December 12 ~ Felina

in

"Gentleman's Game"

Hellooooo! China Cat here! I am a fun and frisky cat! My whiskers are long and sharp, and I am an excellent feline acrobat! I can jump up high in the air, do a few flips, and land right on my human's feet to curl up and sleep for the night. He does not move much in his sleep. He just lies on his back and breathes so slowly. I worry about that sometimes, but then I usually forget about it. If he does not move, I don't have to worry about him kicking me off the bed or reaching out to pet me in the middle of the night. I'm one of those picky cats. Cuddles are on a tight schedule, and the claws are on constant alert!

My country has so many extremes. During the winter, snow and ice only cover the north, while the central and southern parts are just cold enough to be annoying. My coat is thick to keep me warm no matter the weather, but I wish I had Russia Cat's extra fluff when visiting the icy city of Harbin. No matter what, my human has extra blankets and a hot water kettle. He is never satisfied. And neither am I when he shoos me away from the kettle to pour out water for his tea.

I should be shivering. We're in Harbin today, just settling in to enjoy some brisk weather. Having lived so long, it is very hard for me to find new experiences. It's the constant motion that keeps me excited for day-to-day life. Other cats call me grumpy-puss, but they still go out at night and wonder at the secrets of the winter moon. I know all those secrets. I've learned them and forgotten them and learned them again. It is good to be in motion, I think. Life may run in patterns, but the patterns can change their order, and so it's best to revisit the extremes every now and then to remember the excitement they once provided.

I'm sitting in the snow on the bank of a huge skating pond in the city. I have my puffy kitty coat on, but my ears are so cold they're tingling, and my paws are so numb! Even my nose is pulsing hot and cold. I have to keep moving, I tell myself. Otherwise I'll freeze. And so I jump up and scamper down onto the ice, skittering around like a mouse on a dinner plate! (I may be old, but I still play with my food. Don't tell Hong Kong Cat.)

"Are you cold? Do you need some hot tea or a blanket yet, kitty?" My human asks. He's bundled up in everything he could fit into his simple suitcase, and he's still shivering. A group of children laughed at him when he came out onto the ice. He gave them a stern look filled with his nation aura, and they slunk away in humility.

"Yes! I am cold!" comes my triumphant meow as I whirl around on my paw pads. "But I am enjoying myself! Good to get exercise on a day like today! Hong Kong Cat kept bragging about living in his heated apartment, and Japan Cat's getting chubby from all that human food! It's best for a role model like me to be busy!"

"Ah. So you're still having fun. Well, I should get to moving my body, too. I brought something special!"

My human bends down and takes the messenger bag off his shoulder. With mittened hands, he opens the flap and pulls out a whip. It's two meters long from handle to corded end. With a flick of his wrist, he slaps the ice. A mighty thwak echoes across the surface.

Then he takes out the true prize — a large metal spinning top. It looks like a tall can with a pointed bottom, much too large to have a handle for finger-spinning.

"Make sure to stay out of the way," my human tells me. I blink once in understanding.

We march out onto the ice together. My human bends down and fiddles with the whip, wrapping it in a tight coil around the top. Then he bends his body and grasps the handle of the whip in his right hand, top in the other. Three… two… one…

Like a snake, my human jerks his right arm, and the whip unwinds, sending the top into a frenzied spin over the ice. He winds back and flings the whip forward. THWAK! It connects with the metal and pushes the top even faster.

Top-whipping is a sport of skill and a game of class. My human lopes about with his whip, cocking his head and eyeing the top at a curious angle. Then, every few seconds, there's another fantastic THWAK, and with a spray of ice, the top whirls further over the frozen lake. Very slowly, we circle the perimeter, avoiding skaters, children, and people on chair sleds pedaling around. Those kids from before have found us again. My human is too focused on keeping his top going to notice their stares. They're pointing and whispering at the both of us.

Another old man with a whipping top making too much noise on the ice, and his thin old cat, too! Only old people play with tops!

I huff, then bare my teeth and flash my own earth power in their faces. Top-whipping is a gentleman's game! New experiences may have tired me long ago, but watching that top spin like the earth on its axis is the most satisfying thing in the world! When you are older, I meow at the kids, you will understand the meditative power of keeping that quick spin! It is a grand accomplishment on a tiny scale! A task completed and a force maintained!

Their big, bundled-up leader snickers again. My claws push out and dig into the ice. If they're going to laugh at a gentleman's game, then I'll show them some gentleman's tricks!

The top has begun to wobble, and my human has his arm raised, but before he can throw it forward, I sit back on my haunches on the snowy bank and launch myself forth! My little paws are stretched out, and I fly toward the top with super cat speed! I hold my body up at just the right angle. I'm soaring past in a way so that my paw can just swipe out at the top, and…

THPAP! My frozen paw pads strike the top on the side, and it… wobbles… wobbles more…

My paw hurts…

My claws jut out, but it's too late. I launched myself out onto the ice, but I never thought about landing! Now all four paws are stretched out, and I'm spinning around and around on the ice just like the top before! My tail wiggles wildly behind me, and I meow out for help! Oh, this is what happens when I try to show off.

"Kitty!" My human yells. He abandons the wobbling top and springs forth onto the ice after me. Still I skid, spinning faster and faster as I lean into the force. This is a little too much motion for me. I might be sick. Yes! I am definitely sick!

I pull my paws in and narrowly slip under a chair sled scooting across the lake. I pop myself up and leap over a toddler who fell down. I think it was a toddler because of the noise it was making. I can't see anything now that the world has all blurred into white and gray and blue and a brownness from all the different boot colors stomping all around me. .

BANG!

BONG!

BOONG!

I finally slow down and let out a sigh. Three hard somethings buffered my spin. I lift my head and look to see three tops wobbling, then falling to rest on their sides. The three old men playing with them couldn't whip them any further when I was in the way. My tail whips up in the air, then hangs limply.

My dazed eyes look up to see the cloudy shape of my human bending down to scoop me up and check me for scratches. I'm tougher than I look! Nothing is bruised or broken, but my human still takes the blanket he's been wearing as a shawl and wraps me up in it. I tuck my paws into the folds and meow out a tired thank you.

Before I whip my head out and hiss at the three old men. "HA! I spun longer than all three of your tops! I am the winner!"

The group of kids is laughing off to the side, but I think it's in better spirits.

~N~

"Da tuo luo" is the art of whipping a spinning top around to see how long it can go. It's thought to be a recreational activity for old people, but it's popular as a winter sport on frozen lakes, as highlighted by the Harbin Ice Festival's spirited competitions.
China's musings are partly inspired by a thoughtful fic by one of my most favorite authors Ferith12.

Updated by Syntax-N December 12th, 2020 on FanFiction . Net. No repost for you!