Cat ,me and Toxoplasma gondii..

The cat was sitting at the corner of the small drawing room,licking its paws and body,truly and sincerely engaged in a self cleaning process.It was not interested in me or was keeping its same old mask of indefferent attitude hiding its real vigilant face below . I kept reading the article in the magazine while sitting comfortably in the sofa.I was at my friend's home.she was busy making coffee for us in kitchen.
My thoughts wandered a little from the article I was reading and then came back to the cat.she was a white cat with some black patches in her body and face.she has a bushy tail.Overall she looked beautiful with her golden corneas and lanceolate shaped pupils.
I was very fond of cats in my childhood days.I loved them for their nature.A generalised distrust,observation of things standing at a distance,no closeness to anyone,indefference in attitude,singleness,independent lifestyle,wandering and seeking things etc.They are the ultimate freedome lovers.They can wander in to too many distances and come back and show the same behavior as they have never been away from the house.They dont run away from risks,but they are curious about new things and try to findout the mystery underneathe.They hate being kept closed unlike dogs.But like to be caressed and pampered.Love cosy beds and quite sleeps under your blanket.Always neat and clean in appearance .Very vigilant in approaches.I had always a cat with me when I was growing up.I used to play with it and watch it playing with mice and snakes.Cats know the techniques of conquering their enemies.And they can be the most sadistic hunters with their preys.They enjoy life like a game.Even dogs are scared of cats when they live under same roof. I have seen my dog at home wailing its tail when he see the cat of the house.!
My cat love was too strong in adolescence.My cat used to sleep in my bed.Sometimes when I study ,he used to sleep on my lap or chest.I think the cat understood me well those days as I understood him .
And all this love for cats is stolen from me forever by another villain called toxoplasma gondii later when I became a doctor.Toxoplasma is a microscopic intracellular organism.It is harboured by cats in their intestines.It can infect humans when they caress cats.Adult infection is usually assymptomatic and doesnot cause any harm.But the infection when happens in pregnancy,the fetus growing inside the womb can get affected.It can become stillborn,or can be affected with hydrocephalus,chorioretinitis,intracranial calcifications.This can all leads to severe mental retardation,blindness and convulsions in surviving children.
So after studying about this tiny toxoplasma thing,and its power to affect a newborn human life,my love towards cats dissappeared.Whenever my kids demanded for cats or they smuggled small kittens in to the home we had terrible fights and I used to give them a whole lot of reasons,why one shuld not love a cat.Hearing my lecture they will pullout a picture of mine with my cat from my old album and ask me."how could you keep this cat then?and why cant we now?"
And I never tried to explain them that I was not a doctor that time and how I endedup from a doglover to a dog hater after witnessing a rabid man convulsing and dying slowly and alone in its isolation cell during my medical schooldays.