This May, Star Wars hits the big screen for the first time in several years with The Mandalorian and Grogu, a cinematic expansion on the popular streaming franchise. In anticipation for the movie, Star Wars social media has been sharing clips and scenes from past episodes of The Mandalorian. While most videos are of Mando flying or shooting or of Grogu using the force or being cute - everything you would expect from the series - there is one clip that was different. Instead of adrenaline, one clip went for the heart.
In a scene from Season 3, Episode 24, we see Din Djarin, the Mandalorian, attempt to add Grogu to the clan of the Mandolorians. The Armorer, official keeper of Mandalorian tradition, denies Din Djarin’s request, stating that Grogu cannot speak therefor he can’t take the creed. The Mandalorian then asks if Grogu’s parents can speak for him. While the Armorer approves of the request, she states that Grogu’s parents are not present and may not be alive. Din Djarin responds by offering to adopt Grogu, making him Grogu’s father and Grogu a part of the clan. The scene tugs on the heartstrings, cementing the bond that grew between the Mandalorian and Grogu through the episodes.
It is also indicative of how I feel about my cat.
I rescued Oliver on August 1st, 2024. It was the second time in his six years he was rescued. It will be the last time.
Oliver aka Oily aka Oily Boily first came into my apartment in November 2022. I attempted to help his owner, a friend at the time, get back on her feet. She rescued Oliver when he was a kitten and moved him from Florida to various states then back to Florida. He lived with her mother, her friends, and her significant and not-so-significant others. When I opened my home to her, she brought him with her. Unfortunately, the demons of substance abuse and addiction were too much for our friendship to bear and I told her to leave in July 2024. When she left, she took Oliver.
For the year and half that she on and off crashed at my place, Oliver was always hers. He and I got along, but he had a mom. And when she left with him, I thought about getting another cat. But when my friend’s mother called me three weeks later at nearly 11pm to say my friend abandoned Oliver at the home of an old high school friend and the friend was going to get rid of him the next day, I drove 40 minutes to make Oliver mine.
When I picked him up at the high school friend’s apartment, Oliver was scared. While the guy was nice, he had Oliver in a cage. My feline friend was in a strange place with a strange person, locked behind cold, metal bars. He was sad and he was scared.
By the time I returned home with Oliver, it was just short of midnight. I had no idea if he had been fed or not, so after letting him out of his cage so he could re-acclimate to my apartment, I raced to the nearest 7-11 for a few cans of cat food. I remember giving him half a can of turkey feast. He ate as if he hadn’t eaten in days.
To be honest, during the first few days, I wasn’t sure I was going to keep him. If she came back, I was ready to give him to her and bid them both farewell, especially if it meant her leaving and never coming back. I had zero interest in getting re-tangled in her problems.
But I quickly realized I couldn’t give him away. He deserved better. He deserved a good home. When he curled next to me on the couch on his second day back and placed his head on my leg, I knew I was that good home. I was the better he deserved.
Almost two years later, Oliver has become my little guy. He curls up to me almost every night. He is always in what ever room I am in, even the bathroom. He gets hugs. He gets treats. He gets more than enough toys. He gets spoiled on his birthday. He sits on the porch of my apartment and watches the ducks swim in the pond. He is living his best life.
Like Grogu, I don’t know where Oliver’s parent is or if she is even alive. We hope she is sober and safe but those are her choices to make. We have charted our own journey. Like Din Djarin, I might not have intended to have a little guy in my life, but sometimes the Force works in mysterious ways. Like the Mandalorian and Grogu, Oliver and I are a team. We are a family.
This is the way.
