Briefly about yourself:
Cathie Cayros is my pen name. I am a member of the Eurasian Creative Guild, the Union of Writers of North America. Participant and winner of many international awards, competitions and laureates, holder of diplomas and prizes. I have more than thirty-five publications in different countries of the world. My books have been published on Amazon and other international electronic platforms. Born in Moscow, she lived in France for about 30 years, in a picturesque place, not far from the Swiss border. This 14th century fishing village, located on the shores of Lake Leman, has been admired by many artists and poets of past centuries. And now I also find inspiration for my creativity. I am a doctor, Doctor of Medical Sciences. Thanks to my medical education, I have a good understanding of human psychology.

Cathie Cayros — мой литературный псевдоним. Я член Евразийской творческой Гильдии, Союза Писателей Северной Америки. Участник и победитель многих международных премий, конкурсов и фестивалей, награждена дипломами и призами. У меня более тридцати пяти публикаций в разных странах мира. Мои книги опубликованы на Amazon и других международных электронных площадках. Родилась в Москве, а живу во Франции около 30 лет, в живописном месте, недалеко от границы Швейцарии. Это рыбацкая деревня 14 века, расположенная на берегу озера Леман, которым восхищались многие художники и поэты прошлых столетий. А теперь и я получаю вдохновение для своего творчества. Я врач, доктор медицинский наук. Писательство для меня все еще довольно новая сфера. Благодаря моему медицинскому образованию, я неплохо разбираюсь в психологии человека, вникая в суть его характер, стараясь увидеть и понять причины его душевного состояния. Мне повезло в жизни, получив литературный дар, я с большим удовольствием представляю себя на страницах моих книг и чувствую себя счастливой!
Благодарю всех моих друзей, коллег и читателей, которые разделяют мои интересы и читают мои произведения!

 
DAILY LIFE SCENES (Ironic short story)
Spring is in full bloom, and my kitchen is bathed in the bright rays of the morning sun.
I am always fascinated by this time of the day, when it’s quite in the house and I can have my ritual breakfast
without being bothered by anyone. Yes, this is exactly what I mean.

For the last twenty years, I have been constantly fighting with a very serious opponent: unwanted extra calories. I believe
that many women know exactly what I mean. No matter how many diets I have tried, no matter what exercises I have been
practicing, everything boils down to one single fact: I should eat less. I have put up with it and accepted it as an axiom. That is why I always eat my last meal between four and five pm. In the evening, when my enemy is ready to strike and conquer me, I entertain the thought of the upcoming morning and my delicious breakfast. The fragrant smell of coffee, a ham and cheese toast, fresh and crispy, a glass of orange juice, and, for sure, some cottage cheese with berry jam. I am writing this, and my imagination runs wild, picturing these sweet images and arousing delight!

The silence in the house is interrupted by the bells ringing on a church tower. Every thirty minutes the sound does not let us forget that the time is inexorably moving forward and, what is interesting is that it is passing by faster and faster year-by-year. That is why we have learnt to ignore the bells and not to compete with time, therefore deceiving ourselves. However, these sounds sometimes do remind us of themselves, like a warning signal, and then we have to admit its superiority.

My daughter’s dogs are at mine today, and they are not used to hearing the music of the bells ringing. They are growling slightly, raising their heads, sighing restlessly, and fussing around on their bedding.

Three dachshunds – a whole family. The father of the family is called Romeo. He won all possible prizes at the international
exhibition in Geneva. He is a threat to all strangers who visit the house. Every single time he attempts to bite someone. He even bit a policeman once, which made us collect a bunch of medical clearances to prove his friendly nature – an absolute lie. There is a long list of victims – I can’t even remember all of them — who were fortunate enough to get familiar and play with this friendly dog, all of them marked with huge bruises left by his healthy teeth. The most interesting thing is that this handsome always gets away with everything. A victim is normally very frustrated at first and even angry, then they recover from a fright, look at his innocent face and no longer seeks justice against the bully. Romeo’s physical characteristics and a distinguished pedigree deserve the highest award as well. That is why he was honored to supply for an exclusive canine sperm bank in Switzerland, so his peaceful genes will be spread further.

Juliette is a miniature dachshund and the mother of the family. She also won a lot of affection and recognition from the public at international competitions. She is a sophisticated, skittish, and independent creature. She is graciously bustling about on her thin legs like a lady on high heels. Well, her rear paws are not exactly the definition of perfection: she is a bit club-footed and wouldn’t be great at ballet. However, this tiny detail does not make her less
attractive. What can you do? It’s just a peculiarity of the breed. Juliette has seven puppies with the menacing Romeo. The little cuties were taken in the blink of an eye. There was only one problem. This elite couple actually belongs to different weight categories. Juliette is a miniature dachshund, and Romeo is a standard one, so their children did not qualify for the first-class category of the dog community of Switzerland and ended up being left behind without the documents for the privilege club.

Carla, the daughter of the renowned parents, lives with them. She is big, chubby, and somewhat clumsy, but she has a really good temper and is very affectionate. I was enjoying my breakfast in this respectable company, admiring the beauty of the spring garden from the porch. There was a lot to see and hear.

The birds, excited at the spring sunny day, were singing and twittering all around. Their life was in full swing, they were
actively making connections, trying to find a mate to start a family and build home for their future birdlings. That is why all those tireless birds were singing so beautifully and vividly, in different voices, in every possible way, pleasing everyone who heard them. The only thing that slightly bothers me is that they are nestling on my porch. I witnessed a drama twice already: crows destroyed their carefully built nests. The barbarians settled down on the rooftop of my neighbors’ house and make disgusting croaking sounds, sitting out there. It is a pure joy to watch and admire the little feathered architects doing their job. I was watching them from the moment they started to nestle with genuine interest. Then
they laid eggs, then they were brooding, then feeding their birdlings. I watch them growing up, and I saw their first flight. I observe them quietly, getting new impressions and learning from the life around me. All of a sudden, the filthy crows suddenly attack the nestle and eat its inhabitants, throwing around the remains of the meal right in front of the wingy parents, frantic with grief. When you witness these dramatic events, you are going to remember for a long time about the murdered innocent creatures who you hadn’t been able to save. Now I don’t want any nestles on my porch!
So here I am, feeling blessed and delighted by my early morning breakfast in the company of my loyal drowsy friends, with
breathtaking beauty in the background, in the lushness of rhododendrons, irises, peonies and many other flowers of the
rainbow in bloom.

Suddenly the heavenly silence is ruined by a huge bumblebee flown into the room with a buzzing sound! Frightened, it flies
around the kitchen at a furious pace, smashing against the walls and windows, continuing to produce its buzzing sound non-stop!

What happens next deserves to be staged! Or could it be a well-written script for a cartoon?

The three dachshunds leap up at the same time.

The terror to the neighborhood, our menacing father of the family, apparently growls: “Run for your life!” and dashes out of the open door, rushing to the peonies and trying to hide behind them. Then I see his face from behind the garden-bed and I can clearly see he is scared to death from what he has just seen and heard. The mother of the family is following him, trotting short, with the same expression of primal fear on her face, and when she reaches the bushes and hides behind them, she makes a whimpering sound. How expressive can they be, these furry faces!

Now there are only three of us in the kitchen: me, Carla and the bumblebee. Carla is courageously attacking the bumblebee, trying to fetch it from the window, but it keeps on smashing against the glass, trying to break free from the prison it accidentally had got into. As a result, Carla chases the insect down the dogs’ rug and it hides there pretty safely. She is scratching the tiled floor with her strong paws, growling threateningly and showing how angry she is, fussing about the rug and trying her best to get the perpetrator, disturbing her peace. All in vain!

This is so funny! The elite couple literally abandoned their daughter in danger and ran away from the monster, while the
courageous daughter was taking the blow upon herself. Ten minutes passed. Carla is fighting a losing battle against the
bumblebee, staying on the alert. She is sitting against the rug, waiting for the hiding enemy to move, like a cat watching over a mouse at its hole. The dog is anticipating a fight. The little hero is up to something and only she knows what it is. Well, I can assume! She is trying to prove her parents that she is brave and can save them from danger. Her parents though still see her as a failure. They are arrogant to her because she wasn’t able to get the honorable prizes and isn’t a member of the privileged club.

Meanwhile, her folks calmed down and don’t see any threat to their life anymore so they put a brave face and come back to the kitchen as if nothing happened. Romeo is walking in front on his short strong paws, puffing out his chest with pride. Juliette is following him, looking natural and relaxed, and jumping over the doorstep. Nothing about their behavior reminds about the recent panic; they’re acting as if they’re just coming back from a walk. I know that the performance isn’t over yet and am looking forward to its ending.

I did not have to wait for too long. The intimated bumblebee finally makes an audacious move. It flies out of its shelter with a terrible buzz – the only weapon it has got.

The whole scene is replayed again! The parents, scared to death, are rushing back to the entrance and get stuck in the doorway because the wind nearly closed the door in front of their faces. They are growling, pushing each other with their butts, and helping each other to get out of the dangerous place. Finally, they run away from the enemy. “Help! Murder!”

The frantic pack escape into the remote part of the garden, climb under a huge bush and, I guess, sit and tremble like a leaf there, snuggling against each other and not even thinking of their unfortunate daughter, abandoned again one on one with the enemy.

Carla finally managed to bite the bumblebee slightly with her young sharp teeth.

“Carla!” I call her. “Hey, let go of it! Spit!”

The surprised dog spit the insect out and gave me a questioning look. “Aren’t you going to praise me?” I could clearly read in her eyes. “Well done! Good girl!” I told her gently and patted her. She immediately wagged her tail.
Now it was my turn to take an action and save the bumblebee. I wrapped it in a napkin, took it out and put it on a peony.

“Don’t get yourself in trouble again, you dangerous creature!”

Then I looked at the bushes where the elite arrogant brats were hiding. Not a stirring. I guess the poor couple was petrified by fear. What an incredible adventure they had to survive! It wasn’t easy for them! Besides, they will have to return with disgrace. I felt sorry for the dogs. Anyway, I’m sure these dodgers will know how to turn the situation to their advantage and look better in their daughter’s eyes!
Cathie Cayros 2023