In a small village cottage lived a kitten. He had ginger fur with dark spots, just like a jaguar. He loved to run around the yard chasing sunbeams, but he especially enjoyed playing with Grandma's woollen ball of yarn. She was always forgetting to put the knitting away.
The kitten lived a carefree life, only the yard dog would sometimes bark at him, making him run into the house as quickly as possible. But something did trouble the little one: he was afraid of the dark. As soon as night wrapped the earth in its dark blanket, the kitten couldn't be coaxed out of the house by any persuasion.
He shared his fears with his mum and dad. His parents were very caring and attentive and always showed empathy towards their little one. Empathy is when you want so badly to understand someone that you try to see the world through their eyes.
Mother cat and Father cat explained to their son where his fears might have come from. They also told him that cats can see very well in the dark, much better than many other animals and even people. But this didn't help.
Then Mum told the kitten that one day he would forget all his fears, because something special would happen to him in the summer. The kitten immediately became curious—would it be something scary? Mum said the event would be special. From that day on, the kitten waited for the mysterious event with great anticipation. Early spring was upon them—it wouldn't be long.
Summer arrived. One day Mum approached the kitten and said that at night they would go into the forest. The kitten was very frightened, but then he became curious about what would happen in this dark forest? It was so scary and confusing, yet mysterious.
When the journey began, Mum explained that cats were made for nocturnal life: they roam about on their own, peer into the darkness, hunt, and climb trees. And their large eyes with narrow pupils help them see, even when there isn't a glimmer of light. And from that moment on, the little kitten would begin to learn all the feline skills.
Suddenly the kitten felt that something was happening to him—something that was meant to happen. Something inside told him that he didn't need to be afraid of the dark; there was nothing bad in it.
Unfortunately, Mother cat and the little kitten weren't able to catch a mouse, although they tried very hard. But the kitten learned a lot from his night lesson.
Day after day, the cat taught her little one to be himself, not to fear difficulties and to overcome them. Of course, this didn't mean the kitten was no longer afraid of anything. But fear of the dark no longer visited him. Darkness had become his friend.
