Week 5 Storytelling: Dan and Gladys Forever

Lightning struck the giant tree not even thirty yards from the house, and it immediately burst into flames for no more than five seconds before the torrential downfall extinguished the fire. Dan was scared. “I don’t want our house to catch on fire, even if it is only for a second,” Dan said to his fat grey cat, Gladys.

Gladys said nothing in return; she was only a cat.

The storm stopped in the early morning, and Dan went outside to look at his yard. There was more than one tree damaged by the lightning, but there was no damage to his house. He looked at Gladys and said, “I’m glad that you, me, and the house are safe. But I wish the place looked nicer since my brother will be here before too long.”

Dan was a laid-back guy with not much going on in his life. He loved his cat, he liked his job as a book critic, and he didn’t like things that made him have to leave his house or go out of his way. He was happy when family members, like his brother Brian, came to visit him because it meant that he didn’t have to go to visit them.

Around lunchtime, Brian knocked on Dan and Gladys’ front door. “Hey bro, how’s the hermit life?” Brian asked his older, shorter, and balder brother.

“No complaints,” said Dan.

Before an hour had passed, the brothers slipped into their routine. Brian was looking around the house, fixing little things that he found that had fallen into disrepair since his last visit, while Dan was cooking dinner and playing with Gladys.

“How old is that cat getting to be?” Brian asked Dan.

“Oh, she’s old alright, but she’ll probably hold out for a few more years at least. She likes it here better than she did at the old place,” Dan answered. He tended to be more motivated to talk when he was talking about Gladys, something his talkative brother never understood. Dan continued, “Oh and by the way, I’ve got to go to the post office tomorrow to pick up this quarter’s new book releases so I can start reviewing them. Will you be okay here with Gladys?”

Brian looked at Gladys and said, “Oh sure, me and the cat will be just fine. As long as she doesn’t croak on me.”

The next day while Dan was gone, Brian heard someone yelling outside. He looked out of the window and saw a woman with a basketful of kittens. Brian asked her what she was doing.

“I’m just exchanging any old, grey cats for brand-new white kittens. I thought I saw an old cat around here. Do you want a kitten?” the woman said.

“Yeah sure! That would be great!  Here, go ahead and take this old one. We won’t be needing it any more!” Brian was excited about doing something nice for his brother.

Once Dan got home and saw the new cat, he asked where Gladys was, since it was her usual dinnertime.

“Check out this new kitten!” was Brian’s only reply.

“Yes, I see the kitten, but where is Gladys?” Dan persisted.

Brian explained, “I exchanged her for a brand-new little white one! There was just this woman walking around offering to switch, and I thought it would be nice to have a new pet.”

Dan was shocked. “What? Why would you do that? What is your problem? Gladys was my best friend! You can’t preemptively replace her with some kitten from the street!”

Brian really didn’t understand anything about his brother. Who would rather have an adult cat than a cute little kitten? “Hey man, I’m really sorry. I really thought I was doing you a favor. I’m sure I can find your old cat. The woman trading them out can’t be that far away,” Brian said, trying to placate his brother.

Brian did eventually find Gladys, and she and Dan continued to live together for many years. A few months after Brian left Dan’s house, the two brothers made up. Dan and Brian had been brothers for all their lives after all, so they were fairly accustomed to never understanding anything about each other.

Author’s Note: The original story of Aladdin and his magic lamp with the genie inside has an interesting plot point where his wife falls into a trap set by someone jealous of Aladdin. The jealous sorcerer decided to advertise that he’s exchanging old lamps (like the one with the genie inside) for new lamps. When Aladdin finds out that his wife has traded his valuable lamp for a new, genie-less one, he sets out to bring back his genie and endless wishes. I thought it was really funny that the jealous sorcerer thought that the lamp-switch was a good idea, and it was even funnier that Aladdin’s wife fell for such an odd trick! I also wanted to tell a story with a lot of dialogue that begins in the middle of something exciting, like a thunderstorm. Although Aladdin has a lot of interesting magic, I wanted to tell a more realistic story. And who doesn’t love cats named Gladys? I also wanted to give a shout out to adult pets, since puppies and kittens usually get so much attention. I think that adult pets are more fun than young ones because then you can really get to know their personality and you don’t have to train them or spend all of your time entertaining them!

Bibliography: This story is part of the Arabian Nights unit. Story source: The Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1898).

Image Information: Grey cat