leaving standing room only. Men in tuxedos and women in long gowns talked and laughed as they waited for the show to begin.

Emma scanned the audience nervously. "Where are they? Does anyone see them?"

"There they are." Polly hopped up and pointed at the screen. "Right there in the front row.

"Oh, yes, I see them now," Albert said. "They look as nervous as you do, Emma."

"I'm sure they are."

"Shhh," Polly said. "It's about to begin."

The red velvet curtain swished open.

"Here goes," Mr. Pearlman said.

The show opened with twenty five children dancing across the stage and singing. "Wonderful, that's just wonderful." Mr. Pearlman clapped loudly.

The children impersonated rock bands throughout the years, starting with the boys performing songs from The Four Tops. The girls did back up. Mattie looked so cute in her beehive hairdo. Then they impersonated The Beetles and the The Jackson Five. Soon they were up to the seventies, singing like Talking Heads, The Clash, and YMCA by The Village People. After that it was on to Smashing Pumpkins and The B-52's, Love Shack.

"Unbelievable, simply unbelievable." Mr. Pearlman tapped Scooter on the arm. "Aren't you amazed?"

"I've never seen anything like it." Scooter clapped as a huge smile enveloped his face.

Emma's stomach stopped churning and she felt a wave of happiness come over her. She grabbed another cookie. "These are delicious, Polly. And Madelyn is amazing. I'm so proud of her."

"We are all proud of her," Albert said. And everyone clapped as Madelyn and the other children bowed.

After that, a few of the children did solo numbers including Mattie. Scooter laughed as she sang and danced to one of his favorite songs, Walk like an Egyptian. Some of the kids did comedy acts, danced, played piano, or violin.

"All these kids are so talented," Scooter said. "It really is incredible." He looked at Mr. Pearlman. "I'm so grateful Mattie has been able to be a part of all this. Thank you."

Mr. Pearlman smiled. "Oh no, thank you, and Mattie. She has been a delight to work with."

After the show Mattie ran down the aisle and jumped into her father's lap. "Well, Daddy, what did you think?"

"That was fabulous, pumpkin."

Mr. Pearlman congratulated her. "What a marvelous show. I don't think I've ever seen anything like it."

Mattie smiled at him. "Did we raise enough money for the homeless kids, Mr. Pearlman?"

He smiled back. "Look around. The show was sold out."

"And that's a good thing, right?" Mattie said.

"That's a great thing. We raised over a million dollars."

"Is that enough to build the shelter?"

"It's more than enough."

Mattie flung her arms around her father's neck. "Thank you for letting me do this, Daddy. I had so much fun."

Scooter looked at Mr. Pearlman. "Is that true, Neil? Did we really raise that much?"

"We sure did. We'll start construction in a few weeks."

"She's unbelievable." Albert stood in the doorway clapping. "Look at that smile. She's so happy."

"And those kids will have a place to live," Polly said.

Millicent stopped munching on cheese and crackers. "Well, I've know Madelyn for two hundred years and I've never seen her having so much fun. I'm so happy for her." She looked at Emma. "I hope you are too, dear."

Emma smiled. "You know what, Millicent, I am, I really am."

### Chapter Fifteen

### Claws & Paws

After Emma finished working on the whiskers for the Bozena she began working in Claws and Paws. In Claws and Paws they made the cats paw pads and inserted the remarkable claws. A bit crazier than the other departments she'd worked in, her boss was a cat, a big orange cat named Caroline, but she preferred to be called Miss Caroline. She explained that she could take on human form but enjoyed staying in her cat body. She believed it forced them to communicate mentally rather than with spoken words, a more effective mode of communication in her opinion. Emma agreed, following her initial shock and frustration with the whole idea. After much practice, she could communicate with Caroline just like they talked out loud.

Miss Caroline was a majestic cat with a lot to say that humans needed to hear. Most of all she taught Emma why spirits want to incarnate as cats and the benefits cats and other animals bring to mankind. People, she said, don't realize what's really going on in the animal kingdom. They tend to think animals are put on Earth for them, but animals each have a life mission of their own. Caroline explained it to Emma like this:

"Animals incarnate on Earth for many reasons, occasionally just to have a fun life, but usually it's much deeper than you could imagine. Sometimes they volunteer to live with certain people to help them work through problems. Many animals have chosen to befriend, love and dedicate their lives to helping mentally and physically ill humans, and they do a wonderful job of it. Many dogs risk their lives to lead rescue missions into earthquakes, avalanches, and bomb sites. These animals consciously made the choice to help. Humans didn't come up with the idea and force the animals to help. Really, it's the opposite, the animals know how great their abilities are, it just takes a while for them to convince humans to put our many gifts of better hearing, smell, and eyesight to use.

"Humans are just starting to realize that dogs can smell cancer. Dogs knew this a long time ago. Many lives could have been saved if doctors who have dogs would have listened. The dogs tried to communicate, but many people think they don't need to listen, that all the dog wants is a bone or to go outside. Many humans think they're smarter and better than animals, superior shall we say, but they're not, and animals know that. Humans are just a spirit incarnated in a human body, not superior, not inferior.

"Humans who have once incarnated as an animal will have a better understanding of this and treat animals like the individuals they are, and vice versa. In my case, I've been human and I've been a cat. I prefer to be a cat because we use our brains and bodies more effectively than humans. We are self-confident, and we don't waste time worrying about silly things."

Caroline sat up tall and proud as she licked her paw and gracefully washed her face. She kept boasting to Emma how great it was to be a cat and even though Caroline wouldn't admit it, Emma could tell she thought cats were superior to humans. Funny actually, Emma thought, because most of the cat's she'd met acted superior to humans. As long as Emma had this wise one communicating with her, she took advantage of her ideas.

"So, Miss Caroline, can you tell me the purpose of your last lifetime?"

"Well, Emma, I went to Earth to help a little girl, Lori, whose father kept hitting her. He wouldn't let her have a cat, but I'm very smart, and Lori and I worked around him. Lori turned six the year I went to help her. Alone with her mean father because her mother had disappeared, she let out a call for help, and I responded by going to Earth as a little orange-striped kitten. Volod arranged for me to be born of the mother cat residing right next door to Lori's house. One day while Lori swung on her swing set, I ran over to visit her. To my amazement she could communicate with me right away. She told me how her father had hit her mother really hard with a big tool, and then she never saw her mommy again. I told her everything would be okay now. She picked me up and held me while I purred, and I could feel her stress lessen and her heart fill with love rather than anger."

"That's amazing." Emma hung on Miss Caroline's every word.

"For years I would climb the tree next to Lori's house, jump on the roof and paw on her window. She would open the window and let me in. I'd hide in her closet and sleep during the day if I didn't want to go outside, but when Lori got home from school, we would play together and talk about her father. At the beginning of our relationship she was lonely and hurting inside, but things got better as I helped her to love herself and forgive her father. It took a few years, but I taught her to send her father thoughts of kindness and love, rather than fear and hate. I know that's really hard to do, especially when you're only six.

Lori had developed her psychic skills acutely, because she spent much time trying to escape her painful life by traveling to different places in her mind. Wonderful at imagination games, I taught her to envision her father being kind and loving. We did this every day and before long, he started to treat Lori differently, nicely. One day, when she was about ten, he explained to her that her mother had a mental illness. His love for her lasted through it all, even though she refused to get help. He tried to keep the relationship together. This all made him a bit crazy, because he just didn't know how to deal with it. Apparently, she had only witnessed part of the scene when her mother disappeared. Her mother had stabbed him before he hit her. Anyway, they talked and talked, and he explained how much he loved her and that he was ready to let go of the past and start living again."

"Do you think her father changed because Lori changed her thinking?" Emma asked.

"Oh definitely, how you're thinking about a situation can change everything."

"I recently met Isaac Newton, and he told me every thought is a prayer."

"That's exactly right. In Lori's case, I had to change her thinking so her loving thoughts could change her father's thoughts and in turn change his outward actions."

"What happened to Lori after that?"

"With my work there completed, I felt I needed to move on. Lori and her father wanted to spend their days making up for lost time. Lori became strong and confident through my help. She made friends at school and got along great with her dad. Her grandparents now understood the situation and spent a lot of time with her too.

"I told her old age comes quickly in a cat's body. I wanted to search out a quiet, animal loving home to spend my last years in. I heard about a family that loved cats and allowed them to come and go as they pleased, roam the house freely, sleep in bed with them and spoil them rotten. I started walking, looking for their house. Finally, I ran into a twenty two year old white and gray cat named Crazy. She told me the cat lovers lived next door to her house and she would take me there. She even told me when her daughter had kittens, being a dedicated Mother, she took them to these cat loving people and placed them on the side porch. They took in the kittens and her daughter and gave them all a wonderful home.

"I followed Crazy, and then headed next door to see if I could meet these people. A big gray house, looking friendly, must be the place, I thought. Crazy told me to try the side porch, the door ajar just a bit, left me enough room to slip in. I started pawing at the house door hoping they would hear me. Finally, they did. They were a nice young couple and let me in for a big meal of canned tuna. But then they explained that they were already overcrowded with cats, and put me back on the porch, telling me nicely I should go home."

"How disappointing," Emma said.

"Yes, I was disappointed. I wanted to live in that big old Victorian house with eight other cats, nice people, canned tuna lunches and Crazy cat next door. Determined to capture their hearts, suckers, obviously, I waited until they went to bed and up the pine tree I climbed, in the rain no less, onto the roof and over to their bedroom window. I stood there soaked, looking pitiful, banging on the glass with my paw. At last, they woke up, looked at me in disbelief and within a few minutes I was warm and dry, cuddled between them under the covers. Ah, they were suckers, I knew it."

"Did they let you stay?"

"Sure did. I lived out the last years of my life pampered and loved. I had many friends and came and went as I pleased, but I always loved climbing in the upstairs window best. I spent those years lounging in the sun, chasing mice and hanging out with friends. I didn't give up teaching totally, but my experience with Lori went so well, that I wanted a few years of fun. I still taught love, compassion and self-respect to everyone I met. When I heard that Lori had become a veterinarian I knew my Life Plan and potential had been completed."

"Caroline, you saved that little girl's life, and her fathers. You should be very proud."

Miss Caroline grinned. "I am, Emma, I am."

While Emma learned from Caroline about life, she also learned about making paws and claws.

"First, you'll take this tough leather and cut it to shape for each pad," Caroline said. "The pads on a cat's feet are climbing aids and shock absorbers. Each front paw contains seven pads and each rear paw contains five. The rear pads are a bit more heavy duty to endure greater stress when running or jumping."

"What about the claws? How do we make them?" Emma continued cutting the leather into paw shaped sections.

"We make the claws in molds, similar to the bones, and then attach them to the muscles that allow the cat to protract them when needed. Cats have ten sharpened daggers and can call them into action in a split second with just a tightening of the muscles in their toes. Before placing the pads over the claws to protect them, we'll add a scent gland. When the paw is rubbed against fabric, like your favorite chair, it releases a scent unique to that particular cat. Other cats can smell the scent and know that a yard, tree, house or chair belong to a specific cats territory. Then we can place the pads on top and glue them together."

Emma looked at Caroline with great respect. "Caroline, you and I both know it was you who turned Lori's life around, saved her father and taught him to love again, but I'm sure humans wouldn't have seen it that way. How did you handle not getting credit for doing such a great deed?"

"If you want to help humans, you must know that they're going to take the credit for everything, well everything good anyway, and you've still got to help them. The credit is not important, the deed is. Most humans live under the false pretense that they're the only intelligent species in existence, they're wrong. Most would never believe that I, a mere cat, could not only communicate with the child, but teach her to think better, in turn teaching her father and repairing their torn up lives."

"But you did it all, you helped everybody."

"I did, but no one would have believed it."

"Humans do like to take credit for things, huh?"

"They sure do. Look at how they take credit for rescue dogs finding people. When a dog goes into an avalanche, risks his life and saves a human, humans give credit to the dog's trainer, not the dog."

"You're right. I've seen them do that on television."

"Dogs still agree to do this dangerous work because humans need their help and they feel sorry for them. Spirits who incarnate as dogs are, for the most part, very kind and loving. They'll risk their own lives to save the lives of humans. Dogs will subject themselves to great anguish and suffering if they think it will help a spirit or mankind move forward. During the rescues of 9/11, many dogs taught men about bravery."

"Why are dogs so brave?"

"Spirits who incarnate as animals are very wise. We're beyond wanting credit for our actions, and we're willing to take risks to help others. Our goals are about changing the world, one life at a time. We're on Earth to make things better and we know it. Animals don't get caught up in the emotional rollercoaster people do. We're not worried about keeping up appearances for the neighbors, and we'll even scratch our butts in pubic. Hey, if it itches, who cares? Humans laugh at us, but I know they're jealous of our freedom, not only physically, but mentally."

"Why do animals care about humans? Seems like they risk their lives to do a lot of things humans take for granted."

"Most animals have been incarnated as humans in another lifetime so they realize how hard it can be. They understand the plight of the human race as well as planet Earth, and they want to turn things around. The majority of us love the relationship we have with our human friends. I wouldn't have traded my people for anything. It's a give and take relationship. Most humans take great care for the animal world, and in turn animals take care of humans. We all need each other to survive."

Emma continued to un-mold tiny claws. "But Caroline, animals don't really need humans to survive. Animals lived on Earth long before humans came along."

"That's true, but many of us, like domesticated cats and dogs, really couldn't survive without human companionship. We've become accustomed to living indoors with meals provided to us. We don't want to live in the wild, sleep on the ground and hunt for food, like our wild ancestors did, or in many cases still do. The animals that still live free in the wild like life that way, many of them don't even know humans exist. They have different life plans. It's really only domesticated animals that have set their sights on loving humans, and in turn humans have let us into their hearts and homes; we like the relationship."

"Animals seem to be very worried about the planet Earth. What will happen if humans continue to destroy their home?"

"Mother Nature will never let humans destroy the home of so many others. If she chooses, the destructive species will be wiped off the Earth, and she'll cleanse the planet so the rest can live pollution free."

As Miss Caroline and Emma communicated and made claws, the door swung open and Polly ran in. "Emma, I have a surprise for you."

"What is it, Polly?"

"Mattie's been praying for a kitten and Albert says it's finished and just about to go. There's a mother cat living just down the street from Scooter's house and she's set to give birth in just a few weeks. If we hurry you can meet the kitten before she goes to Earth."

Polly grabbed Emma's hand and started dragging her. "Good-bye, Miss Caroline. I'll bring Emma back later."

Caroline grinned. "Go dear; this is a great opportunity, hurry."

They hopped into Polly's cart.

"Where are we headed, Polly?"

"She's in Spirit Creation right now. We have to visit with her in the few minutes between Spirit Creation and Reduction and Shipment. For those few minutes she's a full grown cat, alive and able to communicate. After reduction, she'll be a tiny kitten ready to be placed in the Mother's womb. Communication is still possible, but more difficult. She needs to focus on being born and life on Earth. She'll start to forget The Cat Factory only minutes after being placed in the womb."

At Reduction and Shipment they opened the door and entered a room lit only by faint blue lights. A conveyor belt ran down the long side with an acrylic door at the beginning. The door opened every few seconds and a completed cat rolled out. They looked exactly the same as they did in the factory, but they could breathe, see, and think. Tears came to Emma's eyes as she watched the products she'd helped create spring to life, each an individual with their own personality and Life Plan. She walked up to the belt and touched one softly; he started to purr. She just couldn't get over it, they were alive! Overwhelmed with joy and love for these creations, Emma knew this experience to be the culmination of everything she'd been doing.

"Why is it dark in here?"

"The eyes have never been used before; the faint light protects them until shipment."

"How will we know which cat is Mattie's?"

"She'll have a star hanging from a cord around her neck with Mattie's name on it. The family she's going to be born into should be coming out next."

They watched the conveyor belt intently. The door opened and a large, long-haired female cat came down the belt. Polly reached out and quickly plucked her off.

"Can we do that?" Emma asked. "Won't her birth schedule get messed up?"

"We can talk with her for a few minutes while her brothers and sisters are being reduced."

Emma looked at the belt as they slowly came out, one by one, all beautiful, long haired Norwegian Forest cats. Thanks to Millicent, they had tan, brown and black fur all weaved perfectly into their coat. The faces, chests and paws had white highlights. Emma turned her attention from the conveyor and talked with Mattie's new friend.

"Hello, I'm Mattie's mother, Emma. I hear you're going to Earth to be with my daughter."

"Your daughter has prayed for an animal companion and promised to pamper me. In return I'll give her much joy and love," the cat responded.

"What's your name?"

"Mattie wants my name to be Nellie."

"That's beautiful. Can you please tell Mattie how much I love and miss her? Can you tell her how sorry I am about everything and how much I wish I was there? Tell her how proud I am of her and what great things she's doing with her life. Please tell Scooter thank you for loving her."

Nellie smiled. "I'll tell her everything, Emma, don't worry. I promise to give her much love, laughs and companionship. I'll tell her you're fine and that we had this conversation. I'll express your love for her and help her to stay on the wonderful path she's on."

Nellie looked into Emma's eyes and Emma knew she'd just met a wise spirit. A flood of kindness and love engulfed her body, and she knew Nellie would love Mattie as much as she did.

"I must go now, Emma. Watch me being born on the Life Cam in a few weeks."

Nellie jumped from the chair back onto the conveyor belt. She lifted her paw as if to wave goodbye and in a second, she became as small as Emma's thumb. The ladies working the conveyor picked her up and placed her in a clear sack filled with liquid to protect her on her long journey. Then they placed her onto a light-filled table with her brothers and sisters. The lady working the table double-checked her paperwork from Volod, entered the destination in her computer and in a moment they were gone.

### Chapter Sixteen

### Department Purr

Emma could hear Latin music coming from behind the door. She knocked.

"Come on in," someone yelled.

She turned the knob, pushed the door open and went to step into the room, but as she did a man's face appeared right in front of her. His plump cheeks reminded her of a chipmunk getting ready for winter. He smiled. A gold tooth sparkled.

"Romualdo at your service." He held his hand out.

"Emma."

He kissed her hand. "Ola, Linda."

"My name's not Linda."

He chuckled. "No, no, Linda means beautiful."

Emma grinned. "Glad to be here."

Romualdo turned and started dancing-walking. "Follow me." He burst into the cha-cha. "We've got things to do. One-two-three...cha-cha-cha...one-two-three...cha-cha-cha."

As he waved, Emma noticed his hands were covered in gold rings. He stopped at the doorway to the workroom, leaned against the frame, one arm pointed upward as if in the middle of a twirl. "Do you like the music?"

"Yes." Emma wondered if he was going to grab her and start dancing again.

"Did you know that the way cats purr still mystifies humans?"

"I didn't." She followed him into a workroom.

"That's because we've hidden this tiny device in the larynx and their microscopes aren't powerful enough to see it. I call it a Purr Dot."

"Why would you hide it?"

"We didn't hide it on purpose. But now, it's kind of funny. They keep searching for what makes a cat purr and they think it's a huge mystery." He stopped to laugh at himself as he pulled his sagging pants up over his love handles. "The universe likes mysteries and I like keeping secrets." He put his hand over his mouth and giggled like a small child.

"But surly some people know what makes the cats purr?"

"Nope, just me." He giggled again. "Oh, they debate over it and they do studies, but they'll never discover it."

Emma spotted a microscope on the worktable.

"Here, look in here," Romualdo said. "See that speck? That's what makes the cats purr."

"That tiny speck?"

"Yeah, amazing, huh?"

"Very. How do we get these into the cats?"

"All we do is implant these Purr Dots into the larynx. This speck helps the cat alternately dilate and constrict the glottis rapidly, causing air vibrations when they inhale and exhale." Romualdo twirled.

"And that makes the purring sound?"

"No magic. Just science." He turned the music up. "This is a great tune by Lou Bega."

"So what is it?"

"Mambo Number Five."

Emma laughed. "No, I mean the purring mechanism. What is it?"

"Nothing special."

"But the sound of a cat purring. It's magical."

"It's harmonic and like music, it's been known to cure illnesses."

"In humans?"

"In many species."

"So that's its true purpose?"

"Oh, no, that was an accident. It was really meant for the cats well being. It can calm them when nervous, help heal themselves, or their offspring, and express love."

"But why can it heal others?"

"We think because the frequency of twenty five to one hundred fifty vibrations per second is relaxing. It takes away stress and that heals."

Romualdo turned the music down and motioned for Emma to sit at the worktable. He took trays and trays of tiny syringes out of the cabinet. "Each one of these will get one Purr Dot. Just one." He held up his right forefinger.

"Okay." Emma looked at the syringes. "There must be a thousand of these."

"That's just for this morning." He sat at the table next to her. "If you look into the microscope." He placed a new slide under Emma's nose. "You'll see hundreds of the Purr Dots on this one."

"Yes, I do."

Romualdo grabbed a syringe. "Take the tip and place it over the Purr Dot, then pull the plug backward. There's a clear jell in the syringe that will absorb the Purr Dot."

Emma tried. "That seems easy enough."

Romualdo pushed a tray of syringes in her direction. "There you go. When these are ready we'll go out to the factory and dose each cat with their very own Purr Dot."

Emma worked right along. "I still don't understand what they're really made of or how they work."

He turned the music back up. "Oh, Julio Inglesias, don't you just love him?" He twirled around the room.

Emma laughed. "So, you're not going to tell me are you?"

"One-two-three, one-two-three."

Emma continued making doses of Purr Dot.

Finally, Romualdo flopped into the chair beside her, panting. "I'm not as young as I used to be." He picked up a tray of syringes and began helping her. "So were you ever in love? I just love a great love story."

"I guess you could say I was."

He put his elbow on the table and rested his chin in his hand. "Tell me all about him, girlfriend."

"He was the first happy person I ever knew." Emma had a sad grin on her face. "He was tall and thin and his head overflowed with red curls. His smile glowed, and his big green eyes sparkled."

"He sounds handsome."

"He was handsome, but in a different kind of way. He had a funky style. I remember his favorite outfit." Emma chuckled. "It was this polyester shirt with purple swirls all over it, a baggy pair of cammys, and a wide black belt with chains hanging off of it."

"I can picture him now."

"He dressed like a cross between a hippie, a disco dancer, and a punk rocker. He loved belts, watches, and jewelry; sometimes he wore three or four watches at a time. Most of which didn't work because he got them out of the trash."

"I'm falling in love myself." Romualdo held up his wrist and showed Emma his oversized gold watch. "Gotta love a man's jewelry."

"But it wasn't his looks that made me fall in love with him, it was his self confidence. I never knew anybody that had dreams. Not back then."

"So how did you meet this dreamy man?"

"It's funny, actually. He was living in his big old Cadillac because he had a fight with his parents. They wanted him to go to law school and he wanted to be an artist, so he left home."

"Good for him. The world doesn't need any more lawyers." Romualdo laughed.

"I saw something in him I'd never seen before, a love for living. He liked to sleep under the stars, dance in the moon light, and run through fields of corn. I loved him the day I met him. Life to him was fun and I admired that, even though I never could learn to live it."

"What a shame."

"He was so free, while I struggled with my self hatred. The only thing that helped to ease my pain was booze. It drove us apart."

Romualdo shook his head. "Been there, girlfriend, been there."

"I was drinking all the time and hardly eating. In the meantime his paintings were getting popular. One day, while he was selling his work on the sidewalk in SoHo, a gallery owner stopped to talk with him."

"His big break?"

"Yeah, and when I saw how happy he was, happier than I'd ever seen him, I realized that he had a new life, a better life. A successful artist couldn't have a ninety eight pound drunk hanging on his arm. My gift to him was to walk away. I packed a few things in my backpack and left the only man I ever loved."

Romualdo was sobbing. "Oh, honey, what a sad story. You poor little thing."

Emma tried to distract herself by focusing on work. "I think this tray of Purr Dot's is done."

Romualdo blew his nose. "Okay, let's head out to the factory and give these kitty's the power of purr!" He stuffed the tissue in his pocket. "So sad, so, so, sad."

Emma and Romualdo sat at the conveyor belt where hundreds of cats waited to receive their Purr Dot.

"Are these cats complete after this?" Emma asked.

"After they get their Purr Dot they can travel down to Vital Fluids and then they're ready to go into Spirit Creation."

"That's it then? They're ready to go out?"

"Sure are." Romualdo took a syringe from the tray. "Okay, take the syringe in your right hand."

Emma followed.

"Then with your left forefinger feel the cat's neck, right here." He took Emma's finger and put it in place. "Feel that lump?"

"Yes."

"Now take the syringe and insert it into that lump. You're not going to hurt them, don't worry, they're not alive yet."

Emma felt the lump, took the syringe and inserted it.

"Perfect. Then just press the plug. All the way, like this, be sure to get all the liquid in."

Emma pressed the plug. The clear liquid went into the cat's throat. "That's it," she said.

"That's it. One more cat has the power of purr."

Emma looked at the conveyor belt. "A thousand more to go!"

### Chapter Seventeen

### Vital Fluids Department

Still in awe over the whole experience with Nellie, Emma kept contemplating the magic of life. She knew the bodies they made would be alive someday, but it never felt real until she held Nellie, living and breathing. Before that it just felt like they made sculptures. The awesomeness overwhelmed her. She just knew if she was allowed to return to Earth, she would enjoy and appreciate the precious gift of life. For now, she was still Emma, but her heart had been transformed.

The months went by as she waited for her meeting with Volodymyr. Hopefully, after they discussed her last Life Plan, she would be able to convince Albert to let her be reincarnated. She did the math. If she went back to Earth as a baby when Mattie was six or seven, they could still end up being friends. They could meet when they were older and maybe work together or something. Emma felt like she had made wonderful progress living at The Cat Factory and learning from her friends. Now she wanted to show the world what she had learned.

Her self criticism disappeared. Never again would she feel sorry for herself or waste time being depressed. She would be happy and smile at everyone she met. She would not judge others because she didn't know their Life Plan or purpose. She'd treasure the joys of living in a human body. She'd sit in the sunshine, read books, learn, love, cuddle with a cat, eat ice cream and sleep late if she felt like it. She'd drive too fast, paint with her fingers, cook delicious meals, sing in the shower, and dance under the stars. She would treat people as the precious gifts they are. She felt blessed to be a living spirit.

Her days faded into months. During that time she watched Mattie growing up and changing, too. She watched Nellie's birth as her perfect little body became a living, breathing, kitten on Earth. Each part made with such care and dedication helped her to understand how every tiny claw, whisker and eyeball she created sprang to life and became important to the survival of the species. She followed Nellie's growth from a tiny kitten to a beautiful cat, sharing a loving relationship with Mattie.

Just about the same time, Emma started working in Vital Fluids where they filled the bodies with a special mixture of blood and liquids. They mixed the blood in huge vats and then used small plastic tubing to fill the cat. After filling the body they removed the tubes and closed up the openings.

They would then go into Olga's huge computer and mark the cat completed. After that, the body could travel to Spirit Creation and either have a new spirit made, or be paired up with the spirit that had requested that particular body.

Emma wasn't allowed to work in Spirit Creation. Two big guys stood by the entrance to that secretive department, and no one she'd met had ever been in there. Maybe Albert, Emma thought. He knew how it all worked but he'd never actually admitted that he saw the whole process take place. Somehow, those lifeless bodies went into a little door on the conveyor belt looking like stuffed animals and came out the other end alive, breathing, thinking, loving creatures. How, Emma wondered? Did God Himself come here to create the spirit or did He work through people like them? Where did the spirit come from? What made the spirit come to life? She'd seen so many miracles here, but this topped them all. Emma supposed she'd never have the answers to these few questions, no one here could answer them, they simply didn't know what went on in that darkened room, behind that locked door. All they knew was a living version of their creations came out the other end.

While Emma sat filling bodies with blood, she heard Nigel's voice in the distance, followed by a lot of ohh's and ahh's and wow's. When she stood up to greet him she realized he held a huge leash in his right hand.

"I brought someone to meet you," Nigel said.

A living, breathing Bozena followed him, silvery gray fur flowing like feathers in the wind.

"Oh-my-gosh, Nigel, he's the most magnificent cat I've ever seen." The huge cat walked up to her.

"Isn't he beautiful?"

"Incredible." Emma checked his whiskers, eyes, teeth, and claws and looked over every inch of the glorious creature.

"Can you believe we helped create him?" Nigel patted the cat's head. The Bozena started to purr.

Emma was in love. She plopped her butt on the floor right next to the huge beast, put her arms around his neck and hugged him. It felt like hugging a giant, living teddy bear. He purred so loud it vibrated her inner being, and her heart felt like it beat at the same speed as the purr. She ran her fingers through his long slivery gray fur; yup, black underneath, and as soft as silk. She leaned in closer, his heart beat loudly and she could feel the blood flowing in his veins.

She looked into his eyes, and thanks to Miss Caroline's lessons, could communicate with him. "You are magnificent."

"Thank you, Emma. Thank you and Nigel for the love you put into creating my species."

"No, it's me who should be thanking you because designing you was one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had. You taught me about creation. It changed my whole being, my thinking, my way of living."

The big cat moved his enormous head closer to hers, and purring loudly, rubbed his furry face against her. This is heaven, she thought.

Emma looked up at Nigel. "We must take him to see Millicent. How long can we keep him?"

"Albert said only a few minutes. We can't mess up his birth time."

"I thought the Bozena was going to be a predator, how come he's friendly?"

"His instincts won't come into play until he's born."

She picked up one of his huge paws and realized it was twice as big as her human hand.

"I can't get over it, Nigel, I just can't! This has to be how God feels about everything that He's created. The love is overwhelming."

Nigel smiled proudly. "Isn't creation a wonderful thing?"

Emma looked up at his handsome face as she hugged the Bozena one more time. "Let's go show Millicent!" she shouted with joy.

On all fours, the Bozena was taller than Emma's waist. She loved listening to his huge paws flop, flop on the floor as he walked. His long fluffy tail, similar to a snow leopard, trailed behind his body like the train on a wedding dress.

They attracted a crowd of onlookers as they walked through the factory. Everyone who saw the glorious creature stopped working, and the assembly lines ground to a halt. Everyone wanted to pet him.

Finally, after much to do from their co-workers, they reached Millicent's studio, opened the door, and let the giant cat wander in by himself. They hid outside and giggled, waiting for Millicent's reaction. A few seconds went by, but all they heard was the flop, flop of his giant feet.

Then, all of a sudden, they heard, "Oh-my-gosh, look at you, you're glorious!"

Shoes scampered across the floor. They peeked in and saw Millicent with her arms around the Bozena, a huge smile on her face. She looked up at them. "He's incredible." She continued to pet his enormous head and run her fingers admiringly through the long silver fur. "Just as I wanted it." She looked at the fur closely, analyzing the quality of her creation.

"Thank you, Millicent, for this lovely fur," the Bozena said. "It will keep me warm in my new life on a very cold planet."

"We must get him back to Reduction and Shipment," Nigel said. "His litter is almost ready to be born."

"Hey, Nigel, I'm confused about something," Emma said.

"What is it, Emma?"

"Since the Bozena is a new species and this is the first litter ever born, who will be its parents?"

"There's a cat living on Ominous right now that's similar to the Bozena, but it's much smaller and has a more relaxed temperament. This species will be the parents to the Bozenas until they're old enough to reproduce on their own. That's what earthlings call evolution. In a way, the species is evolving, but it's also being created at the same time, by us."

"So evolution really is creation after all?"

"Somebody has to decide what's going to happen next with every species. Evolution isn't a haphazard thing. It's pre-planned, organized, harmonious...creation."

"People on Earth are always trying to say crazy things like birds evolved from dinosaurs. Is any of that true?"

Nigel smiled. "In a way it's all true. Every species is constantly evolving, changing and growing. What they don't see is that an intelligent designer is really behind it all. Nature left on its own could not turn a dinosaur into a bird, only we can do that. Nature, like free will, is uncontrolled and unpredictable. Creation must be controlled and predictable or the universe would be chaotic and messy, but it's not. The universe is shear perfection.

Nigel petted the Bozena. "As you know, everything down to the tiniest hair had to be designed and produced. Humans would explain that by screaming evolution. They wouldn't realize the planning and work it took for the seemingly simple evolution to take place."

Emma smiled at the big cat. "We not only designed a new species, but we're behind the evolution of the old one?"

"That's right, and if all goes well, it's the beginning of the evolution for the whole planet. Remember, the Bozena is a predator sent to take care of the ishbadittles hiding in the mountains on Ominous. After the Bozenas accomplish their job, the planet will be inhabitable by more life forms and eventually humans. It's all evolving and it's all being created."

Nigel and Emma let Millicent say goodbye and then sadly returned the Bozena to his new family waiting in Reduction and Shipment. They hugged him and watched as his enormous body became that of a tiny kitten. Off he went to start a new life. Though they knew he had to go, they were sad to see him leave. He was no longer their creation, but a new species for the universe.

### Chapter Eighteen

### Record Keeper Of Lifetimes

The day Emma had been waiting for, her meeting with Volodymyr, April twenty-second, finally arrived. She was so nervous that she tossed and turned all night, hoping sleep would come, but it never did. In the morning, exhaustion and anxiety took over and she couldn't stop shaking as she dressed and waited for the toot, toot of Polly's cart. Thank goodness, Polly and Albert had volunteered to go with her for moral support.

She hopped into the cart and tried to be social, but she felt nauseous. Polly chatted, as always, but an unusual apprehension quivered in her voice. They picked up Albert and the three of them traveled to the back door of the factory, the door Emma first entered three years earlier. Albert opened the gigantic door; it creaked and groaned as they made their way into the hallway.

He took her hand. "It'll be fine, honey."

Emma sighed.

The three of them walked, without saying a word, for what seemed like miles. Polly, out of breath, panted lightly, and Albert puffed nervously on his pipe. They walked and walked, shoes clicking upon the shiny marble floor, passing no one, alone in their silence.

Finally, they stopped in front of a huge glossy red door.

"We're here," Albert said sheepishly.

Emma took a deep breath and read the sign on the door. "Volodymyr, Record Keeper of Lifetimes."

Albert looked at Emma as he opened the door and they walked into a large waiting room. About a hundred brown metal chairs were placed neatly in ten rows of ten in a solid white room, all occupied by humans and various other creatures, looking nervously somber. They walked up to a window under a big sign that said _please check in_. Emma waited as the receptionist, who was having a conversation with her co-worker, ignored her. Finally, she turned around, scratched her nose and in a condemning voice, said, "Do you have an appointment?"

"Yes, my name is Emma, Emma Flanders."

The receptionist looked creepy with her bright orange hair sticking up in every direction, and gobs of dark purple eye shadow extending beyond her temples. "Are you sure you were supposed to be here today?" she asked.

"Yes, positive."

She flipped some pages in her calendar. "What was your name again?"

"Emma, Emma Flanders."

"Oh-yeah, here it is. Take a seat," she said rudely.

They searched out three cold metal chairs in the corner and sat, waiting. Finally, the orange-haired lady sauntered over and yelled, "Emma, follow me."

Emma got up, legs wobbly and walked toward the crazy looking lady. "Can they come with me?" She pointed at Albert and Polly.

"Oh, no, you're not allowed to take anyone into Volodymyr's office. This you must face alone."

Emma glanced at Albert and Polly and then followed the receptionist down the hallway to a gray door.

The receptionist banged on the door with her fist. "Volod, your next appointment is here. Her name is Emma."

"Send her in," a gruff voice answered.

The receptionist laughed wickedly as she opened the door, shoved Emma in, and slammed it.

Emma stood shaking, too terrified to open her eyes, when she heard the gruff voice again.

"It's fine, young lady, please open your eyes."

She peeked. Much to her surprise she saw a kind face smiling at her. Not what she expected, but that of an old man, a face filled with the wisdom of time and projecting a gentleness she could feel throughout. His body looked frail and he had only a few hairs left, combed to the sides of his small head. His huge nose sat on a face with more lines than a treasure map, and his apparel left a lot to be desired. A wrinkled white dress shirt and black tie made him look as if he'd slept under his desk.

"Hi, I'm Volodymyr. I here you've got a problem with your Life Plan?"

"I sure do. Hopefully you can help me." Emma looked around the room. Stacks of papers, thousands of them, were piled to the ceiling. Rows and rows of gray file cabinets, overflowing with haphazard documents, lined the walls. Computers were placed about the room on various desks. Some were even scattered on the floor, discarded and broken. The room was a shambles.

He started to laugh. "It's a little messy, I know, but I inherited it this way and I've kept it ever since. Been doing this job for eight hundred and sixty three years now."

He turned to a fancy new computer on his desk. "So you can't remember your Life Plan from your last lifetime on Earth, as Emma, right?"

"That's right," she answered nervously.

"Boy, that's very unusual."

"I've been hearing that from everyone."

Volod motioned. "Please, have a seat."

Emma pulled out a ripped leather chair and sat. Stuffing bulged out of the seat. "Thank-you."

He started typing.

"So can you tell me what happened? Why I can't remember?"

He kept typing and typing.

"I've tried but I just don't remember a thing. Albert said I should be able to and so did my other friends, but still, I don't."

Volod continued to type. "Humm, well that is interesting." A puzzled look flashed across his face. He got out of his chair, hobbled over to one of the old file cabinets and started rummaging.

Emma leaned forward in her chair, trying to catch a glimpse of what he was doing. "Did you find something?"

"Yes, that could be it," he mumbled.

"Could be what?"

He took a few papers out of the file cabinet, placed them on his desk and flipped through them. "Hmm, well, that could be." Then he grabbed his chair and dragged it across the room mumbling, "I wonder where I put that."

"Put what," Emma asked. "What have you found out?"

Volod placed the chair next to a stack of papers that must have been ten feet tall. He climbed onto the chair weaving from side to side.

Emma hopped up and held the chair. "Please, be careful. You could hurt yourself."

He started rummaging through the stack of papers, a perplexed look on his face. "Thank you, dear. I just don't understand what's going on here. It's is quite the curious matter." He hesitated for a minute. "What was your great, great grandmother's name?"

"Madelyn, her name was Madelyn. Why?"

"I think, yes, that could be what happened. She used to work in New Species Development?"

"Yes, what does that have to do with my Life Plan?"

"Oh, I was just trying to remember my last meeting with her."

"Well, it couldn't have been too long ago because Albert says she's been reincarnated as my daughter, Mattie."

"She's just a little girl? Yes, yes, I do believe I've figured it out. I didn't realize you were the one."

"I was the one what?"

Volod ignored her question and continued rummaging around his office. Finally, after another half hour he sat back at the desk and started typing again.

"I thought you figured it out?" she asked.

"It's just so odd," he said shaking his head, "this kind of stuff doesn't happen, hmm?"

"What kind of stuff?"

"Well, I can't find when your Life Plan was deactivated."

"What does that mean?"

"That means your Life Plan as Emma never ended. It should have been deactivated when you killed yourself, but it wasn't. I'm trying to look at it now to see what's in your file."

Emma didn't have a clue what he was talking about.

"Ahh, I got it. Here it is. Your Life Plan was not deactivated because your life as Emma has not ended."

"What are you talking about? My body's been dead for three years!"

"Yes, your body is dead, but your Life Plan has not ended. That's why you can't remember it."

He kept typing. Emma was too stunned to talk.

"Okay, here it is, by golly."

"What, Volod, what?" Emma stood over his desk. "Did you find something?"

"You don't see these cases too often."

"What cases?"

"Apparently, your Great, Great, Grandmother, Madelyn went back to Earth as your daughter."

"Yes, I told you that."

"I remember her now; she was very worried about you at the time she made her new Life Plan. She was headed to Earth to try and help you."

"Okay, and?"

"When we set up her new Life Plan we put a provision in it which states that you two were to spend your lives on Earth together." He chuckled. "That's one smart lady, there."

Emma leaned in closer. "What does that mean?"

"I guess she thought you might do something stupid, like commit suicide." He looked up at Emma. "That's not why you're here is it?"

Emma looked at the desk.

"Oh, dear, that's not good." He rubbed the bristles on his chin as if in deep contemplation. "How are we going to solve this?"

"Solve what?"

"Since we put that provision in Madelyn's Life Plan, your Life Plan could not be deactivated upon your suicide."

"So what's the problem? Deactivate it now. I'm obviously dead."

His forehead tightened--he looked as confused as Emma felt. "Well, we can't just do that. These are Life Plans not government contracts. They can't be broken, ever."

"Not ever?"

"Never." He pounded his fist on the desk.

"Okay." Emma backed away and sat in the chair.

Suddenly, he hopped up from his chair and fumbled through some yellowed, torn papers under an old table. He grabbed a big stack, carried them back to his desk and fumbled through them. "Oh, I thought so."

"What is it?"

"There was another case similar to this."

"Really?"

"Back in the seventeen hundreds."

"Okay," Emma said curiously. "How can that help us?"

"Yes, yes, this is it." He continued to rifle through the papers. "A young mother was killed in a fire, while her baby survived."

"Really?" Emma scooted the chair forward so she could overlook everything he touched.

"The spirits had been together for many, many lifetimes and had put into their Life Plans before their incarnation that they would discover the cure for some disease that ran rampant back then."

"What disease?"

"Oh, that's not important. Possibly small pox? Anyway, the universe needed them to make that discovery."

"But, how could they if the mother was already dead?"

"They couldn't."

"I don't see how this is helping us?"

"Let's see, here it is." Volod sighed. "Well, that's not going to be easy."

"What, Volod, what?"

"Since the Life Plan stated that the two of them had to be together, the mother was allowed to re-enter the baby's life by her spirit entering the body of a person who was scheduled to depart from said body."

"I don't understand." Emma shook her head. "What does this have to do with my Life Plan and what do you mean the mother's spirit entered the body of someone departing?"

"Let's see if I can explain it. They found someone who was going to die and the baby's mother went back to Earth in that body."

"That's impossible." Emma leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. "Impossible."

"Difficult to arrange, but not impossible."

"You're telling me the spirit of the dead woman was allowed to go back to Earth by stealing the body of somebody who was going to die?"

"Well, not stealing. They had to get permission from the departing spirit, of course."

Emma laughed. "I have to tell you, Volod, this sounds ridiculous."

"But it happened. And now it is happening again."

"What do you mean it's happening again?"

"You." He looked into her eyes.

Emma pointed at herself. "Me? How does this apply to me?"

"Your Life Plan has not ended."

"I understand that, but I don't see how this applies to me."

"You and Madelyn must be together." He waved his finger from side to side. "There are no options."

"What are you trying to tell me?"

"You are going to have to go back."

"Go back where?"

"To your former life."

Emma laughed. "Oh, don't be silly, there's no way that's going to happen."

"It has to happen."

"Don't get me wrong, Volod. I'd love to be with Madelyn, Mattie, more than anything, but this is just craziness."

"Your Life Plan is intact. You and Madelyn must have something to accomplish together. There's no stopping it. You must go back and live out the Life Plan you invoked over twenty three years ago."

Emma scratched her head. "Okay, I'll play along in this game. How do you suggest I do that, I don't have a body?"

"That's my job, to find you one."

"What? You're going to just find me a body?"

"Well, it won't be easy. I've got to find someone that's going to die pretty soon. This says you need to get back there quickly."

"Why?"

"Don't be silly, you know I can't tell you that. Plus I need to find someone approximately the same age as you."

"How are you ever going to do that?"

"Tricky." He started typing. "Yes, very tricky." He pounded the keys as fast as his brittle old fingers could manage. "Your daughter's father, is he married?"

"No, why?"

"Just wondering," he said with a smirk.

"Ahh, uh-huh, that's interesting, wow, how strange." He fumbled with the computer. "Okay, I've got more information."

"Already?"

"Yes, by golly it was easier than I thought. That Madelyn, she had it planned out all along. What a stinker."

"Everybody says that about her."

"Looks like you'll be leaving in seven days."

"What? Seven days? Where am I going in seven days?"

"You're going back to Earth, dear. I thought you understood that."

"I thought you were kidding."

"No, no kidding. In seven days you'll need to be ready and waiting at Yolanda's house. The body will be ready at ten am."

"What body?"

"The body you are going to inhabit so you can live out your Life Plan."

"Whose body?"

"You'll find out in seven days."

"You can't tell me?" Emma stood up, hands on her hips. "This sounds ridiculous."

"Since your Life Plan is still active I can't discuss it with you. You're just going have to live it."

"But the body...is she young or old? Does she look like me? Does she know Mattie?"

"Like I said, you'll find out everything soon enough."

"But I'm going back because Grandma Madelyn's Life Plan said I had to, so that must mean this body I'm getting, it must mean that they know Mattie?"

"You can assume that."

"But what if I can't fulfill my Life Plan this time?"

"You will."

"But, what if I end up in the body of someone Mattie doesn't like?"

"Your grandmother has put many well thought provisions into her Life Plan. They will solve most of the re-entrance issues."

"What do you mean re-entrance issues?"

"Remember, Emma, you're only the second person in my eight hundred and sixty three years in charge to go back and complete an unfinished Life Plan. There are bound to be issues."

Emma leaned forward in her chair. "What kind of issues? Maybe I should just stay here."

Volodymyr looked her straight in the eye. "There's no discussing it." He pressed the intercom button. "I'm ready for my next appointment."

The speaker crackled. "Okay, I'll send him in," the receptionist said.

Emma jumped up from her chair. "That's it. You're just leaving me hanging like this?"

He looked up at her again. "But I'm not leaving you hanging; you must complete your Life Plan. There is nothing else I can do for you."

"So, that's it?"

"Yes." Volod started stacking the papers he had been looking at. "That's it." He stood up and placed the papers back under the old desk. "You may go now."

Emma started to tear up. "But, I don't want to leave it like this."

"Like what? I thought it was settled."

"I mean, I want to go, be with my daughter, but I don't want to leave here. Plus you haven't told me a thing about what I'm going back to. What if I end up at the homeless shelter again?"

"You will not do that."

"How can you know my life will be any better than it was before?"

"Is your life better now?"

"Yes."

"Well, then you have your answer."

"But that's only because I'm here."

"No."

"No, what?"

"Your life is not better because you're here. Your life is better because you have grown while you have been here."

Emma sighed.

Volodymyr patted her on the back. "I'm not supposed to give advice, only enact and deactivate Life Plans. But I can tell, just from our short time together, that you have learned what you came here to learn. Trust me, you are ready to go back and create a better life for yourself and your daughter."

"You're sure about that? Because I'm terrified."

"I'm positive." He took her hand and led her toward the door. "It's time for you to go now. I'll see you again." He smiled. "In about seventy years. We'll work together on your next Life Plan."

"Seventy years, huh? So that means I'm going to live to be over ninety?"

Volodymyr opened the door. "Now you know I can't tell you that. I've given you too many hints already."

"Hints? What hints?"

"Time to go," he said, shooing her along.

"But, but, I've got more questions."

"You have all the answers already."

"Yeah, sure I do."

"You have all I'm going to give you." He pushed her gently into the hallway. "Just be at Yolanda's in seven days, young lady."

"So I just show up at Yolanda's and I'll be back on Earth?"

"That's it." Volodymyr smiled as he looked down the hallway at Albert and Polly in the waiting room. "Well, you may want to say goodbye to everyone here and get anything finished up that you were working on."

"Say goodbye." Emma's stomach started to churn. Then it hit her like an atom bomb. She was leaving her home, The Cat Factory, in seven days. "How can I say goodbye to Albert and Polly? What about Nigel? I can't leave Nigel."

### Chapter Nineteen

### Going Back

Happiness and sadness draped over Emma like a layer of dew covering the morning grass. The Cat Factory had become her life, her loves, and her enlightenment. All the joy she remembered was here, all the wisdom she had, she'd gained from these dear friends.

The seven days went quickly as she said her goodbyes to everyone she'd met. Nigel and Polly helped her get ready to return to Earth. They visited all the departments she'd worked in and hugged her friends, Olga, Nick, Mary, Makulu, ZuZu, Gopala, Millicent, Romualdo and Miss Caroline. They stopped in to see the Bozena on the production line. Hundreds of the new species traveled along a conveyor belt all getting ready to be delivered.

Polly, Nigel and Albert helped Emma get things settled in her house so someone new could move in.

Polly deactivated Mattie's Life Cam. "You won't need this. You'll be there soon enough."

Charlie was lying on the bed looking quite comfortable. Emma sat next to him and petted his soft coat. She could communicate with him. "What will you do when I'm gone?"

"I could go with you to Yolanda's? You said she wanted a cat, and I can wait for you to return," Charlie said.

"Yolanda would love that, but I don't know how long I'll be gone." Emma started to cry.

"That's all right; I'll wait it out in her cabin, checking out the universe."

Polly held a tissue under Emma's nose. "Blow."

"But, but..." Emma blew. "I'll miss you so much, Polly. I need you."

"You'll be fine. You don't need me as much as you think you do."

"But I need you all. I can't live without you."

Polly wiped the tears from her own cheeks. "We'll miss you too, honey, but you'll be back before you know it. Or maybe one of us will come there to see you."

"You'd do that for me?"

"Of course we would."

"Can you all come?" Emma blew her nose loudly.

"Only one of us can come," Albert said. He looked at Nigel.

Nigel smiled.

"Who? Nigel?" Emma put her hand over her mouth. "I know we joked about being reincarnated together but I didn't think it could ever really happen."

"Why not?" Albert said.

Nigel sat next to Emma. "It's already in your Life Plan."

"What is?"

"That I'll be one of the twin boys you're going to have in three years."

Emma grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. "No, way!"

"Apparently, when you created your Life Plan you had many details in it that we knew nothing about," Albert said. "One of which was coming here, meeting Nigel and then helping him to be reunited with Pierre." Albert immediately covered his mouth as if he just spilled a secret.

"Pierre?" Nigel turned and glared at Albert. "What's this got to do with Pierre?"

"He's going to be the other child." Albert sighed. "I guess I've ruined the surprise."

Nigel jumped up from his chair. "Pierre is going to be my brother? Are you serious?"

Polly interrupted, "How did you find all this out, Albert?" She put her hands on her hips and said forcefully, "You know it's against the rules to reveal another person's Life Plan before they've lived it."

"I know, I know, calm down," Albert said. "But it's not from Nigel or Emma's Life Plan, it's from Mattie's."

"And how in the heck do you know Mattie's Life Plan?" Polly asked.

"Well, you're going to yell at me for this too." Albert looked at Polly sheepishly. "I helped Madelyn create the provisions in her Life Plan that would force Emma to return to Earth."

"Why would you do that?" Emma asked.

"Because Madelyn wanted to spend her time on Earth with you. There was no other way to guarantee that you would be there."

"But, how did you know about Nigel? You couldn't have known we'd care so much about each other," Emma asked.

"Actually, we could," Albert said.

"And how would you have done that without sticking your nose in where it didn't belong, Albert?" Polly demanded.

Nigel sat next to Emma. "Oh, just let me tell her, please."

"What," Polly screamed. "Tell her what?" She shook her finger at Albert. "There's more that I don't know."

Albert shuffled his feet around staring at the floor. "I suppose so."

Nigel looked into Emma's eyes. "We've been friends for a long time."

"Yeah, like three years."

"No, longer." Albert smirked.

"Have I been here longer than that? So, lets say three years and a couple of months."

"No, longer." Nigel grinned.

Polly took a deep breath. "I can't believe you two have kept this a secret."

"What?" Emma yelled. "What secret?"

"I think they're trying to tell you that you and Nigel have been friends on Earth before," Polly said.

"And you guys didn't tell me," Emma screamed.

"We had to wait until we heard what Volodymyr decided to do," Nigel said.

"He decided to send me back, that's what," Emma said.

"Yes, and I'm going with you. Well, in a few years."

"And you guys had this planned all along? I should be mad at you."

"We didn't plan a thing," Albert continued, "you and Nigel planned it with Madelyn the last time you were here."

"The last time I was here?" Emma hopped up from her seat. "When the hell was that?"

"Before you left for Earth as Emma."

"You're telling me I was here before?"

"You were."

"And I knew all these people before?" Emma rubbed her temples.

"Not necessarily," Albert said, "most of them were not here thirty years ago when the three of you were busily concocting this scheme."

"So Nigel, Madelyn, and I decided all these things were going to happen just the way they did?"

"You sure did, and if you could have remembered your Life Plan you would have known that, but since you couldn't, we just had to wait it out until we found out what Volod wanted to do."

"He wouldn't let us tell you, Emma, really." Nigel smiled.

"What other secrets are you keeping from me?"

Albert's eyes met Nigel's. "Nothing, honey, really, nothing at all," he said with a grin.

***

Emma felt nervous down to her toes as Albert and she walked the long hallway one last time. He held her right hand tightly. Emma held Charlie under her left arm. She knew she had to go, but everything in her wanted to stay where she was protected and loved.

They walked in silence until they reached the intersection where Emma had arrived three years earlier. They closed their eyes and immediately found themselves standing in Yolanda's living room.

Yolanda gasped with joy. "Albert, Emma, I was expecting you."

"Of course you were." Emma laughed.

She hugged them both as Emma introduced her to Charlie, but to Emma's surprise, they'd known each other before. Charlie hopped out of her arms and said goodbye, I love you, jumped onto Yolanda's big old couch and curled up in front of the fireplace. Yolanda seemed overjoyed to have a cat companion once again and thanked them many times before she said, "We better get down to business, it's getting late."

Albert took Emma's hands in his, as he tried not to cry. "Emma, the last three years have been such a joy to me. I'll miss you with all my heart, but I know you must go and share the wisdom you've learned with the world. If you need me, just dream and I'll be there. Be happy, my sweet one, create and be happy." He kissed her cheek and disappeared.

Just as Emma began to sob uncontrollably, Yolanda grabbed her. "No time for sadness, dear, time is tight. In a few minutes, when we hear a knock on my front door, you'll close your eyes, and when you open them you're going to awaken in another body. For a few days it's going to feel horrible to be back in a human body. Remember, you've been pure spirit for the last three years, no aches and pains, no colds or flu's. The human body will feel constraining and heavy, as if you're wearing a winter parka in the desert. Understand?"

"In a few minutes I'll just wake up in another body?"

"Yes"

"Will I remember you?"

"You may remember bits and pieces of your last three years, but it's unlikely."

"How will I know who I am?"

"You just are who you are, dear, nothing can ever change that. You'll always be Emma, even in another body. Though you won't consciously remember The Cat Factory, unconsciously your spirit remembers everything. Look inside yourself for the answers. Meditate when you need help, the help is within you. Every bit of wisdom you've learned is part of you now. You just need to learn to access that wisdom while in a human body."

"But how do I do that, Yolanda?"

"Like I said, meditate, look within, trust your instincts and listen to your dreams. The more you focus on your spirituality, the more you'll be able to remember people or places from your last three years."

Yolanda hugged her goodbye as they waited for a knock. The clock ticked...9:57...9:58. "Remember, Emma, God is within you and all around you."

Emma's heart raced at an uncontrollable speed...9:59...10:00!

Knock, knock, "Is anybody home?" A woman's voice shouted.

Emma closed her eyes and everything faded to black.

###

### About the author:

_I have been creating things for as long as I can remember. Everything from paintings and sculptures to novels. Creativity is such an important part of my life that I can't imagine getting up everyday without some artistic project to do._ _Writing a novel had always been a goal of mine but I never sat down to actually do it until 2007 when I wrote The Cat Factory._

I was working on getting my masters in paranormal studies when a friend asked me if I believed in Heaven and if so what I thought it would be like. As I pondered the question, I realized a few things. First, I do believe in life after death, is that Heaven, possibly.

With that out of the way I started putting together what 'Heaven' would be to me. Since I've been self-employed for thirty years, I can't think of Heaven as eternity lounging on a cloud sipping tea, and twiddling my thumbs. I need work, fulfilling, challenging, work.

Because I'm an artist, that work had to be something creative. I thought about the things I love most in this world and animals are at the top of that list. I look at my cats and I see a perfect species, obviously designed by an intelligent creative genius. Cats are wild predators, loving companions, and masters at enjoying life.

I could not think of anything I would take more pleasure in than sculpting those perfect little noses and being present at the moment life is created. That's my version Heaven.

So if someday you find yourself working at The Cat Factory, be sure you track me down to say Hello!

Rita

I hope you enjoyed this ebook. Please look for my other titles.

It's All About The Gravy

The Contraption

Miracle Mutt

Raising Jimmy
