Stark is my Hero

I always loved animal. Since I was very young my parents made sure that I was surrounded by dogs mostly. No matter where we lived we almost always had an dog. That changed of course when I got a little older. My parents divorced when I was 14, both my brother and I had very big mental health issues and an animal just seemed to be the last thing on our minds. I didn't really discover my love of cats until I was 15 and my dad suggested that I take a cat home to my mom. We named him Bandit but we didn't have him very long before he was stolen. Then we had a cat named Isra who we decided to give away because we simply couldn't take care of her and needed to find her a new home that would love her more.

For years I went without having a pet. I was working hard in therapy trying to get myself under control, but I was really struggling. Change is hard you know. Sometimes it seems even impossible especially when you've been stuck in a mental routine for most of your life. I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety, Major Depression, and Bipoar 2. I was and currently am on medications. Things were getting worse for me.

I currently work at a mental health facility and we have a medical practitioner that also works in the building. She also fosters baby kittens both from clients and for the local animal shelter. I had seen plenty of Kittens come and go, but things changed when I went in there one day for a mental break from work in October of 2019.

My mom and stepdad were going away for their honeymoon for a week so my stepbrother and I were taking turns watching over their dogs. I was a nervous wreck. Between travel between Twin Falls and Paul, watching the dogs, and also having to work, I was not in a good place. I went into the nurses office one day just to play with the kitties, when this beautiful cat named Tony melted on my lap.

He was absolutely adorable and the tiniest but most playful kitten out of the bunch. A clients cat had had the litter but the client couldn't take care of them, so she gave them to the animal shelter and Lisa, the doctor, took them in. I did not connect to anyone of the other kittens and I definitely didn't expect to connect with Tony. He was just so energetic but at the same time very calm and cuddly. He was just the cutest white and black kitten. I knew very quickly that I wanted him.

Tony always wanted to cuddle with me, and I would take him back to my office and waddle up sticky notes and play with him on my desk. He fit in the palm of my hand and I absolutely fell in love with him very quickly. He made all of my stress melt away instantly whenever I was able to hold him. He made the dark days seem worth going through and he always brightened up my day. I had to wait until he was neutered in order to take him home. I waited, day after day after day. Finally I was able to take him home when he was 6 weeks old.

I didn't want to name him Tony because my stepdad is Tony, and I didn't think the name fit. So I named him after my absolutely favorite superhero Tony Stark, AKA Stark. He saved me the day I met him. I know that it seems like such a small thing, being stressed over taking care of my parents dogs, but one of them is much older and required a lot of care. Even the smallest of things can give me an anxiety attack. Ever since I brought Stark home I can just hold him and all of my worries melt away. Just holding him can put me in an immediate good mood. He'll let me hold him for as long as possible. I may have adopted him and saved him from a life in the shelter, but he is truly the superhero that saved me.