拉娜回家了！

今年初，刚刚经厉了小六洗礼，踏进中学大门的孙女，提出想养一只小猫，我们同意了。

记得那天，好邻居＋好朋友带我们驱车20多分钟，见到了一只小猫咪，当孙女伸出双手，小心翼翼地把它捧在手心里时，我在暗自担心：这么小的猫咪我们能把它养活吗？能养好吗？

孙女给它取名“拉娜”。是个小女生。

还不能自己控制大小便的拉娜，每晚都由孙女带着睡。那段时间，常常是早上一起床，我就看到孙女的床单已经在阳台上飘着了，有时连被子也被派出去迎侯太阳了。从来不手洗衣服的孙女，半夜为拉娜洗屎洗尿却豪无怨言……我们在孙女的带领下给了拉娜全心的爱。给它买各种零食和玩具，打疫苗，驱虫……它已经是我们家的一员了。

渐渐的，手心里捧回来的小拉娜长大了。几个月过去了，小拉娜已经自己能控制住大小便了， 房间的味道也好多了。但经常半夜把孙女弄醒，瞪着圆圆的眼睛不肯睡，她会轻轻拍拍它，爱抚它入眠。怕挤压到它，孙女把大半个床铺都让给了它，夜里还要醒来照顾几次……写作业时就把它抱在怀里。那段时间孙女的睡眠是远远不够的，我们也看到了她这猫养得有多辛苦……但付出了爱和辛苦，她的心情反而好多了。乖巧的拉娜也会在她每次进门之前，竖起耳朵听清楚，跑过去……

又过了几个月，拉娜开始调皮了，它常常用肉乎乎的小手拍人一下，转头就跑了 ，或者用头在人身上蹭来蹭去不肯离去。早上它想出去时，啃咬人的手却不疼，它是在唤醒主人给她开门。更有意思的是，它想玩了，偷偷从后面抱一下你的腿，然后藏起来，观察你的态度，你若追它，它就跑起来，疯狂的跑来跑去……快活一阵子。你若不理它，它停一会儿又抱你一下，那意思是：嗨！别忙了,玩会儿吧……机器人扫地时，它会调皮的站上去，悠哉悠哉的满屋转。

当然，它的攀爬本领也在我们的不经意间长大。

真是天有不测风云。那天，我晨练回来，却不见了拉娜！快急疯了的儿子，在楼道里，院子里找了几遍都没有找到它，只好到群里求助！同时，调出监控一看，原来是被保安大叔误当野猫通过电梯赶出去了……深夜儿子在写寻猫启示，一家人茶饭不香，气氛沉闷。孙女睡觉之前，都会泪眼婆娑的问“奶奶拉娜会回来吗？”我只能告诉她，拉娜一定会回来的，因为它和我们有缘！其实我也心里没底，更不知这“缘”落何处？

昨天一早 ，儿子就收到了一位邻居在上班路上拍 摄的一只灰色猫咪的照片，我们看了半天觉得不太像。

我在找猫的路上，碰到了好心的邻居，她们夫妇开着车，在可能藏猫的地方，停下车来喊着“拉娜”的名字。

楼上邻居的儿子和妈妈一起到大排79号那边去找，没找到。晚上他要到韩国出差，去机场之前一直为找拉娜忙着。今天他在韩国给妈妈报喜，他比妈妈先看到了拉娜回家的消息。

有的邻居这两天一见到我就用手比划着：猫咪找到了吗？

就连我们小区物委会主席也在帮着找拉娜。他告诉我：许多邻居都在帮你们找……是啊，我们已经感受到了这份善良和爱。

今天早晨 ，当邻居小蔡和姑娘抱着拉娜出现在我面前时，就象梦幻一样，让人难以置信。

晚饭时间，楼道里好几家的女主人都知道了拉娜回家的消息，都出来道贺。我心里满满的除了温暖还是温暖！我们只是丢失了一只我们养大的猫咪而已，百忙中的芳邻们却给了我们一家意想不到的关爱！心贴心的理解！验证了“远亲不如近邻”。也告诉我们“缘”起拉娜，“缘”落众家！

今天晚上,放学回家的孙女，一进门扔下书包，一把抱起拉娜，搂在怀里久久不肯放手，坐在地上喃喃地对拉娜说：你可回来了，如果找不回来你可咋办啊！是啊，这也正是我们的担忧。而何以解忧，唯有邻友！

我们身在异国他乡，难免会遇到这样那样的困难，经厉这样那样的风雨，能有这些好邻居为伴，夫复何求！

我们是幸福的，

拉娜是幸运的！

有种感激是难以言表的！

李母于7月19日晚

Lana is Home!

At the beginning of this year, just after experiencing the rite of passage of the sixth grade and stepping into middle school, my granddaughter expressed a desire to raise a kitten. We agreed.

I remember that day well. Our good neighbor and friend drove us over 20 minutes to meet a kitten. When my granddaughter carefully cupped it in her hands, I secretly worried: can we keep such a small kitten alive and well?

My granddaughter named her Lana. She’s a little girl. Lana, who couldn’t control her bladder and bowels, slept with my granddaughter every night. During that time, I often saw my granddaughter’s bedsheets hanging on the balcony in the morning, and sometimes even the blanket was out there drying. My granddaughter, who never hand-washed clothes before, washed Lana’s urine and feces in the middle of the night without a single complaint... We gave Lana all our love, led by my granddaughter. We bought her all sorts of snacks and toys, got her vaccinated, dewormed... She had become a member of our family.

Gradually, little Lana, who was cradled in our hands, grew up. A few months passed, and she could control her bladder and bowels, the room smelled much better. But she often woke my granddaughter in the middle of the night, staring with her big round eyes, refusing to sleep. My granddaughter would gently pat her, lovingly coaxing her to sleep. To avoid squashing her, my granddaughter would leave most of the bed to Lana and wake up several times at night to check on her... When doing homework, she would hold Lana in her arms. During that time, my granddaughter’s sleep was far from adequate, and we saw how tiring it was for her to raise a cat... But with the love and effort she put in, her mood improved greatly. Sweet Lana would also perk up her ears and run to the door whenever my granddaughter came home...

After a few more months, Lana started to become playful. She often tapped us with her soft paws and then ran off, or rubbed against us persistently. In the morning, when she wanted to go out, she would nibble on our hands without hurting, signaling for us to open the door. More amusingly, when she wanted to play, she would sneak up from behind and hug our legs, then hide to see our reaction. If we chased her, she would run around wildly, having a blast. If we ignored her, she would wait a while before hugging us again, saying: “Hey! Don’t be busy, play with me for a while...” When the robot vacuum was on, she would cheekily stand on it, leisurely riding around the house.

Of course, her climbing skills grew with our unawareness.

Unexpectedly, one day, after my morning exercise, Lana was missing! My frantic son searched the corridors and yard several times to no avail and had to seek help from the community! Checking the surveillance, we found out she was mistakenly chased out as a stray cat by the security guard... Late at night, my son was writing a missing cat notice. Our whole family lost our appetite, and the atmosphere was gloomy. Before bed, my granddaughter, with tearful eyes, would ask, “Grandma, will Lana come back?” I could only tell her, Lana will come back because she’s destined to be with us! In truth, I wasn’t sure, nor did I know where this “destiny” would lead.

Yesterday morning, my son received a photo of a gray cat from a neighbor on their way to work. We looked at it for a long time but thought it didn’t quite resemble Lana.

On my way to find Lana, I met kind neighbors. They drove around, stopping at possible hiding spots, calling out Lana’s name.

Our upstairs neighbor and her son went to 79 Da Pai to look, but they couldn’t find her. That night, before heading to the airport for a business trip to Korea, he was busy searching for Lana. Today, from Korea, he reported the good news that he saw Lana’s return notice before his mom.

Some neighbors would gesture whenever they saw me these past two days: “Did you find your cat?”

Even our community committee chairperson was helping search for Lana. He told me: many neighbors were helping you find her... Indeed, we felt this kindness and love.

This morning, when our neighbor Xiao Cai and her daughter appeared with Lana in their arms, it felt like a dream, so unbelievable.

At dinner time, many ladies from the corridor came out to congratulate us on Lana’s return. My heart was filled with warmth and gratitude! We merely lost a cat we raised, yet our busy neighbors gave us unexpected care and understanding, proving “a close neighbor is better than a distant relative.” It also showed that the “destiny” started with Lana and ended with everyone’s help!

Tonight, when my granddaughter returned from school, she dropped her bag, held Lana tightly in her arms, and sat on the floor murmuring: “You’re finally back. What would we do if we couldn’t find you!” This was our concern too. And how can we alleviate worries? Only with the help of our neighbors!

Living in a foreign land, we inevitably face various difficulties and storms. Having such good neighbors to accompany us, what more could we ask for?

We are fortunate, Lana is lucky! Some gratitude is beyond words!

XiangRu, July 19