Picture Story, an idea inspired by Bobby Hawthorne. Every person has a story. In order to be able to tell other people’s stories, a journalist must be able to tell his own. We asked our new staff take a picture that they hold dear, whether they took it, or someone they knew did and write the story behind the image.

When I was 5 years old, my life changed in the best way possible. I became a cat mom to the fattest cat anyone will ever see, and when I was 7 I became a cat mom again. It’s such an amazing feeling to get so much love from something so fat and furry. They are my best friends and I cherish them as my own. A “hard working mother of two,” is what I call myself.

I have always had a love for animals, even before I owned one. I loved getting stuffed animals because it was like a new pet and I cared for them as such. In the picture, I had just gotten my second cat. My friend, who ironically had the same name as I, was giving kittens away and my mom said I could go get one. I was so excited, on the way there. I couldn’t wait to see all the cute kittens and give one of them a forever home. When we got there she told to pick my favorite one out of the litter. A whopping total of nine kittens stared at me in awe as if they were hoping I would pick them. There were a variety of color patterns of kittens to choose from because their mother had what seemed like every color possible on her fur. She and all but one of her precious babies had bobbed tails, and this one stood out to me. He was all alone in a far corner of the garage they stayed in. The kitten was much smaller than his siblings, and I couldn’t help but relate to him. I told my mom that he was the one I wanted. She asked me if I was sure because, in her opinion, he wasn’t as cute as the rest of the litter, because he was small and didn’t have a bobbed tail. He had his own version of a bobbed tail, by that I mean in the middle of his tail it feels like it’s almost been bent in half.

I didn’t care if he was a little different. He just reminded me of myself so much that I just instantly felt a connection, and I knew he was gonna be my new kitty.

On the way home my mom asked me what we should name him. At the time we weren’t sure if he was a boy or girl because he was still very young, so we needed a name that could be appropriate for both genders. My mom mentioned the names Sunshine, or Sunny for short, and it just kind of fit him. Mostly because of his color, but later in life, we realized that the name not only suited him because of his color but because he was just like a little ray of sunshine and happiness whenever he was around. When I got home I was a little nervous because we had to introduce Sunny to my other cat George. There was no issue there because George loved him. All he did was sniff Sunny then licked him clean like he already knew him. A “Kitter from another litter,” as I would say.