The following headline at www.Newser.com immediately caught my attention: “Cat Slips Into Amazon Returns Box, Takes 600-Mile Trip”. The sub-title read: “Galena is now back with her owners after making an unintentional journey from Utah to California”.
According to the writer, Jenn Gidman...
A cat from Utah is back safe with its owners after a frightening journey to California in an Amazon returns package. Carrie Clark says their indoor kitty Galena vanished from their home on April 10, and a frantic search ensued throughout their neighborhood for the next week, reports KSL. "The anxiety and stress of not knowing what happened to her was excruciating," Clark says. Then, "I got a call that changed everything," she posted to Facebook, per KTLA. That call was from a vet in California, more than 600 miles away, telling Clark they'd scanned the microchip for a cat that had been brought in and it was Galena.
"I didn't believe her at first and thought it was a prank," Clark tells KSL. As it turns out, a worker at an Amazon return center named Brandy had opened one of the boxes and discovered Galena stashed away with five pairs of work boots; Brandy dropped Galena off with the vet the next day after caring for it overnight. Clark says she and her husband realized that their cat must've slipped into a big box of returns they'd shipped out. The vet's phone call was the "most amazing, insane news in the entire world," Clark tells the BBC.
Clark and her husband flew to Los Angeles the next day to retrieve Galena, who knew her humans right away. "Galena instantly stopped shaking and relaxed in my arms when I got to hold her again," she tells KSL, noting that the cat was thinner and slightly dehydrated, but otherwise OK. She also attributes Galena's survival to a combination of factors, including Brandy being a rescue cat expert; mild weather conditions that allowed Galena to not be too cold or too hot; and a small slit in the box that gave her air to breathe. Now, Clark offers an important piece of advice for other pet owners: "Triple-check your Amazon boxes!"
Given that my wife and I own a cat, I can relate. Especially when “Bluey” has the propensity to explore any and every thing new on what she considers her turf. Just last week, my wife spent a frantic two hours searching for her after a repairman left. She feared that “Bluey” had climbed into his truck and been whisked away to parts unknown.
Fortunately, later in the day, “Her Royal Highness” (my name for “Bluey”) came sauntering home and deigned to grant us a brief audience before enjoying her accustomed sumptuous royal evening banquet.
Bluey’s arrogance and Galena’s misfortune notwithstanding, one cannot help but be touched by this story. The fear and disorientation of the hapless cat, the worry and fret of her owners, the empathy of the Amazon employee, the prudence of the veterinarian… all these things speak to the heart. For they reflect story after story employed in Holy Scripture to show us just how much we are loved by God.
After all, Adam and Eve went astray; but God still pursued them. The same can be said for Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Jonah, Peter, Paul, and any number of characters that populate the pages of the Bible. The same can also be said of you and me. The Bible affirms this in Isaiah (chapter 53, verse 6) when it states: “All we like sheep have gone astray…”
This latter statement comes in the midst of the famed “Suffering Servant” passage (Chapter 52, Verse 13 – Chapter 53, Verse 12) of the Old Testament Prophet Isaiah, in which we get a prophetic preview of the forthcoming ministry of Jesus Christ - the very One ordained to be God’s suffering servant on behalf of all who have ever gone astray. This is why the latter half of Isaiah 53:6 states: “and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
You see, in the story above, the cat’s owners, upon discovering the whereabouts of their lost pet, flung cost to the wind, and immediately made pursuit, irrespective of the price. At the news that their beloved pet had been found, neither the price of airline tickets, the price of a vet’s bill, nor the price of any other expense that might be incurred mattered. With joy, they journeyed forth to redeem Galena.
And in like manner, in Christ Jesus, God was about seeking and saving all who are lost, no matter the cost. Therefore, God laid upon His One and Only Son, Jesus Christ, that cost, which was the sacrifice of His very life. The innocent for the guilty. The blameless for the beguiled. The pure for the contaminated.
As one who went astray, and who was sought and found and redeemed by the God I willingly abandoned, all I can say is “Thank you, Lord!”
I sincerely hope you share this sentiment!
SOURCES:
NEWS STORY:
https://www.newser.com/story/349641/cat-slips-into-amazon-returns-box-takes-600-mile-trip.html.
SCRIPTURE:
https://biblehub.com/kjv/isaiah/52.htm;
https://biblehub.com/kjv/isaiah/53.htm.
According to the writer, Jenn Gidman...
A cat from Utah is back safe with its owners after a frightening journey to California in an Amazon returns package. Carrie Clark says their indoor kitty Galena vanished from their home on April 10, and a frantic search ensued throughout their neighborhood for the next week, reports KSL. "The anxiety and stress of not knowing what happened to her was excruciating," Clark says. Then, "I got a call that changed everything," she posted to Facebook, per KTLA. That call was from a vet in California, more than 600 miles away, telling Clark they'd scanned the microchip for a cat that had been brought in and it was Galena.
"I didn't believe her at first and thought it was a prank," Clark tells KSL. As it turns out, a worker at an Amazon return center named Brandy had opened one of the boxes and discovered Galena stashed away with five pairs of work boots; Brandy dropped Galena off with the vet the next day after caring for it overnight. Clark says she and her husband realized that their cat must've slipped into a big box of returns they'd shipped out. The vet's phone call was the "most amazing, insane news in the entire world," Clark tells the BBC.
Clark and her husband flew to Los Angeles the next day to retrieve Galena, who knew her humans right away. "Galena instantly stopped shaking and relaxed in my arms when I got to hold her again," she tells KSL, noting that the cat was thinner and slightly dehydrated, but otherwise OK. She also attributes Galena's survival to a combination of factors, including Brandy being a rescue cat expert; mild weather conditions that allowed Galena to not be too cold or too hot; and a small slit in the box that gave her air to breathe. Now, Clark offers an important piece of advice for other pet owners: "Triple-check your Amazon boxes!"
Given that my wife and I own a cat, I can relate. Especially when “Bluey” has the propensity to explore any and every thing new on what she considers her turf. Just last week, my wife spent a frantic two hours searching for her after a repairman left. She feared that “Bluey” had climbed into his truck and been whisked away to parts unknown.
Fortunately, later in the day, “Her Royal Highness” (my name for “Bluey”) came sauntering home and deigned to grant us a brief audience before enjoying her accustomed sumptuous royal evening banquet.
Bluey’s arrogance and Galena’s misfortune notwithstanding, one cannot help but be touched by this story. The fear and disorientation of the hapless cat, the worry and fret of her owners, the empathy of the Amazon employee, the prudence of the veterinarian… all these things speak to the heart. For they reflect story after story employed in Holy Scripture to show us just how much we are loved by God.
After all, Adam and Eve went astray; but God still pursued them. The same can be said for Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Jonah, Peter, Paul, and any number of characters that populate the pages of the Bible. The same can also be said of you and me. The Bible affirms this in Isaiah (chapter 53, verse 6) when it states: “All we like sheep have gone astray…”
This latter statement comes in the midst of the famed “Suffering Servant” passage (Chapter 52, Verse 13 – Chapter 53, Verse 12) of the Old Testament Prophet Isaiah, in which we get a prophetic preview of the forthcoming ministry of Jesus Christ - the very One ordained to be God’s suffering servant on behalf of all who have ever gone astray. This is why the latter half of Isaiah 53:6 states: “and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
You see, in the story above, the cat’s owners, upon discovering the whereabouts of their lost pet, flung cost to the wind, and immediately made pursuit, irrespective of the price. At the news that their beloved pet had been found, neither the price of airline tickets, the price of a vet’s bill, nor the price of any other expense that might be incurred mattered. With joy, they journeyed forth to redeem Galena.
And in like manner, in Christ Jesus, God was about seeking and saving all who are lost, no matter the cost. Therefore, God laid upon His One and Only Son, Jesus Christ, that cost, which was the sacrifice of His very life. The innocent for the guilty. The blameless for the beguiled. The pure for the contaminated.
As one who went astray, and who was sought and found and redeemed by the God I willingly abandoned, all I can say is “Thank you, Lord!”
I sincerely hope you share this sentiment!
SOURCES:
NEWS STORY:
https://www.newser.com/story/349641/cat-slips-into-amazon-returns-box-takes-600-mile-trip.html.
SCRIPTURE:
https://biblehub.com/kjv/isaiah/52.htm;
https://biblehub.com/kjv/isaiah/53.htm.