Today after going hiking, my friends and I were sitting on the tram on our way back into town and right after we got on, a large group of teenage guys got on and sat all around us. They were loud and obnoxious, but didn't really bother us too much. I couldn't help but think though of all the times I or my friends have been stared at or have been bothered on the tram, or have run into creepers on the tram and on hikes, and it made feel a little insecure. It would probably be less intimidating if I was fluent in French though. But I just felt a little frustrated and annoyed with the fact that I often can't ride a few stops on the stupid tram without feeling slightly threatened.
Then, God made me change my mind a little.
A woman got on the tram holding 2 large bags and a small cat with bright green eyes. She first sat down next to a man, who promptly got up. I suppose he might have had an allergy. But the woman moved over to sit in front of me and my friends. I tried not to stare too much, but it was a very cute and well behaved cat. It kept crawling around on her lap and shoulder and laid on her stomach for a while, and attempted to crawl onto my friends lap. I could see out of the corner of my eye I could see a small child behind me sitting on their grandmother's lap looking at the cat, but couldn't tell what they were saying. A few minutes later, the grandmother and the child--an adorable little girl with curls and wearing a red coat--came up to the woman and asked if the girl could pet the cat. The women held the cat out and told her it was a nice cat and not to be scared. After a few seconds of hesitation with her hand held out, she petted the cat's head a bit and it started purring. We had arrived at their stop though, so the grandmother told her to come along and tell the cat goodbye. The girl replied "au revoir chatte," and followed her grandma off the tram. After a few minutes, a group of people behind me were obviously interested in the cat and were calling out to it. The owner laughed and the cat widened it's eyes and seemed to want to crawl to them too. Everyone around seemed pretty interested in this little cat.
During all of this, my friends and I couldn't help but smiling the whole time, and I had to constantly resist the urge to grab the cat and cuddle with it.
There are lots of big and interesting things I could tell you about France, but I think it's the small things that make a place truly beautiful.
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