How “Searching For Silky” Came To Be

By Nancy Taylor

“Searching For Silky” began when I told my mother about a certain cat I had met at my workplace. I was very excited about this particular little animal, which was unexpected since I don’t actually like cats. I find them to be inscrutable and aloof. My mother said I should write a book about this cat!

My mother was a literature expert/lover, and a marvelous teacher, constantly full of wonderful ideas and inspirations. I adored her. So I knew I must do this. Heaven only knows why she thought I could. I had an idea of what she envisioned my book to be. A children’s book. A warm and fuzzy, sweet little tale about a darling, loveable cat. I knew I could not possibly do that.

So…What to do? How to begin? The only approach to this “assignment” that I found possible was to simply observe this elusive, feral, fiercely wild animal whenever I could, and record my observations. Many times I could only talk about this cat’s surroundings, and other feral cats appearing on the scene. I named my cat “Silky”, and I loved her even though our encounters were rare.

Years later, my mother gradually became infirm — wandering of mind and feeble of body. Heartbreaking as it was, we stayed with her, both physically and spiritually. I read the beginning of my book to her, and what had so far been completed of the main body. I was shy about doing this, and I demurred at first by saying that I thought my book was odd. Her reply: “Of course it’s odd. Look who wrote it.”

After hearing this confidence-robbing remark, I nevertheless launched into my reading of it aloud to her. She loved Part One. Part One relates how I managed to capture wild Silky in a cage and bring her to a vet to be examined, spayed, and inoculated against feline diseases. My mother enjoyed the suspense involved in my attempts to accomplish the whole procedure.

But when I read the first paragraphs of Part Two, the rather prosaic listing of my observations of Silky’s environment {basically a description of a parking lot), I lost her. Her attention wandered away to some other place in her mind which I could never know. Thus ended the sharing of my book with her, my mother, my inspiration, my source, always my fierce backer. She died some time afterwards.

I doggedly forged ahead with the book. I had no idea where I was going with it, constantly asking myself, “Why? Why am I doing this? Sitting in my car in the emptied parking lot of my workplace for hours…waiting for an evasive, shy, feral cat to appear…really doing nothing” (It would seem!)

In order to include what I considered to be some worthwhile, quality reading, I added lots of relevant poems by esteemed poets throughout. Most of those poems were later cut from my book. It was pointed out to me by my Ballast Publishing editors that people are interested in hearing my voice, reading what I have to say, and how I say it, rather than reviewing what others have said. This notion was later corroborated by one of my grown sons, always an honest and true supporter of mine, when he said that he would have skipped over all of the poems due to his lack of interest in poetry in general.

A very important part of this whole process was collaborating with my 5-year-old granddaughter Ava on the drawing of the interior illustrations. I gave her very little direction as to what I wanted portrayed. “Draw a tree, please.” “Draw the face of a cat emphasizing the fascinating eyes.” To this day I’m excited and bowled over at how perfectly all of her drawings illustrate the message behind my writing. How could she have perceived my deep message at all, never mind so well. I don’t fully attribute this miracle to the fact that she comes from a family of distinguished graphic artists (her mother and her grandmother). Basically, I wanted primitive, childlike, expressionistic. I got that of course, but also much more.

Gradually I put together in my head the searched for feral cat Silky and the beautiful rural, mostly undeveloped land surrounding my parking lot. These two elements (Silky and her environment) quite naturally came slowly together in my mind during the hours I spent gazing around me, searching for Silky. It took some time to dawn on me, but they eventually became as one for me. At that point, I finally knew what I was searching for and writing about. I became inspired with an important message to the world — search for, embrace, and protect wildness. Be ever careful as to how the wild spaces on our planet are treated. Leave them be. As H. D. Thoreau said, “In wildness is the preservation of the world.”

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SEARCHING FOR SILKY

In the quiet hum of everyday life, a chance encounter with a stray cat named Silky becomes the catalyst for an unexpected journey of self-discovery.

Searching for Silky is a heartwarming memoir that chronicles the profound connection between a woman and the feline that wandered into her world, along with the unexpected wisdom found in the wild spaces around us. More than just a story of the bond formed with Silky, this book is a meditation on the delicate balance of nature and human experience. As the author recounts her connection with Silky, she finds herself drawn deeper into the natural world, observing the subtle rhythms of life that often go unnoticed.

Through lyrical prose and poignant reflections, Searching for Silky explores the power of observation, the solace found in nature’s embrace, and the unexpected lessons learned from a creature that embodies the world’s wild spirit. Readers will be captivated by the tender bond between humans and nature and inspired to look closer at the world around them, finding beauty and meaning in the simplest of moments.

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Tags: featured, women writers

Category: On Writing