Meteor Landing
Tri-City Tales Issue No. 28
It was Christmastime. Betsy Jones wanted her little boy, Crù, to have the gift he’d been begging for: a new pet. At first, he wanted a parrot, which, his mom told him, “Wasn’t happening.”
The day before Christmas Eve, his parents sat him down for some great news. He was getting a kitten! Crù squealed with the kind of explosive joy only a 5-year-old can know. Even better, everyone was piling in the car immediately to let Crù pick out his new friend.
But after arriving at a shelter in Dallas, the family was crushed to find there were no kittens. None. No problem, they told their son, we’ll just go to a different shelter. They were told a second time -- not a single one. Betsy didn’t realize that kittens are usually seasonal. During the spring, in breeding season, shelters have more kittens than they have room for (and call upon squads of volunteer foster homes). In winter, kittens are scarce.
They drove home that afternoon, a sobbing little boy in the back seat -- Santa said he was getting a cat. They heard the phrase that stabs every parent’s heart: BUT YOU PROMISED. “At this point,” Betsy says, “we thought Christmas was ruined.”
That night, Betsy began posting on Facebook, asking if someone — anyone --had a kitten needing a home. She grew up in Cedar Hill, where her parents owned Dick’s Uptown Café. The post caught the eye of Tri-City Animal Shelter director Tammy Miller. Tri-City, by stroke of luck, had two kittens. Tammy was at home, more than an hour away, but she offered to meet Betsy at the shelter that night. (Betsy said it could wait until the next day, Christmas Eve.)
The shelter was closed for the holidays, but the staff opened up for Betsy and her mom. This time, Betsy decided to leave Crù at home, afraid of yet another disappointment. “He’d been through enough,” she says. She picked up one of the kittens, a small male, who immediately began to purr and snuggle. Santa was going to come after all. “Everyone was so kind,” Betsy says. “They sent us home with a new litter box, a collar, toys and treats.”
Crù named his new kitten Meteor, after a book he’d read about a mouse who goes to the moon. He hardly left his room for days, content to cuddle and play with Meteor. Boy and kitten are now inseparable. He feeds Meteor and takes care of the litter box. “He’s proud to do it all,” Betsy says. He even gave up his beloved security blanket. He had Meteor, he told his mom, and that was enough. In January, the family went on vacation, but ended up coming back early because Crù missed Meteor too much.
No doubt, Tri-City saves the lives of countless animals. But sometimes, they save Christmas, too.